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Intentionality and "free-will" from a neurodevelopmental perspective.

Gerry Leisman1, Calixto Machado, Robert Melillo

  • 1National Institute for Brain and Rehabilitation Sciences Nazareth, Israel.

Frontiers in Integrative Neuroscience
|July 4, 2012
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Human behavior is predictable, suggesting free-will may be an illusion. However, goal-directed actions and age-related experiences shape choices, indicating a developmental basis for decision-making and voluntary control.

Keywords:
electrophysiologyfixed-action patternsfree-willfrontal-lobefunctional connectiongoal directionself-regulation

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Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Cognitive Science
  • Developmental Psychology

Background:

  • Free-will is explored as a function of intentionality, probability, and determinism.
  • Human behavior exhibits high predictability, challenging traditional notions of free-will.
  • Age-related goal establishment and fixed action patterns (FAPs) influence choices.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To explore the nature of free-will within intentionality and probabilistic/deterministic frameworks.
  • To investigate the relationship between age, goal-directed behavior, and the development of free-will.
  • To hypothesize the evolutionary and developmental expansion of the prefrontal cortex in relation to voluntary control.

Main Methods:

  • Review of neurobiology, neurohistology, and electrophysiology of brain development.
  • Analysis of developmental trajectories of decision-making functions.
  • Examination of frontal lobe neurological development and inter-regional brain connectivities.

Main Results:

  • Data suggests age correlates with effective goal establishment via FAPs.
  • FAPs produce outcomes that modify subsequent choices, influencing perceived free-will.
  • Goal-directed behavior and choice appear linked to the expansion of frontal lobe regions.

Conclusions:

  • Free-will may be understood as the voluntary control of fixed action patterns, shaped by experience and age.
  • Prefrontal cortex development is hypothesized to be an expansion driven by the need for cognitive control over goal-directed behavior.
  • Neurological development, brain connectivity, and decision-making are interconnected aspects influencing the emergence of free-will.