Who is in Charge of your Decisions?

 The idea of who is in charge of your decisions is a concept that has plagued humans and brought about more questions than answers. Albert Einstein, all the great philosophers to modern day individuals have all asked the question, in some form, who is in charge of my decisions?

Determinism, the idea that all future outcomes are inevitable and unavoidable is placed in contrast to freewill, where humans make decisions and therefore create their futures. Many are disturbed by arguments of determinism as the idea of not fully being in control of your thoughts is terifying to most. "It is a profound problem for without free will there can be no morality, no right and wrong, no good and evil. All our behaviour would be pre-determined and we would have no creativity or choice" (Space and Motion). Essentially, the idea that we are prisoners in our own body, is not appealing to many people.

There are also those that argue that both free will and determinism work in combination with each other. In this case, both free will and determinism are limited and both partially and equally affect the course of our lives. In the You Tube video, "Neuroscience of Free Will", scientists predict future decisions of an individual by viewing his brain activity 6 seconds before that individual actually makes that decision himself. This disturbs the case study participant who is astounded that the scientist can predict his decisions before he himself knows what he is about to do. The scientist beleives that the unconscious, or the decision made 6 seconds prior, works insync with the conscious brain activity, which is the decision you knowingly make. This argument made by the scientist, however, is an assertion that cannot be measured or tested. It is the idea that unconscious decisions are made within a conscious reality. Therefore, the astounding results of this test, and the speculative conscious and sub-conscious assertions of this scientist, brings us back to square one. 

The burning desire to reveal some truth behind this dilemma has led to hypotheses from philosophers, scientists and introspective individuals. All try to answer a question that cannot give a clear answer and must be rationalized and considered through metaphysical thought.We may still be pondering the very theories of Aristotle on free will and determinism eternally.