Free Will as Advanced Action Control for Human Social Life and Culture

@article{Baumeister2011FreeWA,
  title={Free Will as Advanced Action Control for Human Social Life and Culture},
  author={Roy F. Baumeister and A. William Crescioni and Jessica L. Alquist},
  journal={Neuroethics},
  year={2011},
  volume={4},
  pages={1-11}
}
Free will can be understood as a novel form of action control that evolved to meet the escalating demands of human social life, including moral action and pursuit of enlightened self-interest in a cultural context. That understanding is conducive to scientific research, which is reviewed here in support of four hypotheses. First, laypersons tend to believe in free will. Second, that belief has behavioral consequences, including increases in socially and culturally desirable acts. Third… 
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