The Non-Problem of Free Will in Forensic Psychiatry and Psychology
Behavioral Sciences & the Law, Vol. 25, pp. 203-220, 2007
19 Pages Posted: 23 Apr 2007
Abstract
This article demonstrates that there is no free will problem in forensic psychiatry and psychology by showing that free will or its lack is not a criterion for any legal doctrine and it is not an underlying general foundation for legal responsibility doctrines and practices. There is a genuine metaphysical free will problem, but the article demonstrates why it is not relevant to forensic practice. Forensic practitioners are urged to avoid all usage of free will in their forensic thinking and work product because it is irrelevant and spawns confusion.
Keywords: free will, reason, forensic psychiatry and psychology, criminal responsibility, excuse, mental health laws, law and philosophy, determinism, incompatibilism, compatibilism, jurisprudence
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