Considering that free will means that no one can be punished, having free will justifies some punitive practices and punishments. Thus, the presence of free will is important for marking a person as guilty and subsequent punishment. Often those who deny free will bear no responsibility for their crimes. Free will means the obligation to personalize actions, which also affects decision-making. In such a case, the policeman’s decision to incarcerate normally violent and dangerous offenders will be justified, which will protect the rest of society. However, there is still no consensus on free will and responsibility.
Causal indeterminism is the theory that free actions do not have to be caused by anything, nor do they have any intrinsic causal structure. It argues that free actions must be uncaused, while others admit they can be caused by non-deterministically. The main disadvantage of such a theory is that the individual’s luck argues it (Pleasants, 2019). According to this argument, if some previous events cause action, it is not up to the person to perform it. Thus, based on this theory, many people can justify their actions only by chance while exonerating themselves from responsibility.
Speaking of free will, one should also say about how it moves, namely, about the soul. The human soul remains responsible for all committed actions since they have reasons for them. It is much more difficult to give a clear definition of the concept of the soul than of matter (Pleasants, 2019). Since ancient times, it has been believed that the physical shell of the soul, the human body, acts as matter, so we can easily define matter. We can define the soul as the consciousness of matter, its mental world, responsible for it.
Reference
Pleasants, N. (2019). Free will, determinism and the “problem” of structure and agency in the Social Sciences.Philosophy of the Social Sciences, 49(1), 3–30.