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Downward Causation and the Neurobiology of Free Will pp 127–143Cite as

Physiology of Volition

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Part of the book series: Understanding Complex Systems ((UCS))

Summary

The idea of free will is a conscious awareness of the brain concerning the nature of the movement that it produces. There is no evidence for it to be a driving force in movement generation. This review considers the physiology of movement generation and how the concepts of willing and agency might arise. Both the anatomical substrates and the timing of events are considered. Movement initiation and volition are not necessarily linked, and one line of evidence comes from consideration of patients with disorders of volition. Movement is generated subconsciously, and the conscious sense of willing the movement comes later, but the exact time of this event is difficult to assess because of the potentially illusory nature of introspection. The evidence suggests that movement is initiated in frontal lobe, particularly the mesial areas, and the sense of volition arises as the result of a corollary discharge from premotor and motor areas likely involving the parietal lobe. Agency probably involves a similar region in the parietal lobe and requires both the sense of volition and movement feedback.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Chief, Human Motor Control Section, NINDS, NIH, Building 10, Room 7D37 10 Center Dr MSC 1428, Bethesda, MD, 20892-1428

    Mark Hallett

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  1. Mark Hallett
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Philosophy, Fuller Graduate Schools, 135 N. Oakland Ave, 91182, Pasadena, CA, USA

    Nancey Murphy

  2. Mathematics Department, University of Cape Town, Private Bag, 7701, Rondebosch, South Africa

    George F. R. Ellis

  3. Department of Philosophy, Indiana University, 1033 E. Third St., Sycamore Hall 026, 47405-7005, Bloomington, IN, USA

    Timothy O’Connor

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Hallett, M. (2009). Physiology of Volition. In: Murphy, N., Ellis, G.F.R., O’Connor, T. (eds) Downward Causation and the Neurobiology of Free Will. Understanding Complex Systems. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-03205-9_7

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