Determined

A Science of Life Without Free Will

By: Robert M. Sapolsky

Narrated by: Kaleo Griffith

The instant New York Times bestseller

“Excellent…Outstanding for its breadth of research, the liveliness of the writing, and the depth of humanity it conveys.” – Wall Street Journal

One of our great behavioral scientists, the bestselling author of Behave, plumbs the depths of the science and philosophy of decision-making to mount a devastating case against free will, an argument with profound consequences

Robert Sapolsky’s Behave, his now classic account of why humans do good and why they do bad, pointed toward an unsettling conclusion: We may not grasp the precise marriage of nature and nurture that creates the physics and chemistry at the base of human behavior, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist. Now, in Determined, Sapolsky takes his argument all the way, mounting a brilliant (and in his inimitable way, delightful) full-frontal assault on the pleasant fantasy that there is some separate self telling our biology what to do.

Determined offers a marvelous synthesis of what we know about how consciousness works—the tight weave between reason and emotion and between stimulus and response in the moment and over a life. One by one, Sapolsky tackles all the major arguments for free will and takes them out, cutting a path through the thickets of chaos and complexity science and quantum physics, as well as touching ground on some of the wilder shores of philosophy. He shows us that the history of medicine is in no small part the history of learning that fewer and fewer things are somebody’s “fault”; for example, for centuries we thought seizures were a sign of demonic possession.

Yet, as he acknowledges, it’s very hard, and at times impossible, to uncouple from our zeal to judge others and to judge ourselves. Sapolsky applies the new understanding of life beyond free will to some of our most essential questions around punishment, morality, and living well together. By the end, Sapolsky argues that while living our daily lives recognizing that we have no free will is going to be monumentally difficult, doing so is not going to result in anarchy, pointlessness, and existential malaise. Instead, it will make for a much more humane world.


*This audiobook includes a downloadable PDF containing Tables, Charts, Diagrams, and Footnotes from the book.

Critic reviews

“Excellent . . . Outstanding for its breadth of research, the liveliness of the writing, and the depth of humanity it conveys.” –Wall Street Journal

“Sapolsky’s decades of experience studying the effects of the interplay of genes and the environment on behavior shine brightly . . . He provides compelling examples that bad luck compounds . . . convincingly argues against claims that chaos theory, emergent phenomena, or the indeterminism offered by quantum mechanics provide the gap required for free will to exist.” —Science

“The behavioural scientist engagingly lays out the reasons why our every action is predetermined—and why we shouldn’t despair about it . . . Determined is a bravura performance, well worth reading for the pleasure of Sapolsky’s deeply informed company . . . Absorbing and compassionate.” —The Guardian

“Few people understand the human brain as well as renowned neuroscientist Robert Sapolsky.” —San Francisco Chronicle

“Witty and engaging, Determined is also a goldmine of fascinating information (most of it accessible even to those of us who aren’t scientifically literate) about neuroscience; philosophy; chaos theory; emergent complexity; quantum indeterminacy; evolving knowledge of the causes of epilepsy, schizophrenia, and autism; and, of course, the impact of nature and nurture on decision-making.” —Psychology Today

“Determined is a sustained attempt at demonstrating that the decisions we make every day are products of complex factors of which we’re not in charge . . . This is an amiable, surprisingly accessible and at times a persuasive book—a paean to empathy and tolerance that yearns for a world in which societies eventually realize that retribution is futile and wrong . . . [Sapolsky] can be pleased with the knowledge that what he’s written is stimulating to read, even for those who doubt his conclusions.” —San Francisco Chronicle

“Sapolsky presents in his inimitable style a cogent argument explaining that free will is an illusion . . . Sapolsky tackles many complicated facets of this demanding subject with aplomb, making difficult material accessible. His engaging style and silly humor make learning fun . . . The debate is essential.” —Booklist

“A neuroscientific takedown of the notion that free will guides us . . . [Sapolsky] is fearless in taking on a matter that is fraught with a long history of debate and division, and he covers a wide variety of disciplines, from philosophy to ethics and law, with admirable clarity . . . Sure to stir controversy, which, to judge by this long but lucid exposition, the author is perfectly willing to court.” —Kirkus (starred review)

Compelling story explained like I’m 5

I’ve been a Robert Sapolsky fan since I found his Stanford lectures on YouTube during the pandemic. They were an accessible breath of fresh air in helping to explain a lot of the seemingly chaotic behavior we were all witnessing. I read about half of Behave (it’s like 700+ pages) and got distracted by life. When I saw this book was coming out, I was so pumped. Probably the first time I’ve been excited for a book release in about 20 years. Sapolsky makes a rather convincing argument about the nature of freewill and the implications of his argument are incredibly liberating. A highly accessible science book blended with just enough philosophy to make one or two credible ‘ought’ statements in a sea of ‘is’ statements. If you love biology, psychology, neuroscience, or philosophy, this book is a must read.

If you approach this book with an open mind and logic, the argument against free will makes a lot of sense.

A lot of the science was over my head but Sapolsky did a great job of explaining his research with real life examples and wit. And yet, I still struggle with the fact that I did not freely choose to write this review.

"Please see the accompanying PDF for a footnote"

Sapolsky is a great author and lecturer if you've never checked out his lecture on Biology available on YouTube you should look it up. The evidence for determinism discussed in the book is super interesting. I only wish Sapolsky himself had done the narration as this material really is his voice. He mentions several topics that deserve attention on their own, quantum mechanics, the Salem witch trials, animal behavior in the wild, and a variety of others as they pertain to free will (of lack thereof).

Determinism as a theory looks to me to be utterly batpoop crazy and I can't take it seriously. The book is overall well written and the narrator does a fine job. I have tons of respect for Robert Sapolsky as an author and science geek and this book was overall pleasant to listen to. Five Stars.

Please see the accompanying PDF for a footnote

You will hear this statement about a million times throughout the book. In some cases every other sentence. It had made its way into my dreams... Otherwise good performance.

Too much behaviorism

A good first half, albeit questionable, but a completely disastrous second half. Sapolsky throws away all the cognition and stands only for the chimical reactions.

Excellent narration.