Attitudes Toward Punishment in Relation to Beliefs in Free Will and Determinism
通过实验发现，相信决定论的人比相信自由意志的人更倾向于对行为偏差采取严厉惩罚，可能因为自由意志信念者更在意惩罚的公平与道德责任。
An experiment was conducted to investigate attitudes toward punishment in relation to beliefs in free will and determinism. College students responded to two questionnaires; one designed to assess attitudes toward punishment and one designed to assess strength of belief in free will or determinism. It was found that subjects who scored higher in belief in determinism recommended more punitive measures for behavioral deviations than those who scored higher in belief in free will. A possible explanation for these results emphasized the burdensome moral responsibility which punishment may represent to those who believe in free will. Such responsibility would demand that punishment be administered with scrupulous attention to fairness and justice.