New Books from Hoover Fellows: Initiative: Human Agency and Society By Tibor Machan.

News Editors/Education Writers

STANFORD, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 25, 2000

"Is free will a myth?"

Hoover Research Fellow Tibor Machan poses this dramatic question in his new book Initiative: Human Agency and Society (Hoover Institution Press, 2000). No, he says emphatically, "free will is a feature of our natural, biological nature . . ." This, according to Machan, is an idea that is out of vogue, given the current climate of the times. Arrayed against his assertion, Machan finds the bulk of the scientific community as well as the general public who believe that "we act because we are forced to by circumstance."

Machan recognizes the fundamental conflict in ideology and understanding between those who feel every aspect of thinking and action is pre-determined and those who see in every human action the unfettered stroke of man's free will. Machan feels the conflict between these views has deep ramifications for our society. In contemplating the idea for this book, Machan wrote, "I hold out hope that if free will or self-determination is a fact, it must be something completely compatible with other facts, i.e. science. I cannot fathom a basic conflict between our nature and the way the world generally must work . . ."

The strength of Machan's work, however, lies in his ability to awaken the reader to the dangers that threaten a society when its people refuse to acknowledge the role of initiative in decision making.

"How can we worry about corporate social responsibility or accountability by politicians and ...