Developing Usable Experiences

Thinking about “relative” free will

May 15th, 2008 11:12 pm —  143 views

I made some comment on Twitter the other night about free will and choice. A classmate replied by posting a link detailing some research aimed at demonstrating that there was no such thing as free will. This got me thinking about the nature of will and what it means.

The will I’m talking about here is “will-power”, or the conscious decision and power to choose one’s own actions. The notion of free will is rife with debate and has been analyzed for centuries. It seems the idea of free will is tied up with notions of morality and that can be a real slippery slope. So I’m going to take a more Buddhist approach to this and include the word “relative” in front of “free will.”

Why relative free will? The way I see it, we all have the power to make decisions and to act according to our own interests. However, any action or decision we make is always bound to a particular situation. Every situation we find ourselves in is the result of prior causes and effects. You don’t just find yourself in a particular job, living with a particular person, all of a sudden. The causes that bring us to “now” are the result of decisions made, or not made, and the situations in which those choices presented themselves.

Maybe your wondering (like me) where I’m going with this. I suppose I’m relating this to the idea of taking small steps. Each step implies a decision to take that step. It is so easy to go through life in a mindless way, not paying attention to where you’re stepping and which direction your heading. But the notion of relative free will1 reminds us that we have some control. The process of cause and effect will continue whether you do something or do nothing. Some control is better than none. If you’re hungry, look for something to eat. Don’t wait for someone to bring you food.

I’m reminding myself to pay attention. Sometimes it is important to not make any decisions. Likewise, sometimes you have to make a decision because your intellectual facilities afford you the ability to foresee cause and effect. Like deciding not to react to something that will only come back to haunt you. It is difficult to be neutral, to find that balance. And maybe some things don’t require a neutral stance. Sometimes you have to grab that nine iron and give it all you got to reach the green2.

Image: Waltzing Bear snapped this last week during golf. The creek on the 18th hole that has swallowed many a golf ball.

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  1. Meaning that the decisions we make are always relative to the situation in which a decision is made, or not made. [↩]
  2. I shot a 48 this week. Not a great night from a weather perspective, but I had a good time. Waltzing Bear may not have had his rhythm, but he is fun to be around. [↩]

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One Response to “Thinking about “relative” free will”

  1. Melanie on May 17th, 2008 8:29 am

    This was interesting. I think you touch on the idea that deciding NOT to do something – whether consciously or by inertia – is a choice as much as affirmatively taking action.

    Hope you’re well – haven’t seen you in my neck of the woods recently, but I thought of you when I saw someone found my blog by searching “own that shix”!

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