Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Concept Videos

The Availability Heuristic01:08

The Availability Heuristic

6.7K
A heuristic is a general problem-solving framework (Tversky & Kahneman, 1974). You can think of these as mental shortcuts that are used to solve problems. Different types of heuristics are used in different types of situations, and the impulse to use a heuristic occurs when one of five conditions is met (Pratkanis, 1989):
6.7K
Preparedness and Phobias01:09

Preparedness and Phobias

200
Human fear responses to certain stimuli, such as darkness, heights, deep water, and blood, can often arise despite the absence of direct negative experiences. This phenomenon is rooted in evolutionary psychology, which posits that humans have developed a predisposition to fear stimuli that historically posed significant survival threats. This predisposition, known as preparedness, suggests that early humans who developed a fear of potentially dangerous entities, such as venomous snakes and...
200
Potential Energy00:52

Potential Energy

41.5K
The energy stored by a structure and location of matter in space is called potential energy. For instance, raising a kettlebell changes its spatial location and increases its potential energy. Similarly, a stretched rubber band contains potential energy which, under certain conditions, can be converted into other forms of energy, such as kinetic energy.
Chemical bonds that form attractive forces between atoms also contain potential energy, called chemical energy. When a chemical reaction...
41.5K
Potential Energy01:09

Potential Energy

801
A conservative force, such as a gravitational or elastic force, gives the body the capacity to do work. This capacity, measured as the potential energy, depends on the body's location or “position” relative to a fixed reference position or datum. The gravitational potential energy is considered zero at the reference point. Suppose a body is located at some vertical distance above a fixed horizontal reference or datum. In that case, the weight of the body has positive gravitational potential...
801
Unrealistic Optimism Bias01:30

Unrealistic Optimism Bias

65
Unrealistic optimism bias is the tendency to overestimate the likelihood of positive outcomes. This cognitive bias makes individuals believe they are less likely to experience failures, setbacks, or risks and more likely to succeed than others. For example, people may assume they are less prone to health issues, accidents, or financial struggles than their peers, even when they share similar risk factors.One key component of this bias is the above-average effect, where individuals perceive...
65
Hindsight Biases01:12

Hindsight Biases

4.1K
Hindsight bias leads you to believe that the event you just experienced was predictable, even though it really wasn’t. In other words, you knew all along that things would turn out the way they did. Can you relate this to the phrase "Hindsight is 20/20" now? 
4.1K

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Speed of consciousness results: Implications for conscious agency and free will.

The Behavioral and brain sciences·2026
Same author

A caveat regarding the unfolding argument: implications of plasticity.

Neuroscience of consciousness·2026
Same author

DNA-PKcs inhibition sensitizes glioblastoma to radiotherapy through reprogramming of tumor cell states and immune microenvironment cell types.

Research square·2026
Same author

Factors that influence the amplitude of the bereitschaftspotential.

Neuroscience and biobehavioral reviews·2026
Same author

IFN signaling is associated with radiotherapy response in malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumors.

The Journal of clinical investigation·2026
Same author

On a confusion about there being two types of consciousness.

Trends in cognitive sciences·2025
Same journal

Misinformation as strategy: Epistemic consequences and the undermining of shared truth.

Trends in cognitive sciences·2026
Same journal

Geographical psychology: Spatial variation in psychological phenomena and their consequences.

Trends in cognitive sciences·2026
Same journal

Multi-brain neurofeedback: what are we training for?

Trends in cognitive sciences·2026
Same journal

The developing vocal self.

Trends in cognitive sciences·2026
Same journal

Searching beyond decrements: Attentional guidance across the adult lifespan.

Trends in cognitive sciences·2026
Same journal

Looking into working memory through micro eye movements.

Trends in cognitive sciences·2026
See all related articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Nov 7, 2025

Problem-Solving Before Instruction PS-I: A Protocol for Assessment and Intervention in Students with Different Abilities
10:26

Problem-Solving Before Instruction PS-I: A Protocol for Assessment and Intervention in Students with Different Abilities

Published on: September 11, 2021

4.2K

What Is the Readiness Potential?

Aaron Schurger1, Pengbo 'Ben' Hu2, Joanna Pak3

  • 1Department of Psychology, Crean College of Health and Behavioral Sciences, Chapman University, One University Drive, Orange, CA 92867, USA; Institute for Interdisciplinary Brain and Behavioral Sciences, Chapman University, 14725 Alton Parkway, Irvine, CA 92618, USA; INSERM, Cognitive Neuroimaging Unit, NeuroSpin Center, Gif sur Yvette 91191, France; Commissariat à l'Energie Atomique, Direction des Sciences du Vivant, I2BM, NeuroSpin Center, Gif sur Yvette 91191, France.

Trends in Cognitive Sciences
|May 1, 2021
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

The readiness potential (RP), a brain signal linked to movement preparation, may not be as informative about free will as previously thought. New research suggests a reassessment of its role in understanding volition.

Keywords:
computational modelconsciousnessdecisionfree willintentionvolition

More Related Videos

Determining the Functional Status of the Corticospinal Tract Within One Week of Stroke
09:10

Determining the Functional Status of the Corticospinal Tract Within One Week of Stroke

Published on: February 22, 2020

8.9K
An Emerging Target Paradigm to Evoke Fast Visuomotor Responses on Human Upper Limb Muscles
09:27

An Emerging Target Paradigm to Evoke Fast Visuomotor Responses on Human Upper Limb Muscles

Published on: August 25, 2020

4.5K

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Nov 7, 2025

Problem-Solving Before Instruction PS-I: A Protocol for Assessment and Intervention in Students with Different Abilities
10:26

Problem-Solving Before Instruction PS-I: A Protocol for Assessment and Intervention in Students with Different Abilities

Published on: September 11, 2021

4.2K
Determining the Functional Status of the Corticospinal Tract Within One Week of Stroke
09:10

Determining the Functional Status of the Corticospinal Tract Within One Week of Stroke

Published on: February 22, 2020

8.9K
An Emerging Target Paradigm to Evoke Fast Visuomotor Responses on Human Upper Limb Muscles
09:27

An Emerging Target Paradigm to Evoke Fast Visuomotor Responses on Human Upper Limb Muscles

Published on: August 25, 2020

4.5K

Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Cognitive Science
  • Philosophy of Mind

Background:

  • The readiness potential (RP) is a slow electrical potential recorded via electroencephalography, associated with movement preparation.
  • Benjamin Libet's research in 1983 used the RP to question the existence of free will.
  • The RP's implications for self-generated actions and free will have driven extensive scientific inquiry.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To re-evaluate the significance of the readiness potential (RP) in the context of volition and the free will debate.
  • To integrate recent computational modeling insights into the understanding of RP.
  • To challenge the traditional interpretation of RP as definitive evidence against free will.

Main Methods:

  • Review of existing literature on readiness potential.
  • Analysis of recent advances in understanding RP.
  • Computational modeling of neural phenomena related to RP.

Main Results:

  • Recent research and computational models offer new perspectives on the RP.
  • The traditional interpretation of RP's link to conscious intention is being questioned.
  • The RP's direct relevance to the philosophical problem of free will requires re-examination.

Conclusions:

  • The readiness potential's role in volition and free will is more complex than initially proposed.
  • Advances in neuroscience necessitate a revised understanding of the RP.
  • The philosophical debate on free will may benefit from a nuanced view of neural precursors to action.