Autonomy in Long Term Care: Some Crucial Distinctions1

Abstract

In long term care, conflicts over autonomy can begin at the level of conceptualization, especially when basic distinctions and polarities are not adequately recognized. To indicate this conceptual complexity, six polarities are identified and examined. Case studies illustrate how each polarity can give rise to ethical problems in long term care practice. Further directions for gerontological theory, practice, and research are indicated by a series of focal questions.