Benjamin Libet's ‘Free Will Experiment’, Scientific Criticisms and Kalāmic Perspective

Year 2023, Volume: 21 Issue: 1, 320 - 349, 30.06.2023

Nursena Çetingül

https://doi.org/10.18317/kaderdergi.1284040

Abstract

Free will, which is dealt with under the title of "acts of the servants" in the Kalām literature, is one of the fundamental issues of the science of Kalām. Benjamin Libet's famous experiment, which he conducted in order to seek an answer to the question of free will, caused the free will debates to move to the field of neuroscience. The logic of Libet's experiment is to compare the neural activity in the brain with the moment when a person is conscious while performing a voluntary act. In Libet's subjects, it was observed that brain activity in the decision-making process started at the moment of unconsciousness. The results of this experiment have long been interpreted in neuroscience as showing that free will is an illusion. Although Libet claimed that conscious intention creates a veto effect by stopping the action at the last moment, recent studies have shown that Libet's veto solution for free will does not work. The most vocal critics of the implications of the Libet experiment from the beginning have generally been philosophers. In this article, the criticisms of the Libet experiments by names such as Marcel Brass, Alfred Mele, and Peter Ulric Tse are presented. However, especially in recent years, neuroscientist Aaron Schurger's experimental and mathematical reinterpretation of the concept of readiness potential, which is key for Libet, and his proposal of an alternative model are mentioned. The article discusses Schurger's claim that the readiness potential may not actually reflect a brain that is ready. According to Schurger, the readiness potential is just random fluctuations that already exist in the brain and is not the sole cause of decisions. In fact, it has been argued that the readiness potential is related to neural noise in the brain rather than to the decision-making process. Thanks to Schurger's critique and the new model, it became clear that the Libet experiment did not rule out free will. But it does not constitute a proof of free will either. While the subject remains a mystery, it is unthinkable for Kalām to remain aloof from these debates. The article also touches upon the views of the Jabriyya, Ash'ariyya, Maturidiyya and Mu'tazilah in Kalām regarding the acts of the servants and questions what the Libet experiment can mean for these schools. Accordingly, while Jabriyya, with its deterministic view, may correspond to an erroneous interpretation of the Libet experiment, Mutazila may be the school that will have the most difficulty in explaining the Libet experiment. As a result, it seems that the views that consider both human agency and God's creation in voluntary acts are the most accurate. Moreover, despite the lack of a clear explanation of the theory of kasb in the Ash'ariyya, the Maturidiyya's assertion that the juz'i will is uncreated and that two influences affect voluntary acts suggests that this school provides the most solid foundation for free will. In order for such discussions to proceed on a healthy basis, it is very important to follow multidisciplinary methods. In addition, as much as Kalāmists should approach scientific studies seriously, it is important that they do not adopt a completely submissive attitude in the face of scientific claims, and that they learn the relevant critiques from experts in the field. Only in this way, we believe that the scientific inferences to be made will be based on a solid ground and that Kalāmists can make serious contributions to the solution.

Keywords

Kalām, Neuroscience, Free will, Benjamin Libet experiment, Readiness potential, Scientific criticism, Acts of the servants

Benjamin Libet’in ‘Özgür İrade Deneyi’, Bilimsel Eleştirileri ve Kelâmî Perspektifi

Abstract

Kelâm literatüründe “kulların fiilleri” başlığı altında ele alınan özgür irade; Kelâm ilminin temel meselelerinden biridir. Benjamin Libet’in özgür irade sorusuna yanıt aramak amacıyla gerçekleştirdiği meşhur deneyi, özgür irade tartışmalarının, nörobilim sahasına taşınmasına sebep olmuştur. Libet deneyinin mantığında, kişinin istemli fiili gerçekleştirirken bilinçli olduğu an ile beynindeki nöral aktivitenin karşılaştırılması vardır. Libet’in deneklerinde, karar verme sürecindeki beyin aktivitesinin bilinçsiz anda başladığı gözlenmiştir. Bu deney sonuçları nörobilimde uzun zaman boyunca, özgür iradenin bir illüzyon olduğu şeklinde yorumlanmıştır. Her ne kadar Libet, bilinçli niyetin eylemi son anda durdurmayı sağlamakla veto etkisi oluşturduğunu iddia etse de, yakın zamanda yapılan çalışmalar, Libet’in özgür irade için bulduğu veto çözümünün işe yaramadığını göstermiştir. Libet deneyinin çıkarımlarını başından beri en çok eleştirenler genellikle felsefeciler olmuştur. Bu makalede, Libet deneyleri hakkında Marcel Brass, Alfred Mele, Peter Ulric Tse gibi isimlerin eleştirilerine yer verilmiştir. Bununla beraber, özellikle geçtiğimiz yıllarda nörobilimci Aaron Schurger’in, Libet için kilit rolde olan hazırlık potansiyeli kavramını deneysel ve matematiksel olarak yeniden yorumlaması ve alternatif bir model önermesinden bahsedilmiştir. Makalede, Schurger’in hazırlık potansiyelinin aslında hazır olan bir beyni yansıtmayabileceğine dair olan iddiası işlenmektedir. Schurger’e göre hazırlık potansiyeli zaten beyinde var olan gelişigüzel dalgalanmalardan ibarettir ve alınan kararların yegane sebebi değildir. Aslında hazırlık potansiyelinin, karar alma sürecinden ziyade, beyindeki nöral gürültüyle ilişkili olduğu iddia edilmiştir. Schurger’in kritiği ve getirdiği yeni model sayesinde, Libet deneyinin özgür iradeyi dışlamadığı anlaşılmıştır. Fakat bu, özgür iradeye bir kanıt da teşkil etmez. Konu gizemini korumaya devam ederken, Kelâmın bu tartışmalardan uzak kalması düşünülemez. Makalede ayrıca, kulların fiilleri hususunda kelâmdaki Cebriyye, Eş’ariyye, Maturidiyye ve Mu’tezile’nin görüşlerine değinilerek Libet deneyinin bu ekoller için ne anlam ifade edebileceği sorgulanmıştır. Buna göre Cebriyye, deterministik görüşüyle Libet deneyinin hatalı bir yorumuna karşılık gelebilecekken; Mu’tezile, Libet deneyini açıklamakta en zorlanacak ekol olabilir. Sonuç olarak, istemli fiillerde insanın kesbini ve Allah’ın yaratmasını beraber düşünen görüşlerin en isabetli olduğu anlaşılmaktadır. Ayrıca Eş’ariyye’deki kesb nazariyesinin net bir izahı yapılamamasına rağmen, Maturidiyye’nin cüz’i iradenin yaratılmamış olduğunu ve istemli fiillere iki tesirin etki ettiğini söylemesi; özgür iradeyi en sağlam bu ekolün temellendirdiğini düşündürmektedir. Bu tarz tartışmaların sağlıklı bir zeminde ilerlemesi için multidisipliner metotların izlenmesi oldukça önemlidir. Ayrıca Kelâmcıların bilimsel çalışmalara ciddiyetle yaklaşması gerektiği kadar, bilimsel iddialar karşısında tamamen teslimiyetçi bir tutuma girmemeleri, konuyla ilgili kritikleri alanın uzmanlarından öğrenmeleri önemlidir. Ancak bu şekilde, yapılacak ilmi çıkarımların sağlam bir zemine oturacağı ve Kelâmcıların çözüm için ciddi katkılar sunabileceği kanaatindeyiz.

Keywords

Kelâm, Nörobilim, Özgür irade, Benjamin Libet deneyi, Hazırlık potansiyeli, Bilimsel eleştirisi, Kulların fiilleri

References

• Abdülcebbar, Kadı. Şerhu’l-Usüli’l-Hamse. ed. İlyas Çelebi. Türkiye Yazma Eserler Kurumu Başkanlığı Yayınları, 2012.
• Ananthaswamy, Anil. “Brain Might Not Stand in the Way of Free Will”. New Scientist. Erişim 12 Mayıs 2023. https://www.newscientist.com/article/dn22144-brain-might-not-stand-in-the-way-of-free-will/
• Arpaguş, Hatice K. “Sadruşşerîa’nın el-Mukaddimâtü’l-Erbaa’sı Bağlamında İnsan Fiilleri”. Uluslararası 14. ve 15. Yüzyıl İslam Düşüncesinde Felsefe, Kelam ve Tasavvuf Sempozyumu Bildirileri. ed. Murat Demirkol. I/449-461. Ankara: Ankara Yıldırım Beyazıt Üniversitesi Yayınları, 2020.
• Aruiçi, Muhammed. “Vâsıl b. Atâ”. TDV İslâm Ansiklopedisi. TDV İslâm Araştırmaları Merkezi, 2012. https://islamansiklopedisi.org.tr/vasil-b-ata
• Aydın, Hüseyin. “Eş’ari’nin İrade, Kesb ve Yaratma Teorisi”. İslâmî İlimler Dergisi 6/2 (2017), 7-38.
• Banks, William P. - Isham, Eve A. “Do We Really Know What We Are Doing? Implications of Reported Time of Decision for Theories of Volition”. Conscious Will and Responsibility: A Tribute to Benjamin Libet. ed. Walter Sinnott-Armstrong - Lynn Nadel. 47-60. Oxford University Press, 2010. https://doi.org/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195381641.003.0006
• Banks, William P. - Isham, Eve A. “We Infer Rather Than Perceive the Moment We Decided to Act”. Psychological Science 20/1 (01 Ocak 2009), 17-21. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9280.2008.02254.x
• Brass, Marcel vd. “Why Neuroscience Does Not Disprove Free Will”. Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews 102 (01 Temmuz 2019), 251-263. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neubiorev.2019.04.024
• Brass, Marcel - Haggard, Patrick. “To Do or Not to Do: The Neural Signature of Self-Control”. The Journal of Neuroscience: The Official Journal of the Society for Neuroscience 27/34 (22 Ağustos 2007), 9141-9145. https://doi.org/10.1523/JNEUROSCI.0924-07.2007
• Bright, David S. vd. Principles of Management. 12th Media Services, 2019.
• Can, Seyithan - Kılıç, Sabahaddin. “Nöroteolojik Açıdan Kesb Nazariyesi (Benjamin Libet Deneyi Çerçevesinde)”. Kader 17/2 (31 Aralık 2019), 380-397. https://doi.org/10.18317/kaderdergi.633554
• Caouette, Justin. “Neuroscience and Free Will: New Study Debunks Libet’s Interpretation”. Blog. A Philosopher’s Take. 10 Ağustos 2012. Erişim 22 Ocak 2023. https://aphilosopherstake.com/2012/08/10/neuroscience-and-free-will-new-study-debunks-libets-interpretation/
• Çinar, Bayram. “Kelam Geleneğinde Kesb Teorisi”. Kafkas Üniversitesi İlahiyat Fakültesi Dergisi 8/15 (15 Ocak 2021), 129-148. https://doi.org/10.17050/kafkasilahiyat.810926
• Dalkiran, Sayın. “Akkirmani’nin İrade-i Cüziyye ile İlgili Risalesi ve Değerlendirmesi”. EKEV AKADEMİ DERGİSİ, 173-179.
• Dolan, Ray J. - Dayan, Peter. “Goals and Habits in the Brain”. Neuron 80/2 (16 Ekim 2013), 312-325. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuron.2013.09.007
• Doyle, Bob. “Benjamin Libet”. Blog. The Information Philosopher. Erişim 03 Şubat 2023. https://www.informationphilosopher.com/solutions/scientists/libet/
• Doyle, Bob. “Benjamin Libet’s clock.” Blog. The Information Philosopher. Erişim 03 Şubat 2023. https://www.informationphilosopher.com/solutions/scientists/libet/clock.html
• Dökmeci, İsmet (ed.). Farmakoloji - İlaç Uygulamalarında Temel Kavramlar. İzmir: Saray Medikal Yayıncılık, Bassaray Basımevi., 1996.
• Eagleman, David. Incognito: Beynin Gizli Hayatı. Domingo, 2013.
• Ekici, Gülhan. Seyyid Bey’in (1873-1925) kelamî görüşleri ve hilafet hakkındaki düşünceleri. Erciyes Üniversitesi, Yüksek Lisans, 2007.
• Eş’ari, Ebu’l-Hasan el. Eş’ari Kelamı El-Lüma’ Fi’r-Red Ala Ehli’z-Zeyğ Ve’l-Bida. İz Yayıncılık, 2019.
• Farnsworth, Bryn. “EEG vs. MRI vs. FMRI - What Are the Differences? - IMotions”. Powering Human Insights (blog), 04 Ekim 2022. https://imotions.com/blog/learning/research-fundamentals/eeg-vs-mri-vs-fmri-differences/
• Fettah, İrfan Abdülhamit. “Cebriyye”. TDV İslâm Ansiklopedisi. TDV İslâm Araştırmaları Merkezi, 1993. https://islamansiklopedisi.org.tr/cebriyye
• Frith, Chris D. - Haggard, Patrick. “Volition and the Brain - Revisiting a Classic Experimental Study”. Trends in Neurosciences 41/7 (Temmuz 2018), 405-407. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tins.2018.04.009
• Furstenberg, Ariel vd. “Evidence of Change of Intention in Picking Situations”. Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience 27/11 (Kasım 2015), 2133-2146. https://doi.org/10.1162/jocn_a_00842
• Furstenberg, Ariel. “Proximal Intentions, Non-Executed Proximal Intentions and Change of Intentions”. Topoi 33/1 (2014), 1-10. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11245-013-9191-x
• Gholipour, Bahar. “A Famous Argument Against Free Will Has Been Debunked”. The Atlantic. 10 Eylül 2019. Erişim 23 Ocak 2023. https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2019/09/free-will-bereitschaftspotential/597736/
• Gölcük, Şerafettin. “Cehm b. Safvan”. TDV İslâm Ansiklopedisi. TDV İslâm Araştırmaları Merkezi, 1993. https://islamansiklopedisi.org.tr/cehm-b-safvan
• Hameroff, Stuart. “How Quantum Brain Biology Can Rescue Conscious Free Will”. Frontiers in Integrative Neuroscience 6 (2012). https://doi.org/10.3389/fnint.2012.00093
• Hameroff, Stuart - Penrose, Roger. “Orchestrated Reduction of Quantum Coherence in Brain Microtubules: A Model for Consciousness”. Mathematics and Computers in Simulation 40/3 (01 Nisan 1996), 453-480. https://doi.org/10.1016/0378-4754(96)80476-9
• Harris, Sam. Free Will. New York: Simon and Schuster, 2012.
• Kahneman, Daniel. Thinking, Fast and Slow. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1st edition., 2013.
• Kannengiesser, Udo - Gero, John S. “Design Thinking, Fast and Slow: A Framework for Kahneman’s Dual-System Theory in Design”. Design Science 5 (Ocak 2019), e10. https://doi.org/10.1017/dsj.2019.9
• Keller, I. - Heckhausen, H. “Readiness Potentials Preceding Spontaneous Motor Acts: Voluntary vs. Involuntary Control”. Electroencephalography and Clinical Neurophysiology 76/4 (01 Ekim 1990), 351-361. https://doi.org/10.1016/0013-4694(90)90036-J
• Kornhuber, Hans H. - Deecke, Lüder. “Hirnpotentialänderungen bei Willkürbewegungen und passiven Bewegungen des Menschen: Bereitschaftspotential und reafferente Potentiale”. Pflüger’s Archiv für die gesamte Physiologie des Menschen und der Tiere 284/1 (01 Mart 1965), 1-17. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00412364
• Krawczyk, Daniel C. “Contributions of the Prefrontal Cortex to the Neural Basis of Human Decision Making”. Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews 26/6 (01 Ekim 2002), 631-664. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0149-7634(02)00021-0
• Lau, Hakwan C. vd. “Manipulating the Experienced Onset of Intention after Action Execution”. Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience 19/1 (01 Ocak 2007), 81-90. https://doi.org/10.1162/jocn.2007.19.1.81
• Lau, Hakwan C. “Volition and the Function of Consciousness”. Downward Causation and the Neurobiology of Free Will. ed. Nancey Murphy vd. 153-169. Understanding Complex Systems. Berlin, Heidelberg: Springer, 2009. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-03205-9_9
• Libet, B. vd. “Time of Conscious Intention to Act in Relation to Onset of Cerebral Activity (Readiness-Potential). The Unconscious Initiation of a Freely Voluntary Act”. Brain: A Journal of Neurology 106 (Pt 3) (Eylül 1983), 623-642. https://doi.org/10.1093/brain/106.3.623
• Libet, Benjamin. “Unconscious Cerebral Initiative and the Role of Conscious Will in Voluntary Action”. Behavioral and Brain Sciences 8/4 (Aralık 1985), 529-539. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0140525X00044903
• Mårtensson, Anders. “Basic Principles PET/CT and SPECT/CT |”. Lund University Bioimaging Centre. Erişim 25 Haziran 2023. https://www.lbic.lu.se/basic-principles-petct-and-spectct
• Matüridi, Ebu Mansur el-. Kitabü’t Tevhid Açıklamalı Tercüme (Ciltli). çev. Bekir Topaloğlu. İsam / İslam Araştırmaları Merkezi, 2018.
• Mele, Alfred R. Effective Intentions: The Power of Conscious Will. Oxford University Press, USA, 2009.
• Mele, Alfred R. Free: Why Science Hasn’t Disproved Free Will. New York: Oxford University Press, 1st edition., 2014.
• Mele, Alfred R. Springs of Action: Understanding Intentional Behavior. Oxford University Press, 1992.
• Mele, Alfred R. Surrounding Free Will: Philosophy, Psychology, Neuroscience. Oxford University Press, 2014.
• Meynen, Gerben. “Neurolaw: Neuroscience, Ethics, and Law. Review Essay”. Ethical Theory and Moral Practice 17/4 (2014), 819-829. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10677-014-9501-4
• Monsell, Stephen vd. “The Prepared Reflex: Automaticity and Control in Stimulus-Response Translation”. Control of Cognitive Processes: Attention and Performance XVIII. 247-273. Cambridge, Massachusetts: The MIT Press, 2000. https://doi.org/10.7551/mitpress/1481.001.0001
• Muhtaroglu, Nazif. “An Occasionalist Defence of Free Will”. Classic Issues in Islamic Philosophy and Theology Today. ed. A-T. Tymieniecka - Nazif Muhtaroglu. 45-62. Islamic Philosophy and Occidental Phenomenology in Dialogue. Dordrecht: Springer Netherlands, 2010. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-90-481-3573-8_3
• Mulukom, Valerie van. “Sezgilerimize ne kadar güvenebiliriz?” Haber. BBC News Türkçe. 28 Mayıs 2018. Erişim 03 Şubat 2023. https://www.bbc.com/turkce/vert-fut-44280979
• Ödemiş, Mehmet. “İslam Mezheplerinde İnsan Hürriyeti Hakkındaki İlk Tartışmaların Teo-Politik Eleştirisi”. EKEV Akademi Dergisi 88 (26 Aralık 2021), 291-310.
• Picozza, Eugenio (ed.). Neurolaw: An Introduction. New York, NY: Springer Cham, 2016.
• Schlegel, Alexander vd. “Barking up the Wrong Free: Readiness Potentials Reflect Processes Independent of Conscious Will”. Experimental Brain Research 229/3 (Eylül 2013), 329-335. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00221-013-3479-3
• Schlegel, Alexander vd. “Hypnotizing Libet: Readiness Potentials with Non-Conscious Volition”. Consciousness and Cognition 33 (01 Mayıs 2015), 196-203. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.concog.2015.01.002
• Schlosser, Markus E. “The Neuroscientific Study of Free Will: A Diagnosis of the Controversy”. Synthese 191/2 (01 Ocak 2014), 245-262. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11229-013-0312-2
• Schultze-Kraft, Matthias vd. “The point of no return in vetoing self-initiated movements”. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 113/4 (26 Ocak 2016), 1080-1085. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1513569112
• Schurger, Aaron vd. “An accumulator model for spontaneous neural activity prior to self-initiated movement”. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 109/42 (16 Ekim 2012), E2904-E2913. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1210467109
• Schurger, Aaron vd. “Neural Antecedents of Spontaneous Voluntary Movement: A New Perspective”. Trends in Cognitive Sciences 20/2 (Şubat 2016), 77-79. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tics.2015.11.003
• Schurger, Aaron. “Specific Relationship between the Shape of the Readiness Potential, Subjective Decision Time, and Waiting Time Predicted by an Accumulator Model with Temporally Autocorrelated Input Noise”. ENeuro 5/1 (01 Ocak 2018). https://doi.org/10.1523/ENEURO.0302-17.2018
• Schurger, Aaron vd. “What Is the Readiness Potential?” Trends in Cognitive Sciences 25/7 (01 Temmuz 2021), 558-570. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tics.2021.04.001
• Sinnott-Armstrong, Walter - Nadel, Lynn. Conscious Will and Responsibility: A Tribute to Benjamin Libet. Oxford University Press, USA, 2011.
• Sinnott-Armstrong, Walter - Lynn Nadel (ed.). Conscious Will and Responsibility: A Tribute to Benjamin Libet (Oxford Series in Neuroscience, Law, and Philosophy). New York: Oxford University Press, 2010. https://www.amazon.com/Conscious-Will-Responsibility-Neuroscience-Philosophy/dp/0195381645
• Squire, Larry R. (ed.). The History of Neuroscience in Autobiography, Volume 1. Washington DC: Academic Press, 1st edition., 1998.
• Taftazani, Sa’düddin. Şerhul Akaid Tercümesi. çev. Vanlıoğlu vd. İstanbul: Muallim, 2018.
• Trevena, Judy - Miller, Jeff. “Brain Preparation before a Voluntary Action: Evidence against Unconscious Movement Initiation”. Consciousness and Cognition 19/1 (01 Mart 2010), 447-456. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.concog.2009.08.006
• Tse, Peter Ulric. The Neural Basis of Free Will: Criterial Causation. Cambridge, Mass.: The MIT Press, Reprint edition., 2015.
• Yavuz, Yusuf Şevki. “Eş’ariyye”. TDV İslâm Ansiklopedisi. TDV İslâm Araştırmaları Merkezi, 1995. https://islamansiklopedisi.org.tr/esariyye
• Yavuz, Yusuf Şevki. “Maturidiyye”. TDV İslâm Ansiklopedisi. TDV İslâm Araştırmaları Merkezi, 2003. https://islamansiklopedisi.org.tr/maturidiyye
• “3.1 The Libet Experiment”. haz. Our Reenlightenment. YouTube. Yayın Tarihi 31 Aralık 2019. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ko2SPWgDH6o
• “3.2 Debunking Libet’s Conclusions”. haz. Our Reenlightenment. YouTube. Yayın Tarihi 31 Aralık 2019. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TluNbkNrRKU
• “Aaron Schurger: Neural Antecedents of Spontaneous Voluntary Movement”. haz. InteractingMindsAU. YouTube. Yayın Tarihi 24 Ağustos 2017.
• “Consciousness: A Very Short Introduction – Jolyon’s Website”. Erişim 04 Şubat 2023. http://www.jolyon.co.uk/illustrations/consciousness-a-very-short-introduction-2/
• Cambridge Dictionary. Cambridge University Press, 12 Nisan 2023. https://dictionary.cambridge.org/tr/s%C3%B6zl%C3%BCk/ingilizce/epiphenomenon
• “The strange neuroscience of free will - BBC REEL”. haz. BBC Reel. Yayın Tarihi 11 Mayıs 2020. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=llM1ZR1htp8