PERSPECTIVE article
Front. Netw. Physiol.
Sec. Networks in the Brain System
Volume 5 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fnetp.2025.1631899
This article is part of the Research TopicSelf-Organization of Complex Physiological Networks: Synergetic Principles and Applications — In Memory of Hermann HakenView all 7 articles
Circular Causality in Volition
Provisionally accepted
- Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Uppsala, Uppsala, Sweden
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Conventional scientific paradigms predominantly emphasize upward causality, often overlooking or dismissing the role of downward causality. This approach is also prevalent in neuroscience, where cortical neurodynamics and higher cognitive functions are typically viewed as consequences of neuronal or even ion channel activity. Conversely, mental phenomena are generally assumed to lack causal efficacy over neural processes -an assumption that is increasingly being questioned. The causality associated with volition may be analyzed at three organizational levels: (1) neuronal interactions within cortical networks, (2) interregional dynamics between distinct brain areas, and (3) the reciprocal relationship between the nervous system and its environmental context. Across all these domains, circular rather than strictly linear causality appears to be at play. This paper examines the implications of such circular causality for volition and the longstanding problem of free will, with particular reference to insights derived from neurocomputational modeling.
Keywords: Brain Dynamics, Network physiology, Neural connectivity, EEG, synergetics, neurocomputational modeling, downward causation, free will
Received: 20 May 2025; Accepted: 04 Jul 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Liljenstrom. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Hans Liljenstrom, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Uppsala, 75651, Uppsala, Sweden
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