What if we told you that there’s no such thing as free will? That’s the premise of Stanford professor Robert M. Sapolsky’s latest bestseller, Determined. He says that all human behavior is down to biological and environmental factors, not personal choices. What does that mean for how we live our lives?
Don’t Worry, Society Won’t Collapse
If free will is a myth, some may question the wisdom of acting with restraint. Why not just go wild? But research suggests that behavior (good or bad) isn’t correlated with belief. By recognizing the biological basis of behavior, we can remove blame and understand what people do in terms of nature and nurture. That will in turn make the world a better place, with more compassionate communities.
