The concept of freedom of the will is discussed in the context of neuropsychiatric disease. Psychiatric conditions or neurological disease affecting the brain can modify freedom of will to varying degrees depending upon severity and response to treatment. Milder psychiatric disorders are common and exact thresholds for making diagnoses may be difficult to define reflecting a continuum between abnormal and normal. The study of these neuropsychiatric conditions may provide insight into the role of neurological and psychological factors in freedom of the will in both the mentally healthy and mentally ill. The author suggests a dynamic view of freedom of will with changes in degrees of freedom occurring throughout the life-cycle. The study of neuropsychiatric conditions has implications for any discussion of freedom of will.

freewill, life-cycle, neurobehavioural disorders