There's serious science; you know, the rigorous setting and testing of hypotheses. Then there's what I call silly science, or affirmations grounded in silly thinking. This short piece spoofs the silly science of predeterminism.
People called predeterminists, my choice for their being spoofed here, insist that free wills and free won'ts are an illusion, and that our behavior is governed by internal or external forces over which we have no control, such as say, over our habits. But as a behavioral psychologist, I say balderdash!
I explain human behavior and its causality by relying on my notions of our human equation, our liberty quotient, and the true cause scale. All three in my opinion mock predeterminism and its adherents.
Our Human Equation [1]
It may just be the most important non-mathematical equation you will ever see in your life. As a matter of fact, it explains your life in general. Here is what the equation looks like:
The Person + The Context
=
The Person's Behavior + The Consequences
There are two points to make about this equation. 1.We never live or behave in a vacuum. Sometimes we deliberately create our context, or the circumstances and conditions, that affect our behavior in one way or another. 2. Our behavior is always consequential. Always? Really? Yes! Consider the example of my playing solitaire. Suppose I cheat in a game. So what? Wheres the consequence? Well, I have compromised my own morality once and may keep doing it. And there's the chance of the compromise spilling over into my public life.
Our Liberty Quotient [2]
# choices freely made
divided by
# choices prevented
To state the obvious, more powerful people can make and have implemented monumental choices whenever they choose to do so. In stark contrast, how many different choices can a homeless person make?
The True Cause Scale [3]
Years ago, I created the True Cause Scale. Here is what it looks like:
(Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher).
Post Article Comment and Rate This Article
