Developing theoretically informed approaches to support relational autonomy in dementia research

This thesis considers autonomy for people with dementia. Autonomy is a core ethical principle in human rights and bioethics. However, traditional notions of individual autonomy are under-socialised and marginalise people with dementia. An alternative concept of relational autonomy remains under-developed. My thesis makes an original contribution to knowledge by presenting a novel exploratory narrative review of existing theoretical or conceptual frameworks with potential to inform development of the relational autonomy concept, as well as three empirical contributions using frameworks identified in the review. These focus on circumstances in which autonomy is especially vulnerable and are based on in-depth qualitative interviews conducted with people with dementia and family carers. This thesis addresses the research question: how can autonomy for people with dementia be conceptualised in research and supported in dementia policy and practice?