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. 2015 Feb;10(2):262-8.
doi: 10.1093/scan/nsu068. Epub 2014 May 1.

'Why should I care?' Challenging free will attenuates neural reaction to errors

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'Why should I care?' Challenging free will attenuates neural reaction to errors

Davide Rigoni et al. Soc Cogn Affect Neurosci. 2015 Feb.

Abstract

Whether human beings have free will has been a philosophical question for centuries. The debate about free will has recently entered the public arena through mass media and newspaper articles commenting on scientific findings that leave little to no room for free will. Previous research has shown that encouraging such a deterministic perspective influences behavior, namely by promoting cursory and antisocial behavior. Here we propose that such behavioral changes may, at least partly, stem from a more basic neurocognitive process related to response monitoring, namely a reduced error detection mechanism. Our results show that the error-related negativity, a neural marker of error detection, was reduced in individuals led to disbelieve in free will. This finding shows that reducing the belief in free will has a specific impact on error detection mechanisms. More generally, it suggests that abstract beliefs about intentional control can influence basic and automatic processes related to action control.

Keywords: belief; error detection; error-related negativity; free will; response monitoring.

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Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
(a) Grand-averaged waveforms from aggregated electrodes (Fz, FCz and Cz) showing the ΔERN activity (from −25 to 25 ms relative to response onset, baseline correction from −500 to −300 ms) before and after the belief manipulation, both for the no-free will group and the control group. (b) Bar graph showing mean amplitudes of the ΔERN (error bars refer to standard error of the mean). A significant reduction of the ΔERN amplitude was found in the no-free will group, but not for the control group. (c) 3D topographic maps showing the topographical distribution f the ΔERN in the two groups before and after belief manipulation.

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