Voluntary action is an anticipated goal-oriented movement. The concept of voluntary action arises in many areas of study, including

cognitive psychology Cognitive psychology is the scientific study of mental processes such as attention, language use, memory, perception, problem solving, creativity, and reasoning. Cognitive psychology originated in the 1960s in a break from behaviorism, which ...

operant conditioning Operant conditioning, also called instrumental conditioning, is a learning process where behaviors are modified through the association of stimuli with reinforcement or punishment. In it, operants—behaviors that affect one's environment—are c ...

, philosophy, neurology, criminology, and others. Additionally, voluntary action has various meanings depending on the context in which it is used. For example, operant psychology uses the term to refer to the actions that are modifiable by their consequences. A more cognitive account may refer to voluntary action as involving the identification of a desired outcome together with the action necessary to achieve that outcome. Voluntary action is often associated with consciousness and will. For example, Psychologist Charles Nuckolls holds that we control our voluntary behavior, and that it is not known how we come to plan what actions will be executed. Many psychologists, notably Tolman, apply the concept of voluntary action to both animal and human behavior, raising the issue of

animal consciousness Animal consciousness, or animal awareness, is the quality or state of self-awareness within a non-human animal, or of being aware of an external object or something within itself. In humans, consciousness has been defined as: sentience, aware ...

and its role in voluntary action.Hommel, B.(2003). "Acquisition and control of voluntary action", pp. 34–48 in Roth, Gerhard (Ed.) ''Voluntary action: Brains, minds, and sociality''. New York, NY: Oxford University Press

History: William James on voluntary action

The concept of voluntary action was discussed by

William James William James (January 11, 1842 – August 26, 1910) was an American philosopher, historian, and psychologist, and the first educator to offer a psychology course in the United States. James is considered to be a leading thinker of the lat ...

in his influential book '' The Principles of Psychology'' (1890). James states that for an act to be classified as a voluntary, it must be foreseen, as opposed to involuntary action which occurs without foresight. James suggests, for example, that the idea of a particular movement is a voluntary action; however, the movement itself, once the idea has been formed, is involuntary, provided the action itself require no further thought.James, W. (1890). ''The Principles of Psychology'', Vol 2. New York, NY: Holt & Co. Voluntary action arises because humans and animals wish to fulfill desires. In order to fulfill these desires, humans and animals form

goal A goal is an idea of the future or desired result that a person or a group of people envision, plan and commit to achieve. People endeavour to reach goals within a finite time by setting deadlines. A goal is roughly similar to a purpose or ...

s and voluntary actions are undertaken to achieve these goals. Some of the terms that James used to describe voluntary action – such as desire – are now outdated, and his introspective approach is out of favor, but many of his ideas are still find a place in current thinking.

References

{{reflist Animal physiology Cognitive psychology

History: William James on voluntary action

See also

References