What the Libet experiment tells us about free will. #psychology #sproutsschools #learn #education #neuroscience #philosophy #freewill #learningontiktok #educationtiktok #libetexperiment #tiktokpsychology

In the 1980s, the neuroscientist Benjamin Lebed conducted a study that shook the very foundations of what we understand about free will. Lebed wanted to find out whether our mind prepares for a movement before we are consciously aware of it, and so he and his team set up an experiment. Participants in the study were asked to flex their wrists whenever they felt the urge to do so. While doing so, Lebed monitored their brain activity, EEG, through electrodes placed on their heads and found activity before the people decided to move their hands. In other words, the brain started the process way before the person decided to do it. When we plotted graph measuring time and brain activity known as readiness potential, the movement started at time zero. Participants reported being aware of their decision 150 milliseconds earlier, but the brain actually began to act 500 milliseconds before the move. It didn't take long before psychologists and philosophers from all over the world discussed Lebed's research and wondered if our brain initiates a decision before we're consciously aware of it, then how free are our decisions really? And ever since, teams of scientists have tried to replicate Lebed's findings with mixed conclusions. Lebed himself did not interpret his experiment as evidence that our decisions are predetermined. He said, "The tendency to press a button may be building up for 500 milliseconds, but the conscious mind retains the right to veto any action at the last moment." What are your thoughts? And if our brain has already started the process of making a decision before we're consciously aware of it, to what extent are we truly in control? And if we are not, how would this influence our understanding of personal responsibility for our actions? If you liked this video and want us to make more, subscribe to our channel or supporters on Patreon.