The Evolution of Autonomy

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-32
Author(s):  
Lucas Swaine
Keyword(s):  
Immanuel Kant ◽  
Personal Autonomy ◽  
Ancient Greece ◽  
Individual Autonomy ◽  
Interstate Relations ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
A Value ◽  
Democratic Societies

This chapter examines the origins of autonomy and outlines the development of autonomy as a value in democratic societies. It is commonly believed that the idea of autonomy was originally restricted to the discourse of interstate relations in ancient Greece. However, early understandings of autonomia were applied to a wide variety of entities, including those of a nonpolitical nature. Individual-level discussion of autonomy emerged prior to the work of Immanuel Kant, furthermore, foreshadowing contemporary theories of personal autonomy and casting new light on the proliferation of autonomy in democracy. Autonomy has burgeoned into a widely endorsed value in free societies, and pejorative connotations of individual autonomy have vanished.

History and Personal Autonomy

1993 ◽  
Vol 23 (2) ◽  
pp. 271-280 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alfred Mele
Keyword(s):  
Personal Autonomy ◽  
The Self ◽  
Personal History ◽  
Individual Autonomy ◽  
List Type ◽  
Historical Account ◽  
New Model ◽  
Self Reflection

John Christman, in ‘Autonomy and Personal History,’ advances a novel genetic or historical account of individual autonomy. He formulates ‘the conditions of the [i.e., his] new model of autonomy’ as follows:(i) A person P is autonomous relative to some desire D if it is the case that P did not resist the development of D when attending to this process of development, or P would not have resisted that development had P attended to the process;(ii) The lack of resistance to the development of D did not take place (or would not have) under the influence of factors that inhibit self-reflection;and(iii) The self-reflection involved in condition (i) [sic] is (minimally) rational and involves no self-deception. (11)

Psychosocial Environment: A Health Promotion Model

1984 ◽  
Vol 4 (4) ◽  
pp. 311-341 ◽  
Author(s):  
Snehendu B. Kar
Keyword(s):  
Social Support ◽  
Health Promotion ◽  
Health Behavior ◽  
Personal Autonomy ◽  
The Philippines ◽  
Situational Factors ◽  
Policy Implications ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Independent Effects ◽  
Research And Policy

This article presents a multidimensional model of psychosocial determinants of health behavior for health promotion research and policy analysis. Frequently, health promotion focuses almost exclusively on intrapsychic determinants and on individual level behavior. Based upon Field Theory and attitude theories, this proposed model holds that in populations with comparable sociodemographic and biological status (exogenous variables) a health behavior is a function of direct and interaction effects of five key intrapsychic and external variables. These are: behavioral intentions, social support, accessibility of means for action, personal autonomy, and action situation. Empirical tests with cross-cultural studies in Venezuela, Kenya, and the Philippines provide substantial support for the model. The findings suggest that while health promotion strategies should deal with intrapsychic determinants of behavior, key extrapsychic factors (such as social support, quality and accessibility of health care measures, and situational factors) all have direct and independent effects on health behavior as well. Health promotion research and interventions which aim exclusively at intrapsychic determinants would thus have rather limited overall value. The article discusses key research and policy implications of the model presented.

Euphoria Versus Sufferings: Revolutionary Rolpa in Post Conflict Context

2011 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 101-114
Author(s):  
Sachin Ghimire
Keyword(s):  
Deep Level ◽  
Political Commitment ◽  
Critical Approach ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Left Behind ◽  
Post Conflict ◽  
A Value ◽  
Pain And Suffering ◽  
Social Separation ◽  
The Relationship

Armed conflict has left behind a legacy of social separation, physical loss of human lives and a population suffering from many kinds of physical and mental morbidities. In the post-conflict context, a lengthy political transition, coterie politics and the absence of a stable government are severely hindering the realisation of people's aspirations. Such hindrances have fostered a deep level of political frustration and promoted a culture of depoliticization. In Rolpa, lack of political commitment has meant people's health has become an overlooked agenda and has forced people to lose hope for change and survive with silent sufferings. Through the lens of a value-critical approach, this paper attempts to explore the relationship between politics of exclusion and its reflection on individual level pain and suffering in Rolpa.

scholarly journals Public support for the right to euthanasia: Impact of traditional religiosity and autonomy values across 37 nations

2018 ◽  
Vol 59 (4) ◽  
pp. 301-318 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maksim Rudnev ◽  
Aleksandra Savelkaeva
Keyword(s):  
Public Support ◽  
Independent Effect ◽  
World Values Survey ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Country Level ◽  
A Value ◽  
The Individual ◽  
The Right ◽  
Moral Attitudes

This article takes a postmodernization perspective on support for the right to euthanasia by treating it as an expression of a process of value change, as a preference for quality over quantity of life. Using the data from the fifth wave of the World Values Survey, this study attempts to answer the question of whether the mass support for the right to euthanasia is an expression of autonomy values rather than just a function of a low religiosity. Multilevel regressions demonstrate that both traditional religiosity and autonomy values have a high impact at the individual level, while at the country level only the effects of traditional religiosity are significant. Autonomy values have stronger association with attitudes to euthanasia in countries with higher levels of postmaterialism. Multilevel path analysis demonstrates that the effect of religiosity is partially and weakly mediated by the values of autonomy at both levels. Although religiosity was found to have a much stronger impact, the independent effect of autonomy values suggests that mass support for the right to euthanasia is a value-driven preference for quality over quantity of life. We conclude by suggesting that the fall in traditional religiosity might emphasize the role of values in moral attitudes regulation.

Death with “dignity”: The wedge that divides the disability rights movement from the right to die movement

2011 ◽  
Vol 30 (1) ◽  
pp. 17-32 ◽  
Author(s):  
Susan M. Behuniak
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Assisted Suicide ◽  
Personal Autonomy ◽  
Right To Die ◽  
Disability Rights ◽  
Physician Assisted Suicide ◽  
Death With Dignity ◽  
Assisted Death ◽  
A Value ◽  
The Right

Much of the American debate over physician assisted death (PAD) is framed as an ideological split between conservatives and liberals, pro life and pro choice advocates, and those who emphasize morality versus personal autonomy. Less examined, but no less relevant, is a split within the ranks of progressives—one that divides those supporting a right to die in the name of human rights from disability rights activists who invoke human rights to vehemently oppose euthanasia. This paper reviews how “dignity” serves both as a divisive wedge in this debate but also as a value that can span the divide between groups and open the way to productive discourse. Supporters of legalized euthanasia use “dignity” to express their position that some deaths might indeed be accelerated. At the same time, opponents adopt the concept to argue that physician assisted suicide stigmatizes life with a disability. To bridge this divide, the worldviews of two groups, Compassion & Choices and Not Dead Yet, are studied. The analysis concludes that the two organizations are more parallel than contrary—a finding that offers opportunities for dialogue and perhaps even advances in public policy.

scholarly journals Natural Equality and Natural Law in Locke’s Two Treatises

2019 ◽  
pp. 127-146
Author(s):  
Kari Saastamoinen
Keyword(s):  
Seventeenth Century ◽  
Political Theory ◽  
Natural Law ◽  
Political Thought ◽  
Individual Autonomy ◽  
Political Equality ◽  
Liberal Democratic ◽  
Successful Attempt ◽  
Democratic Societies

This chapter discusses John Locke’s account of natural equality as presented in his Two Treatises of Government. Together with its sister concept natural liberty, natural equality is often associated with the idea of Locke as an early representative of liberal political thought. Locke’s notions of natural liberty and equality are seen as sings of his commitment to the values of individual autonomy and political equality held central in liberal-democratic societies of today, and his political theory is read as a more or less successful attempt to articulate those values. The chapter argues that such approach to Locke’s remarks on natural equality is historically misleading, and they are best understood when we take seriously the fact that he developed his political theory within the parameters of seventeenth-century natural law.

Death with “dignity”: The wedge that divides the disability rights movement from the right to die movement

2011 ◽  
Vol 30 (01) ◽  
pp. 17-32
Author(s):  
Susan M. Behuniak
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Assisted Suicide ◽  
Personal Autonomy ◽  
Right To Die ◽  
Disability Rights ◽  
Physician Assisted Suicide ◽  
Death With Dignity ◽  
Assisted Death ◽  
A Value ◽  
The Right

Much of the American debate over physician assisted death (PAD) is framed as an ideological split between conservatives and liberals, pro life and pro choice advocates, and those who emphasize morality versus personal autonomy. Less examined, but no less relevant, is a split within the ranks of progressives—one that divides those supporting a right to die in the name of human rights from disability rights activists who invoke human rights to vehemently oppose euthanasia. This paper reviews how “dignity” serves both as a divisive wedge in this debate but also as a value that can span the divide between groups and open the way to productive discourse. Supporters of legalized euthanasia use “dignity” to express their position that some deaths might indeed be accelerated. At the same time, opponents adopt the concept to argue that physician assisted suicide stigmatizes life with a disability. To bridge this divide, the worldviews of two groups, Compassion & Choices and Not Dead Yet, are studied. The analysis concludes that the two organizations are more parallel than contrary—a finding that offers opportunities for dialogue and perhaps even advances in public policy.

Institutions, Gender, and Entrepreneurship in Latin America

2018 ◽  
pp. 1334-1355
Author(s):  
David Urbano ◽  
Sebastian Aparicio ◽  
Maria Noguera
Keyword(s):  
Latin American ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Institutional Economics ◽  
Personal Autonomy ◽  
Educational Environment ◽  
Development Indicators ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Country Level ◽  
Self Employment ◽  
The World

This chapter seeks to explore the institutional effects on the probability of becoming an entrepreneur, for both women and men, among a low-income level population, in the context of Latin American countries. By using institutional economics, it is hypothesized that personal autonomy, membership of an art or music organization, membership of a religious organization, and secondary educational environment have a positive effect on the probability of becoming self-employed, for both female and male. The World Values Survey (at individual level) and the World Development Indicators (at country level) provide the main information to empirically assess the influence of institutions on low-income self-employment. The findings from probit models suggest that personal autonomy, membership of an art or music organization, and secondary educational environment are factors defining the context in which women and men become entrepreneurs. Public strategies regarding gender equality are discussed.

scholarly journals Measuring cultural values at the individual-level: considering morality in cross-cultural value research

2009 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 60-83 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christin-Melanie Vauclair
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Values ◽  
Empirical Studies ◽  
Moral Values ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Usual Procedure ◽  
A Value ◽  
Importance Ratings ◽  
Methodological Problems ◽  
The Individual

Shared values are typically seen as one of the core aspects of culture. The usual procedure for deriving shared cultural values is through analyzing individuals' value priorities at the cultural-level. This paper outlines the conceptual and methodological problems associated with this procedure. Findings from selected empirical studies are presented to corroborate this critique. Alternative ways of measuring cultural values at the individual-level are presented and classified into a value taxonomy. Within this taxonomy past studies have so far focused on measuring values through importance ratings reflecting what individuals or social groups "desire". However, the argument is made that if cultural values are supposed to be shared they should reflect what is "desirable", i.e. what one "ought" to value or to strive for as a goal in life in a certain society. This constitutes a new approach for the measurement of cultural values. It is proposed that cultural values are measurable at the individual-level using the concept of morality. Suggestions are made how moral values could be operationalized referring to either the individual's moral values or those of a social group. The benefits of the value taxonomy for future research are eventually described.

Social Mobility and Democratic Attitudes: Evidence From Latin America and Sub-Saharan Africa

2019 ◽  
Vol 52 (11) ◽  
pp. 1610-1647 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christian Houle ◽  
Michael K. Miller
Keyword(s):  
Social Mobility ◽  
Personal Autonomy ◽  
The United States ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Democratic Attitudes ◽  
Level Data ◽  
Support For Democracy ◽  
Current Economic Situation ◽  
Sub Saharan

How does intergenerational social mobility affect support for democracy? Although a large literature examines how personal income and inequality influence regime change and democratic attitudes, there has been little work on social mobility. We employ individual level data from the Afrobarometer and Latinobarometer, covering 33 democracies and nondemocracies, to provide the first analysis of how personal experiences of intergenerational mobility influence support for democracy. We find that mobility predicts democratic attitudes, even controlling for education and current economic situation. We also show that the effect does not run through preferences for redistribution. We instead propose two alternative mechanisms. First, individuals living in democracies credit (or blame) the regime when they experience mobility. Second, upward mobility transforms a range of values, such as personal autonomy and trust, that render individuals more supportive of democracy. Our results present a warning for democracies facing steadily declining social mobility, including the United States.

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