Autonomous action and autonomy-subverting psychiatric conditions.
The following theses are defended in this paper: (1) The concept of autonomous action is centrally relevant to understanding numerous psychiatric conditions, namely, conditions that subvert autonomy; (2) The details of an analysis of autonomous action matter; a vague or rough characterization is less illuminating; (3) A promising analysis for this purpose (and generally) is a version of the "multi-tier model". After opening with five vignettes, I begin the discussion by highlighting strengths and weaknesses of contributions by other authors who examine the relationship between autonomy and autonomy-subverting psychiatric conditions. I then present an analysis of the concept of autonomous action, before employing this analysis in a suggestive exploration of the conditions illustrated in the vignettes.
Department of Philosophy, George Washington University, Washington, D.C, 20052.
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D001290:Attitude; D003192:Compulsive Behavior / Q000523:psychology; D003657:Decision Making; D005260:Female; D005610:Freedom; D006801:Humans; D007258:Informed Consent; D008297:Male; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000145:classification / Q000523:psychology*; D008960:Models, Psychological; D012649:Self Concept; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders / Q000523:psychology