Freedom Of Self-determination Research Articles

Exploring Transitions: Young Adult Development From A Psychological Perspective

This research aims to describe the development of young adults from a psychological perspective. This research uses literature review research, namely conducting library searches and research by reading various kinds of books, journals and other library publications related to the topic under study. Data analysis techniques used in this research is a content analysis method. Meanwhile, the data sources used are books and research journals. The results of this research are that early adulthood is also known as the transition from adolescence to adulthood, which occurs approximately between the ages of 20 and 40 years. The transition from dependence on others to independence, both in terms of economics, freedom of self-determination, and views of the future, as well as changes in physical, intellectual, social roles, psychology, and reproductive abilities. However, early adulthood is considered an immature age in terms of social relationships, because the busyness of pursuing a career, working, getting married, and involvement in activities outside the home decreases. As a result, early adult individuals will experience social isolation for the first time, this is known as a competitive crisis by Erickson.

Access to medically-assisted procreation: the withdrawal of paternal consent in the maze of law n. 40/2004.

The law (No.40/2004) stipulates that consent to Medically Assisted Procreation (MAP) remains irrevocable post ovum fertilization. Cryo-preservation introduces complexities, enabling embryo implantation requests after a couple's separation and the dissolution of the original parenthood plan. Constitutional Court Ruling No.161 in 2023 affirmed that the prohibition of revoking consent to MAP aligns with the Italian Constitution and the jurisprudence of the European Court of Human Rights. This delicate equilibrium of conflicting interests upholds human freedom, allowing consent revocation prior to ovocyte fertilization. Permitting revocation until implantation could inflict more significant harm: the infertile woman can in fact miss the opportunity to become a mother, impacting her psychophysical well-being and freedom of self-determination. Moreover, the embryo loses the chance to live, remaining in cryopreservation, which violates its dignity. Addressing this issue requires thorough communication by medical profession-als to inform couples about the limitations on consent revocation. An element of objectivity in terms of standards and evidence-based guidelines, from which norms must originate, is of utmost importance. Relying on broadly shared rules, especially at the international level, is vital in light of the unremitting scientific advances in MAP, as in other areas of medicine, which will open up new opportunities for which current legal/regulatory frameworks are inadequate.

Neuroscientific Evidence in Italian Criminal Proceedings

The author asks whether and to what extent neuroscientific evidentiary techniques can be considered admissible in Italian criminal procedure to assess the mental state of the accused or to verify the truthfulness of a statement, analyzing the national jurisprudence on the subject. First, the author asks whether neuroscientific techniques can be used to determine whether the defendant was totally or partially insane at the time of the crime charged and to determine whether the defendant is a socially dangerous person. The answer is yes, although great caution must be exercised. The main risk is to theorize the existence of a real biological basis for antisocial behavior, which could even justify the adoption of restrictive measures praeter delictum against the biologically vulnerable person. Secondly, the author asks whether the techniques called A-IAT (Autobiographical Implicit Association Test) and TARA (Temporal Antagonistic Response Aletiometer), used in Italy in some criminal proceedings to verify the truthfulness of a statement, are compatible with the Italian law of evidence, which prohibits the use, even with the consent of the person concerned, of methods and techniques that are likely to impair his freedom of self-determination and his ability to recall and evaluate facts. The answer is certainly no if it is believed that these techniques can function as "memory detection" techniques, i.e. they are capable of detecting in the mind of the person concerned even memories that he or she has erased. More controversial is whether a-IAT and TARA are to be considered admissible if they are believed to be simple “lie-detection” techniques, aimed at revealing whether or not the declarant is truthful in reporting his or her memories.

Assisted Suicide and Euthanasia in Mental Disorders: Ethical Positions in the Debate between Proportionality, Dignity, and the Right to Die.

The admission of people suffering from psychiatric and neurocognitive disorders to euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide (E/PAS) in some European and non-European countries represents a controversial issue. In some countries, the initial limitation of E/PAS to cases of severe physical illness with poor prognosis in the short term has been overcome, as it was considered discriminatory; thus, E/PAS has also been made available to subjects suffering from mental disorders. This decision has raised significant ethical questions regarding the capacity and freedom of self-determination; the family, social, and economic contexts; the social consideration of the sense of dignity and the pressure on the judgment of one's personal value; the contextual therapeutic possibilities; the identification of figures involved in the validation and application; as well as the epistemological definitions of the clinical conditions in question. To these issues must be added the situation of legislative vacuum peculiar to different countries and the widespread lack of effective evaluation and control systems. Nonetheless, pessimistic indicators on global health status, availability of care and assistance, aging demographics, and socioeconomic levels suggest that there may be further pressure toward the expansion of such requests. The present paper aims to trace an international overview with the aim of providing ethical support to the debate on the matter. Precisely, the goal is the delimitation of foundations for clinical practice in the complex field of psychiatry between the recognition of the irreversibility of the disease, assessment of the state of physical and mental suffering, as well as the possibility of adopting free and informed choices.

Ethno Art Traditions in Fashion and Music as Factor of the Artist’s National Identity Formation

The purpose of the article is to determine the guidelines of the artist’s ethnocultural identity as a phenomenon of Ukrainian fashion and music. The research methodology is determined by comparative and systemic approaches, focused on a holistic analysis of the phenomenon of the artist's ethno-cultural identity. The novelty of the article. Ethnoartistic traditions are defined as a two-dimensional vector of reflection. Ethnoculture as a reality is inherited by an artist, enters modern culture on the basis of cultural creativity. Ethnoartistic traditions are realised in the professional activity of an artist, designer, and art critic. National identity cannot be imposed from above, be an ideological tool, a concept structured in the form of certain paradigms, models, realities of cultural creation. Identity arises as a living experience of communication, as a reality of the self-fulfillment of national self-awareness processes. Conclusions. Ethnoartistic traditions are a problem of the artist's will, freedom of choice, and freedom of self-determination. To a greater extent, this problem is an ethical one. A person gives themselves the opportunity to be nationally conscious in fashion and music – this is a determinant of freedom of will and choice. The search for horizons of national community and identity is always connected with the fact that fashion and musical priorities cannot be abstract, purely literary, cannot be a manifestation defined as an ideological construction. National identity is always connected with the living experience of ethno-cultural communication. The dichotomy of ethnogenesis and culturogenesis in the space of the artist's self-awareness always finds that harmonious unity, dispositive, which encourages, moreover, prompts the self-determination of the actor’s creativity and activity in fashionable discourse. Key words: ethnoculture, fashion, music, ethnoculturation, traditions, discourse

Special Report: Ethical Decision-Making in Contemporary Psychiatric Practice—An Evolving Challenge

Special Report: Ethical Decision-Making in Contemporary Psychiatric Practice—An Evolving Challenge

Ukrainian realities: from freedom of conscience - to freedom from foreign quasi-confessional ideologems

The article includes an analysis of the problem of constitution of the right to freedom of conscience in Ukraine. The review features both legislative confirmation and interpretation of this right, as well as aspects of historical conflicts related to its practical implementation. The study outlines the specifics of the interpretation and implementation of this right in modern Ukrainian realities. The author notes that freedom of conscience is a multidimensional concept and it is about both the legally formalized and practically implemented recognition of the human personality by the state, public, political and religious organizations and other individuals as the highest value; and about respect for its spiritual sovereignty, freedom of self-determination and self-realization in religious and other spheres of life. The article concludes with a summary indicating necessary components of the process of protecting freedom of conscience in Ukraine: protection of freedom of conscience in Ukraine at the domestic level and protection of freedom of conscience in Ukraine in the international space.

Соціальне підприємництво та волонтерство у вирішенні соціальних проблем

The article examines the essence and forms of social entrepreneurship. The essence of the social entrepreneur as the central actor of social entrepreneurship and whose personal socio-psychological qualities depend on the success of the social enterprise is revealed. The role of volunteering in the current conditions is emphasized. Volunteering is an effective means of social development. Currently, volunteers are full-fledged subjects of social development. The role of volunteerism is recognized at the state level, which is confirmed in separate legislative documents. Typical problems of most volunteer organizations have been identified, in particular: lack of regular funding; lack of relevant skills and qualifications of leaders and employees; problems with training and improving the qualifications of employees. The concept of "basic internal orientation", which determines a person's freedom of self-determination, has been studied. A unique life experience forms and consolidates a key pattern in a person, that is, a "behavior model", which is expressed in education, work and other spheres of life. Behavioral patterns of children are complimentary to the patterns of their parents and ancestors.The foreign experience of social entrepreneurship, which demonstrates the opportunities and advantages of the non-profit sector, and not only social but also economic ones, is analyzed. Attention is focused on the fact that social entrepreneurship is an important mechanism for increasing the level of socio-economic development of the country. The key to the successful development of social enterprises in Ukraine is the development of national development strategies that would allow coordinating the efforts of all interested parties

Ethical considerations for clinicians faced with patients lacking the capacity to form reasoned judgments regarding COVID-19 tests and isolation.

Dealing with patients suffering severe mental health problems during the Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic have raised several, complex, clinical and ethical questions (1). Such patients may need to be treated within secure facilities where many patients and staff live in close proximity, increasing the risk of disease transmission. In February 2020, in the Daenam hospital in South Korea, an infection cluster was found in the psychiatric ward, with 101/103 patients testing positive (2). In this pandemic’s unprecedented circumstances, psychological pressure on medical staff has been severe (3). Clinical staff have been significantly at risk when dealing with psychiatric inpatients, especially in areas where high infection levels have led to shortfalls in personal protective equipment supply. Several strategies are required to reduce infection risks for psychiatric inpatients and their caregivers. Such strategies may include a comprehensive test program, mask-wearing, and social distancing. However, psychiatric patients would frequently not possess the capacity to make reasoned judgments regarding the refusal of testing or noncompliance with anti-infection protocols. Because of psychiatric illness, such patients may refrain from being tested or following protocols such as mask-wearing or isolation. Thus, clinicians have faced with serious ethical problems when dealing with psychiatric inpatients during this pandemic, in that they must balance the requirements of respecting patient autonomy and allowing them as much freedom of self-determination as is appropriate, against the need to protect the patient from infection and prevent them from infecting others. This commentary aimed at assisting clinicians facing with such ethical dilemmas.

Along the Italian route of End-of-life: the latest judicial evolution on assisted suicide

In the last three decades, the dilemma of End-of-Life is one of the most disputed bio-juridical questions Italy is confronting with. By raising highly sensitive ethical, legal and political dilemmas, it has deeply divided the Italian society, the scientific community and the political arena. In the context of a raging controversy, the Italian Parliament has opted for silence. Thus, an evolutive, judicial route has marked the legal frame in response to numerous, concrete demands of recognition of the freedom of self-determination and value of dignity in the final phase of life. In this review article, an overview of the judicial evolution of the complex mosaic of end-of-life issues will be firstly offered through three cases, pillars on which the latest judicial evolution on assisted suicide lays its foundations. Secondly, the issue of assisted suicide will be singularly addressed through the examination of the Cappato case which has outlined the path for the historical ruling of the Italian Constitutional Court, no'242 of 2019 on the constitutional illegitimacy of the crime of assistance to suicide under article 580 of the Italian Criminal Code. Precisely, the Court has pointed out several, concurrent requirements in presence of which an active conduct directly connected with suicide is not criminally relevant: the autonomous and free formation of the individual will, the irreversible nature of the disease, the ongoing practice of a life-saving treatment, the intolerability of the physical or psychological sufferings and the mental capacity to self-determination. Among the numerous, emerging, interpretative questions, the latest Trentini case, in which the requirement of life-saving treatment has been interpreted as inclusive of pharmacological therapy and of every material, sanitary life-saving assistance, will be further evaluated. Conclusively, a cross section of the fragile interplay between the legislative power and the judiciary power will be depicted in reference to the main open interpretative questions related to the enforcement of the constitutional ruling and a portrait of the upcoming scenerios, as the existing legislative drafts and the prepositive referendum question, will be concisely examined.

Uso obrigatório de máscara facial para conter a COVID-19 no Brasil: limitação legítima ao direito fundamental de autodeterminação

Introduction: The autonomy of the individual’s will aiming at the exercise of individual freedom by refusing the use of a face mask as a means of protection can have serious collective consequences in relation to the prevention and spread of the contagious infectious disease caused by SARS-CoV-2. Objective: To analyze whether the individual’s freedom of self-determination against collective interest in cases of compulsory use of a face mask will prevail. Method: The study was developed through documentary and bibliographic collection, with descriptive bias. Results: The official data and guidelines of the World Health Organization in joint analysis with the existing Brazilian legislation and the constitutional commandments of fundamental rights, allowed us to reach the result of the proposed objective. Conclusions: The published normative acts are based on validity in a federal standard with the status of a law in a formal sense, with the provision for the adoption of prophylaxis measures, including the mandatory use of the mask, to combat the pandemic. The prevalence of the collective interest in favor of public health and the fundamental right to life and health of others is legitimate given the individual’s freedom of self-determination.

PSYCHOLOGICAL FEATURES OF AN INDIVIDUAL’S SELF-ACTUALIZATION

The article highlights the psychological peculiarities of an individual’s self-actualization discussed in foreign and national psychology, consider the essence of self-actualization and disclosure of basic characteristics of a self-actualized personality. The representatives of the humanistic approach in psychology consider self-actualization as an integral personal quality and the most important mechanism of an individual’s development. In the process of self-actualization, an individual reaches the top of his/her capabilities. A.Maslow considered as the main characteristic of a personality his/her desire for self-actualization, self-expression and creativity. Self-actualization is defined as an individual’s desire to maximize his/her capabilities, to fully unlock his/her inherent natural potential. According to K. Rogers, the main driving force of an individual’s functioning is his/her tendency to self-actualization, that is, his/her need to realize his/her natural potentialities. People are able to define their lives, they are responsible for what they are; that is, freedom of self-determination is inherent in their nature. G. Allport viewed self-actualization as a path to becoming a mature personality. V. Frankl believed that the driving force of human behavior and personality development is searches for the meaning in life; an individual  is free to find and realize his/her own meaning in life, because he/she is able to self-transcendence, that is, able to go beyond him/herself, rise above a situation and grasp a meaning in life. R. May emphasized that a creative personality values ​​and preserves his/her inner freedom to fulfill his/her capabilities and live a true life. The main characteristics of a self-actualized personality include: spontaneity, naturalness, independence, creativity, passion for fulfilled work, etc. A self-actualized personality expresses a strong desire for development, creativity, love, happiness and fullness of life. In the work of national psychologists, self-actualization is examined in the context of self-realization and self-development and is defined as the desire for self-determination and improvement of oneself, implementation of personal capabilities, which contributes to the development of a holistic personality. S.L. Rubinshtein defined a personality as an agent of his/her own life; the basic characteristics of an agent is his/her ability to self-development, self-determination and self-improvement. According to B.G. Ananyev, a personality is formed in the process of an individual’s development and activities, which contributes to the manifestation of his/her unique individuality. The scientist regarded a self-realized personality as a mature personality. According to the views of M.Io.Boryshevsky, an individual is an active, conscious agent of all manifestations of his/her own life creativity and is able to create himself and at the same time cause positive changes in the surrounding reality. S.D.Maksimenko views self-realization as a natural and total-general characteristic of a personality. The need for self-realization is a source of an individual’s activities, and, at the same time, determines those activities that satisfy the need in the specific conditions of the individual’s life path. V.O. Molyako states that a creative personality chooses independently his/her actions and decisions, reaches significant levels of his/her mental development and professional skills, is responsible to himself and to the society. According to V.O. Tatenko, the main idea of an individual’s self-development is that the inner (an agent) acts through the external and, thus, changes him/herself and the external world. T.M. Titarenko views a personality as an open, not frozen, but constantly changing integrity, self-determined in the socio-cultural space and individual-psychological time. L.O. Korostyleva notes that, during self-realization, an individual reveals him/herself as unique, shows his/her abilities and reveals his/her inner potential. O.O. Bodalev understands an individual’s self-realization as constant self-development, the ability to plan and carry out actions that are in accordance with human values, to mobilize his/herself to overcome difficulties, to objectively evaluate his/her strengths and weaknesses. Both foreign and national scientists believe that self-actualization is an individual’s desire to continuously expand his/her unlimited creative potential in various spheres of life. Thus, self-actualization means implementation of an individual’s inner potential, which helps him/her to live a meaningful life. &nbsp

The Italian Constitutional Court and the constitutionality of the criminalisation of assisted suicide of patients suffering from serious and incurable diseases

On 16 November 2018, the Italian Constitutional Court addressed for the first time the controversial issue of the constitutionality of the criminalisation of assisted suicide of patients suffering from serious and incurable diseases. In its judgment, the Court held that the criminalisation of assisted suicide is not contrary to the Constitution, rejecting the existence of a right to die, in line with the European Court of Human Rights case law. Nevertheless, the Constitutional Court recognised that in cases of patients suffering from serious and incurable diseases, an absolute prohibition on assisted suicide could run contrary to the freedom of self-determination and the constitutional principles of human dignity and equality. The present note describes and analyses the facts of the case and the reasoning of the Constitutional Court, especially the structure of the argument and the new ‘decision technique’ adopted.

Health Security in a Democratic State: Child Vaccination – Legal Obligation Versus the Right to Express Consent for a Medical Intervention

Abstract One of the major objectives in a democratic state is ensuring health security of the citizens including combating epidemic diseases. The subject matter of this article is the presentation and analysis of legal regulations regarding preventive vaccination in Poland, in particular the aspect of imposing a legal obligation and restricting parents’ right to express consent for medical intervention. The reflections made herein are aimed at finding an answer to the question whether the adopted legal solutions are admissible in a democratic state with regard to ensuring health security. The purpose of the analysis is also to assess whether the abovementioned legal regulations have been formulated in a clear way and do not raise interpretation doubts and, consequently, whether they are comprehensible to the parents obliged to comply with them. As it follows from analysis of the legal provisions, parents must not refuse to subject a child to obligatory preventive vaccination and their consent is not required by law, both as regards the medical qualifying examination to exclude contraindications to performing vaccination and the vaccination itself. It is a legal obligation, from which exemption is only possible on grounds of certain medical conditions that would render vaccination inadvisable. The legal provisions that concern obligatory preventive vaccination in Poland, including in particular those referring to its enforceability, have not been formulated in a way that is sufficiently comprehensible to parents who are under the obligation of complying with them, irrespective of the fact that the language of the provisions of law should be clear and raise no interpretative doubts. In a democratic state the protection of public health against epidemic hazards justifies the implementation of legal solutions that restrict an individual’s freedom of self-determination, thus limiting the right of patients or their statutory representatives to grant or refuse consent for a medical intervention in the form of preventive vaccination – the purpose of this legal solution being to prioritize the safeguarding of state health security. It is vitally important to engage in a social dialogue with the purpose of convincing the public of the need for vaccination, its significance and its implementation for the better good.

Vladanje sobom: nužni uslov razvoja ličnosti, kvalitetne komunikacije i dobrih međuljudskih odnosa

Vladanje sobom: nužni uslov razvoja ličnosti, kvalitetne komunikacije i dobrih međuljudskih odnosa

Ресурсы народной игры как социокультурного средства профилактики девиантного поведения

Role-playing can be used as one of the possible means of early professional training in legal psychologists. Defining play-based practice as the content of education eliminates the problem of professional and learning motivation during the first semesters of study. Folk game is considered a cultural form that helps create a developmental, corrective and preventive environment for working with deviant behaviours. The most significant causes of deviant behaviour are commonly thought to be one’s lack of both psychoemotional experience and psychophysiological preconditions for its acquisition. The key factors in an individual’s ability to establish social relations and organise behaviour are his/her experience in communication, ability to take into account other people’s emotional states and to display his/her own states and needs for others to consider. The resources of folk games, apart from them being a cultural form of traditional communication, are the following: the strictness of rules which, at the same time, provide only the framework to the game, thus not interfering with creative activity and improvisation; the richness of images, meanings and emotions in plots; the value of the very process of the game to its participants; the freedom of self-determination for those entering the game; the equality of all participants in regard to roles and rules.

Advancing an Ethic of Embodied Relational Sexuality to Guide Decision-Making in Dementia Care.

Sexuality and intimacy are universal needs that transcend age, cognitive decline, and disability; sexuality is a fundamental aspect of the human experience. However, supporting sexuality in long-term residential care presents ethical challenges as this setting is both a home environment for residents and a workplace for health practitioners. This is particularly complex in the case of residents with dementia given the need to balance protection from harm and freedom of self-determination. Despite such complexity, this challenge has received limited critical theoretical attention. The dominant approach advocated to guide ethical reasoning is the bioethical four principles approach. However, the application of this approach in the context of dementia and long-term care may set the bar for practitioners' interference excessively high, restricting assentual (i.e., voluntary) sexual expression. Furthermore, it privileges cognitive and impartial decision-making, while disregarding performative, embodied, and relational aspects of ethical reasoning. With an interest in addressing these limitations, we explicate an alternative ethic of embodied relational sexuality that is grounded in a model of citizenship that recognizes relationality and the agential status of embodied self-expression. This alternative ethic broadens ethical reasoning from the exclusive duty to protect individuals from harm associated with sexual expression, to the duty to also uphold and support their rights to experience the benefits of sexual expression (e.g., pleasure, intimacy). As such it has the potential to inform the development of policies, organizational guidelines, and professional curricula to support the sexuality of persons with dementia, and thereby ensure more humane practices in long-term residential care settings.

Aportaciones no jurídicas al concepto de “la intimidad”: reflexiones interdisciplinarias

Introducción: con el objetivo de ofrecer una visión más amplia sobre la intimidad, se indagan algunas conceptualizaciones no jurídicas, partiendo de la defiición establecida por el Diccionario de la Real Academia Española como aquella “zona espiritual íntima y reservada de una persona o de un grupo”. Metodología: la construcción del concepto se va consolidando, en el artículo, con el aporte de signifiados procedentes de otras disciplinas como la psicología, la fiosofía y el arte. Resultados: se abstrae una conceptualización que desborda el marco jurídico e integra interpretaciones de las Constituciones de otros países de la región. Conclusión: la intimidad consiste en el ejercicio de la libertad radical de autodeterminación por la cual el hombre se hace fiel a sí mismo, al tiempo que se descubre inagotable, inabarcable e irreductible a las cosas

The Living Will. My Personal Viewpoint and Reasons for Introducing it into Italian Legislation

Human dignity, the right to health and life, the freedom of self-determination of the patient regarding treatments, the position of a healthcare proxy and of the doctor – are not so easy to reconcile. By means of the living will and the particular attention of the Legislator to these important themes it is possible to avoid frequent discussions and conflicts, above all when the legislation is non-existent, as in Italy which is still characterized by the lack of solid specific ad hoc legislation. This measure, essentially, is particularly effective in order to prevent ex ante, or to solve ex post, the difficult dilemmas which arise in situations which are characterized by the absence of a capacity for self-determination, safeguarding, forever and in all situations, the dignity and the identity of the human being.

Discussion on Aims of Edu-Care Service in Elementary School: Focused on Publicness and Children’s Freedom of Self-Determination

Discussion on Aims of Edu-Care Service in Elementary School: Focused on Publicness and Children’s Freedom of Self-Determination