About
Content
Store
Forum

Rebirth of Reason
War
People
Archives
Objectivism


Value- (or Will-) Determinism

Sanctions: 11
Sanctions: 11
Sanctions: 11
Value- (or Will-) Determinism
Value-Determinism (or Will-Determinism) is a 'school of thought' defended by Bill Dwyer and Roger Bissel (though, to my knowledge, only Bill Dwyer has written official publications about it).

The central tenet of value-determinism is that human choices aren't really "free" in the absolute sense -- as choices made without reasoning or motive. What Bill and Roger would have liked -- like post-modern scientists wishing for value-free or value-neutral science -- is for free will to be value-free, in this absolute sense. Then they would be happy to call free will "free."

Since free choice isn't so "free" -- since it springs up from underlying values, reasoning, and motives -- Bill and Roger thought it necessary to explain that the choices don't spring up from the person ex nihilo, but that things (values, reasons, motives) "make" these choices 'for us.'

The problem with this is that it's Freudian. The things that make us make choices, like our intellect and reasoning (SuperEgo) or our emotions or motives (Id) are, actually parts of ourselves -- not separate entities controlling us.

Those values, that reasoning, those motives ... that's YOU! So value-determinism is contradictory, nothing is outside you, determining your behavior -- you are, from the inside.

Ed

Added by Ed Thompson
on 7/30, 1:40pm

Favorite EditSanction this Blog entryDiscuss this Blog entry (31 messages)