An issue for Wegner’s theory about the conscious will: the Readiness Potential does not conclusively represent preparation for an action

Beatriz Sorrentino Marques

doi:10.15448/1984-6746.2017.3.30195

Autores

Beatriz Sorrentino Marques Universidade Federal de Mato Grosso http://orcid.org/0000-0001-7192-0777

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.15448/1984-6746.2017.3.30195

Palavras-chave:

vontade consciente, Potencial de Prontidão, ação, experiência.

Resumo

***Um problema para a teoria de Wegner sobre a vontade consciente: o Potencial de Prontidão não representa a preparação para uma ação de maneira conclusiva***

O papel da vontade consciente na produção de ações tem recebido bastante atenção tanto da filosofia como da neurociência. Wegner (2002) afirma que o que ele chama de vontade consciente não desempenha nenhum papel na produção causal das ações humanas, e que a mesma é apenas uma ilusão. Será argumentado no presente artigo que a afirmação de Wegner está equivocada, porque a sua defesa da suposta ilusão está fundamentada em como ele concebe o que o Potencial de Prontidão representa em um experimento crucial – o experimento de Libet – e essa concepção está errada. Portanto, Wegner não oferece uma razão convincente para se crer que os seres humanos estão iludidos a respeito de como produzem suas ações.

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