Autonomy
Autonomy (from the Greek autos for self and nomos for rule, governance, or law) is defined as self-determination or self-rule. Its original use in ancient Greece referred to the sovereignty of states, but Immanuel Kant (1724–1804) and others in the modern period applied the term to individuals. For Kant, one is autonomous when one subjects oneself to moral rules recognized by the rational self. In contrast, one whose decisions and actions are shaped by others without critical reflection on the individual's part is heteronomous. Autonomy brings with it moral responsibility, and the autonomous person is open to charges of negligence or recklessness in the uses of science or technology if proper precautions against risk are not taken. Autonomy may also refer to the self-governing nature of professions or groups, such as the scientific community. Furthermore technology that operates without regular instruction from a person is sometimes called autonomous technology.
Conditions of Autonomy
Autonomy has many faces. Joel Feinberg (1989) points out at least four meanings: the capacity to rule oneself; the condition of ruling oneself; the virtuous ideal of ruling oneself; and the authority to rule oneself. Gerald Dworkin (1988) highlights eight common uses. One commonality is the idea that autonomy, like freedom, combines two aspects: the negative condition of freedom from external constraints and the positive condition of a self-determined will.
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