The Free Will Show
Episodes
Episode 116: The Simulation Hypothesis and Free Will with Marcus Arvan
30 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode we talk with Marcus Arvan about how the simulation hypothesis explains various philosophical phenomena including free will.Marcus&apos...
Episode 115: Abilities with Barbara Vetter
16 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Barbara Vetter about abilities and how we come to know what abilities we have.Barbara's Website: http://barbaravett...
Episode 114: Responsibility for Consequences and the AI Responsibility Gap with Huzeyfe Demirtas
02 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Huzeyfe Demirtas about responsibility for consequences and how that relates to autonomous AI systems.Huzeyfe's Webs...
Episode 113: Determinism and the Principle of Sufficient Reason with Shaun Nichols
16 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Shaun Nichols about folk beliefs about determinism and causal explanation.Shaun's website: https://sites.google.com...
Episode 112: Divine Luck with Andre Leo Rusavuk
02 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
In this episdoe we talk with Andre Rusavuk about the problem of divine luck.Andre's website: https://philpeople.org/profiles/andre-rusavukAndre&...
Episode 111: Divine Responsibility with Nathan Bray and Stephen Kershnar
19 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
This episode starts a new series of the podcast that won’t have any particular guiding theme but instead looks at various topics that scholars are w...
Episode 110: John Duns Scotus with Thomas Williams
22 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Thomas Williams about John Duns Scotus and his views on free will and how they differ from Anselm's and Aquinas&apo...
Episode 109: Thomas Aquinas with Harm Goris
08 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode we talk about Aquinas’s views of free will and human agency with Harm Goris.Harm's website: https://tilburguniversity.academia...
Episode 108: Anselm with Sandra Visser
24 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode we talk with Sandra Visser about Anselm’s views of human and divine freedom.Sandra's website: https://hope.edu/directory/people...
Episode 107: Ibn Sīnā with Jon McGinnis
10 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Jon McGinnis about Ibn Sīnā (Avicenna) and his views about divine and human agency.Jon's website: https://www.med...
Episode 106: Boethius with John Marenbon
27 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with John Marenbon about free will and foreknowledge in Boethius's most famous work, the Consolation of Philosophy.John&...
Episode 105: Augustine of Hippo with Jesse Couenhoven
13 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Jesse Coeuenhoven about Augustine’s views on free will, moral responsibility, and predestination. Jesse's websit...
Episode 104: Plotinus with Anna Viatkina
29 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Anna Viatkina about Plotinus’s views on freedom and moral responsibility and how they relate to ancient Stoic and cont...
Episode 103: Epicureanism and Stoicism with Tim O'Keefe
15 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Tim O'Keefe about Epicurean and Stoic views of freedom and determinism.Tim's website: https://philpeople.org/p...
Episode 102: Aristotle with Susan Sauvé Meyer
01 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Susan Sauvé Meyer about Aristotle’s views on moral responsibility, especially his conception of voluntariness.Susan&a...
Episode 101: Plato with Eric Brown
18 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Eric Brown about Plato’s views on freedom, moral psychology, and responsibility.Eric's website: https://sites.goo...
Episode 100: P. F. Strawson’s “Freedom and Resentment” and Ethical Naturalism with Pamela Hieronymi
26 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Pamela Hieronymi about P. F. Strawson’s classic paper “Freedom and Resentment,” his ethical naturalism, and her re...
Episode 99: Addiction and Moral Responsibility with Chandra Sripada
12 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode we talk with Chandra Sripada about the distortion model of addiction and how it is different from the standard, desire based model.Cha...
Episode 98: Taking Responsibility with Elinor Mason
28 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Elinor Mason about her work on taking responsibility and how it differs from other ways of being blameworthy.Elinore&apo...
Episode 97: Intention and Memory with Wayne Wu
14 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Wayne Wu about his work on automaticity, attention, and memory in the philosophy of action. Wayne's website: https...
Episode 96: The Problem of Blame with Kelly McCormick
31 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode we talk to Kelly McCormick about the problem of blame and her reasons for thinking that we shouldn’t eliminate blame from our lives....
Episode 95: Experimental Philosophy and Free Will with Eddy Nahmias
17 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Eddy Nahmias about the experimental philosophy of free will and his own compatibilist view.Eddy's Website: https://...
Episode 94: Time Travel and Free Will with Neal Tognazzini
24 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Neal Tognazzini about time travel and free will as well as some non-standard threats to free will from other areas of me...
Episode 93: Basic Responsibility with Matt King
10 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Matt King about various kinds of responsibility and how they all share in what he calls the basic responsibility relatio...
Episode 92: The Paradox of Moral Education with Sabrina Little
27 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Sabrina Little about a puzzle about free will in the context of moral education.Sabrina's website: https://sabrinal...
Episode 91: Agency Incompatibilism with Helen Steward
13 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Helen Steward about her view that agency itself, not just free agency, is incompatible with determinism. Helen's ...
Episode 90: Sin and Free Will with Leigh Vicens
23 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Leigh Vicens about what she calls the puzzle of sin and free will in Christianity. We consider how compatibilists, liber...
Episode 89: Free Will in Heaven with Benjamin Matheson
09 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode we talk with Benjamin Matheson about various problems concerning both compatibilist and libertarian free will in heaven.Benjamin'...
Episode 88: Divine Freedom with Thomas Ward
25 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Tom Ward about divine free will, focusing on Duns Scotus's view of divine free will and the act of creation.Tom&apo...
Episode 87: Grace and Free Will with Kevin Timpe
11 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Kevin Timpe about grace and free will, focusing on a puzzle that arises for the Christian view of divine grace towards f...
Episode 86: God, Purpose, and Reality with John Bishop and Ken Perszyk
28 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode we talk with John Bishop and Ken Perszyk about the euteleological understanding of theism, which is an alternative to personal theism....
Episode 85: Petitionary Prayer and Free Will with Scott Davison
14 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Scott Davison about petitionary prayer. We begin with what petitionary prayer is, and then we discuss challenges to peti...
Episode 84: Free Will and Providence with Alan Rhoda
30 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Alan Rhoda about the strengths and weaknesses of various models of divine providence and free will.Alan's website: ...
Episode 83: Divine Causation and Creaturely Action with Gloria Frost
16 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Gloria Frost about various views of divine causation of creaturely action, focusing on three views from the medieval per...
Episode 82: Compatibilism and the Problem of Evil with Jason Turner
02 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Jason Turner about whether certain kinds of compatibilists can use the free will defense in response to the problem of e...
Episode 81: Free Will and the Problem of Evil with Daniel Speak
19 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This ninth season of the podcast will explore topics on free will and theology. In this episode, we talk with Dan Speak about free will and the proble...
Episode 80: Instrumentalist Accounts of Moral Responsibility with Anneli Jefferson
30 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Anneli Jefferson about instrumentalist accounts of moral responsibility and some challenges for the view, including issu...
Episode 79: Neuroethics and Moral Responsibility with Josh May
06 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Josh May about issues in neuroethics and the law and also about mental disorders and moral responsibility.Josh's we...
Episode 78: Narrative and Moral Responsibility with Meghan Griffith
22 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Meghan Griffith about developing a narrative capacity and how it relates to becoming morally responsible.Megan's we...
The Free Will Show Book Trailer
15 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Cohosts Taylor Cyr and Matt Flummer describe their new book How Free Are We? Conversations from the Free Will Show.Preorder the book from Oxford Unive...
Episode 77: Ambivalence with Justin Coates
08 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode we talk with Justin Coates about the nature of ambivalence and arguments for and against it.Justin's website: https://djustincoat...
Episode 76: The Standing to Punish with Tommie Shelby
25 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Tommie Shelby about whether and when states lack the standing to punish. We also discuss Tommie's book on prison ab...
Episode 75: Group Responsibility and Historicism with Stephanie Collins and Niels de Haan
11 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Stephanie Collins and Niels de Haan about whether structuralism or historicism best accounts for group responsibility.St...
Episode 74: Omissions and Moral Luck with Joseph Metz
26 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Joseph Metz about moral luck and responsibility for omissions.Joe's website: https://www.joseph-metz.com/homeJoe&ap...
Episode 73: Corporate Criminal Responsibility with Mihailis Diamantis
12 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Mihailis Diamantis about the nature of corporations and some similarities between corporate and individual criminal resp...
Episode 72: Crime and Reparations with Raff Donelson
29 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Raff Donelson about several different topics, including his response to free will skepticism, whether its okay to make p...
Episode 71: The Principle of Alternative Possibilities with Justin Capes
15 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Justin Capes about the principle of alternative possibilities and his version of the flicker of freedom response to Fran...
Episode 70: Forgiveness and the Law with Simone Gubler
18 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Simone Gubler about forgiveness, its value, and some potential problems with institutional attempts to make forgiveness ...
Episode 69: Addiction and the Law with Stephen Morse
04 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Stephen Morse about the nature of addiction and about the moral and criminal responsibility of people who suffer from ad...
Episode 68: Psychopathy and the Law with David Shoemaker
20 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with David Shoemaker about his theory of different kinds of moral responsibility and its implications for psychopathy and the...
Episode 67: Children and the Law with Gideon Yaffe
06 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Gideon Yaffe about whether and to what extent children should be held less culpable for breaking the law.Gideon's w...
Episode 66: Overpunishment with Saul Smilansky
23 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Saul Smilansky about overpunishment, focusing on the question of whether overpunishing a guilty person is morally worse ...
Episode 65: Rehabilitation with Katrina Sifferd
09 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Katrina Sifferd about the rehabilitation of criminal offenders and the effects that environments can have on criminal be...
Episode 64: Moral Authority and Punishment with Victor Tadros
25 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Victor Tadros about moral authority (or standing) and punishment. In particular, we ask about what it would mean for the...
Episode 63: Mens Rea with Craig Agule
18 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Craig Agule about some of the philosophical issues related to mens rea requirements in the law and also about the connec...
Episode 62: Theories of Punishment with Erin Kelly
07 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Erin Kelly about the main theories of justification for punishment, as well as some challenges for those theories. We al...
Episode 61: Introduction to Free Will and the Law with Kyle Fritz
16 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This episode starts a new season on free will and the law. In a wide-ranging discussion, Kyle Fritz gives some background for various key issues at th...
Episode 60: Compatibilism and Reduction with Robert Wallace
29 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Robert Wallace about a dilemma for compatibilist views that reductively explain free will in terms of dispositions.Rober...
Episode 59: Crime and Public Health with Nadine Elzein
15 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode we talk with Nadine Elzein about the public health model for responding to criminal behavior. We ask about reasons for preferring this...
Episode 58: Options and Agency with John Maier
01 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode we talk with John Maier about what he calls 'options' and how they’re related in other issues in the philosophy of agency....
Episode 57: The Reason View with Susan Wolf
17 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Susan Wolf about her view of free will, which she calls "The Reason View," and how her view has evolved over t...
Episode 56: Raising the Stakes in the Free Will Debate with Justin Caouette
03 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Justin Caouette about a variety of topics that he’s interested in in the free will debate as well as what is at stake ...
Episode 55: Blameworthiness and Forgiveness with Per-Erik Milam
20 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Per-Erik Milam about blameworthiness and forgiveness. Along the way, we talk about two types of view about what forgiven...
Episode 54: Action Explanations with Megan Fritts
06 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode we talk with Megan Fritts about causal and non-causal theories of action explanation and why she prefers a non-causal approach.Megan&a...
Episode 53: Manipulation and Intentional Agency with Andrei Buckareff
20 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Andrei Buckareff about a kind of soft-line response to the manipulation argument that draws from work within the philoso...
Episode 52: Free Will as a Natural Kind with Oisín Deery
06 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Oisín Deery about his work on free will as a natural kind. Along the way, we talk about what it feels like to act freel...
Episode 51: Flickers of Freedom with Bradford Stockdale
23 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we discuss a popular response to Frankfurt cases called the "flicker of freedom" strategy. Our guest is Bradford Stockdale....
Episode 50: Double Compatibilism with Greg Welty
12 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Greg Welty about what compatibilists about freedom and determinism could contribute to the debate about freedom and fore...
Episode 49: Open Theism, Part 2 with Patrick Todd
28 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This is our second of two episodes on open theism. We talk with Patrick Todd about two versions of the view and why he prefers the open future open th...
Episode 48: Open Theism, Part 1 with William Hasker
14 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This is our first of two episodes on open theism, the view that we have free will and that it is incompatible with divine foreknowledge. In this episo...
Episode 47: Sourcehood Libertarianism with David Hunt
31 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with David Hunt about the source-libertarian response to the problem of freedom and foreknowledge, according to which, althou...
Episode 46: The Dependence Response, Part 2 with Philip Swenson
17 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This episode is the second in a two-part series on the dependence response to the problem of freedom and foreknowledge. In this episode, we talk wit...
Episode 45: The Dependence Response, Part 1 with Trenton Merricks
03 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This episode is the first in a two-part series on the dependence response to the problem of freedom and foreknowledge. In this episode, we talk with T...
Episode 44: Molinism with William Lane Craig
19 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with William Lane Craig about Molinism, a view about the compatibility of divine providence and human free will that is somet...
Episode 43: Ockhamism with Amy Seymour
05 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Amy Seymour about Ockhamist solution to the problem of freedom and foreknowledge. Along the way, we discuss various rela...
Episode 42: Boethianism with Katherin Rogers
22 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Katherin Rogers about the Boethian response to the problem of freedom and foreknowledge, according to which God’s time...
Episode 41: Introduction to Freedom and Foreknowledge with Simon Kittle
08 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This episode is the first in a new season on the puzzle of divine foreknowledge and human free will. Our guest, Simon Kittle, introduces the problem...
Bonus Episode: 50 Free Will Puzzles with Garrett Pendergraft
21 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this bonus episode, we talk with Garrett Pendergraft about his new book, Free Will and Human Agency: 50 Puzzles, Paradoxes, and Though Experiments....
Episode 40: Moral Luck and Transformative Experiences with Marcela Herdova
16 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Marcela Herdova about moral luck and transformative experiences—the kind of experiences that fundamentally change who ...
Episode 39: The Vagueness of "Free Will" with Santiago Amaya
02 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Santiago Amaya about an argument for the conclusion that "free will" is a vague term. We also talk about what ...
Episode 38: Omissions and Frankfurt Cases with John Stigall
18 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with John Stigall about omissions and Frankfurt cases. John defends the view that, while we can be morally responsible for pe...
Episode 37: Mental Illness and Moral Responsibility with Sofia Jeppsson
04 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Sofia Jeppsson about why we should not take mental illness to function as an exemption from moral responsibility and why...
Episode 36: Manipulation, Bypassing, and Nonconsensual Neurocorrectives with Gabriel De Marco
21 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Gabriel De Marco about various manipulation cases and different ways philosophers have responded to them. We also talk a...
Episode 35: Strawsonianism and Manipulation Arguments with Andrew Latham and Hannah Tierney
07 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Andrew Latham and Hannah Tierney about their recent collaborative work on manipulation arguments against compatibilism. ...
Episode 34: The Epistemic Condition and Tracing with Daniel Miller
21 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Daniel Miller about when and why ignorance functions as an excuse from blameworthiness, and how this is related to a phe...
Episode 33: Free Will and Moral Luck with Robert Hartman
07 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Robert Hartman about the problems of free will and moral luck and how they are related to each other.Bob's website:...
Episode 32: Incompatibilism and Incompossibilism with Kristin Mickelson
24 Jan 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Kristin Mickelson about whether philosophers are using the term “incompatibilism” in different ways and what implica...
Episode 31: Dependence, Freedom, and Foreknowledge with Andrew Law
10 Jan 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This episode kicks off our fourth season, which will feature the work of mostly earlier-career scholars on a range of topics related to free will. Her...
Episode 30: Free Will as a Higher-Level Phenomenon with Christian List
13 Dec 2021
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with philosopher Christian List about a different way of responding to a challenge to free will from physics. Even if determi...
Episode 29: Physics and Free Will with Jenann Ismael
29 Nov 2021
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Jenann Ismael about how our ordinary conception of ourselves as agents who make free decisions is not in conflict with t...
Episode 28: Situationism with Christian Miller
15 Nov 2021
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Christian Miller about studies in psychology that seem to show that our actions are more influenced by the situations th...
Episode 27: Developmental Psychology and Free Will with Tamar Kushnir
01 Nov 2021
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with psychologist Tamar Kushnir about the developmental origins of our beliefs in free will and agency. We also talk about st...
Episode 26: Willpower and Ego Depletion with Roy Baumeister
18 Oct 2021
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with social psychologist Roy Baumeister about willpower and an effect that Roy calls “ego depletion”. We also ask Roy abo...
Episode 25: Monkeys and Free Will with Adina Roskies
04 Oct 2021
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode we talk with neuroscientist and philosopher Adina Roskies about what we can learn about free will from monkey cognition. We also ask h...
Episode 24: The Neural Basis of Free Will with Peter Ulric Tse
20 Sep 2021
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with neuroscientist Peter Ulric Tse about the neural basis of free will. We cover topics such as criterial causation, kinds o...
Episode 23: The Neurophilosophy of Free Will with Uri Maoz
06 Sep 2021
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with brain scientist Uri Maoz about the neurophilosophy of free will. We ask about the role of neuroscience in the free will ...
Episode 22: The Libet Experiment with Tim Bayne
23 Aug 2021
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, Tim Bayne explains a famous experiment by brain scientist Benjamin Libet— an experiment that Libet took to show that we have no fre...
Episode 21: Introduction to Free Will and Science with Robyn Repko Waller
09 Aug 2021
Contributed by Lukas
This episode is the first in a new season on free will and science. Over the course of the season, we’ll have episodes covering topics in neuroscien...
Episode 20: Season 2 Q&A
17 May 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Cohosts Taylor Cyr and Matt Flummer answer listener questions about the issues and ideas brought up in Season 2 of The Free Will Show.Asimov, Bicenten...
Episode 19: Mysterianism with Seth Shabo
03 May 2021
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, we talk with Seth Shabo about mysterianism, the view that we have free will, but it is a mystery how it is that we have it. While not...