The right to make one's own decisions is known as?

• A. Autonomy
• B. Self-determination
• C. Confidentiality
• D. Beneficence

Answer: (B)

Self-determination is the right of individuals to guide their own lives by making decisions about their goals, services, and daily activities. In social work, this means clients are supported to understand options, express preferences, consent to or refuse interventions, and participate actively in planning their care. The worker’s role is to facilitate information, assess capacity, and respect the client’s choices, even when they differ from others’ wishes. This emphasis on the client’s control over decisions is what makes self-determination the best fit for describing the right to make one’s own decisions. Autonomy is a related idea from broader ethics, but in this context self-determination specifically highlights the client’s decision-making authority within practice. Confidentiality and beneficence refer to privacy and doing good, respectively, not the client’s control over choices.