The Requirements for Free Will
We identify the major and minor requirements for human free will.
They should be such as to satisfy
Libertarians, in that they ensure the unpredictable alternative possibilities needed for freedom.
They should
also be such as to satisfy
Determinists, in that they ensure the adequate determinism of the will and its actions, causal decisions that are needed for moral responsibility.
The requirements should be coherent and intelligible, to guard against the centuries-old criticisms of free will as "unintelligible."
The Randomness (Freedom) Requirement
Over the centuries the freedom requirement has been described in many ways. We must explicitly clarify those descriptions that are in many cases equivalent.
The Determinism (Will) Requirement
The will requirement has had many forms corresponding to the
dogmatic forms of determinism.
Instead of a strict causal determinism, the world offers only
adequate determinism and
soft causality.
The Moral Responsibility Requirement
The moral responsibility requirement is a joint consequence of randomness and adequate determinism.
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