Automatism has been contrasted with theories that posit a free, uncaused, or spontaneous form of human agency, in which conscious agents have the ability to make choices and act in accordance with their intentions. In this sense, it stands opposed to the classical conception of free will and moral responsibility.
Automatism has been a topic of philosophical inquiry since the time of the ancient Greeks, and has been defended and criticized by philosophers throughout the history of Western thought. Its most famous proponents include the French philosophers Pierre Simon Laplace and Julien Offray de La Mettrie, both of whom argued that the laws of nature govern all human behavior, including acts of volition.
In contemporary philosophy, there are still many philosophers who defend the concept of free will, and the debate between automatism and libertarianism (the view that free will exists) remains an active and lively area of philosophical research.
