Meghatározottság

Meghatározottság is a Hungarian term that translates to determinism in English. It refers to the philosophical doctrine that all events, including human cognition, decisions, and actions, are causally determined by an unbroken chain of prior occurrences. In essence, determinism posits that given the state of the universe at any point in time, the future is fixed and could not unfold in any other way.

There are various forms of determinism. Causal determinism is the most common, asserting that every event is necessitated by antecedent causes and conditions together with the laws of nature. Other forms include theological determinism, where events are predetermined by a divine power, and logical determinism, which suggests that all propositions about the future are either true or false, implying a fixed future.

The concept of determinism stands in contrast to free will, the belief that individuals have the capacity to make choices that are not entirely dictated by prior causes. The debate between determinism and free will is a long-standing and complex one in philosophy, exploring implications for morality, responsibility, and the nature of consciousness.

While scientific discoveries, particularly in physics, have sometimes been interpreted as supporting deterministic views, quantum mechanics has introduced elements of randomness that challenge strict determinism. Nevertheless, the question of whether our universe and our actions are ultimately determined or if genuine freedom exists remains a subject of ongoing philosophical and scientific inquiry.