The phrase "autonomy assumption" is correct and usable in written English.
It can be used in contexts discussing theories or principles related to independence or self-governance, particularly in fields like psychology, philosophy, or social sciences.
Example: "The autonomy assumption posits that individuals have the capacity to make their own choices without external influence."
Alternatives: "independence presumption" or "self-governance hypothesis".
Few would deny the autonomy assumption altogether.
The autonomy assumption, after all, says only that we have the capacity for relevantly autonomous reflection and judgment; it does not imply that we always exercise it.
It is noteworthy that the leading proponent of the mere rationalization hypothesis, Jonathan Haidt (2001), does not take the extreme position of denying the autonomy assumption.
In other words, we tend to treat a person's moral beliefs much as we treat her reasoned mathematical, scientific, or philosophical beliefs, applying the autonomy assumption in seeking to explain why she believes what she does.
At one extreme, someone might deny that the autonomy assumption applies to the moral domain at all: we either lack these capacities in the domain of moral thought, or at least never exercise them.
One potential lesson from evolutionary biology, however, is that even if the autonomy assumption equally applies in principle to the sphere of moral judgment, it may be a mistake just to assume that most moral judgment and behavior is in fact a result of the exercise of such autonomous reflection, reasoning and judgment.
The collective denial of responsibility risks shortchanging students' intellectual maturation and gradual assumption of autonomy.
Stauffer boldly argues that rebuilding worlds and just institutions after violence is a broad obligation and that those who care about justice must first confront their own assumptions about autonomy, liberty, and responsibility before an effective response to violence can take place.
And he made a parallel case for the autonomy of interpretation: Religious assumptions and means have no business interfering in the interpretation of texts either, even when the texts are sacred ones.
It solves nothing, because it is premised on the false assumption that our autonomy has no inherent limits.
The third assumption, namely that autonomy in learning leads to more extensive cognitive engagement, has not been studied to the same extent as the previous ones.
