Knowra Sexual autonomy Sexual autonomy Sexual autonomy is a person’s capacity to make informed, voluntary decisions about their sexual life, including whether, when, and with whom to engage in sexual activity.
Sexual consent : Voluntary, informed, and specific agreement to participate in a sexual activity. Consent expresses a choice that sexual autonomy requires, and it can be withdrawn.
Gender-based violence : Violence directed at people because of their gender or that disproportionately affects a gender. Violence can restrict sexual choice through fear, injury, and coercive control.
Contraception : Methods or devices used to prevent pregnancy. Access to contraception can expand control over whether and when to become pregnant.
Sexual agency : The capacity to act and make choices in sexual life. Agency emphasizes action, while autonomy emphasizes self-direction and freedom from controlling influence.
Sex work : The exchange of sexual services for money or other material benefit. Disputes over its regulation concern consent, labor conditions, and structural constraint.
Bodily integrity : The right to security and control over one’s own body. Control over one’s body underpins decisions about sexual activity and contact.
Child marriage : A formal or informal union in which at least one person is under 18. Early marriage can limit young people’s ability to decide whether and when to have sex.
Abortion : The ending of a pregnancy before birth, by medication or a procedure. Debates over abortion law often turn on who may decide whether a pregnancy continues.
Sexual rights : Human rights concerning sexuality, including equality, privacy, and freedom from violence. Rights provide legal and ethical protections; autonomy describes a person’s capacity to choose.
Disability and sexuality : The ways disability shapes sexual identity, relationships, access, and rights. Support and safeguarding must protect choice without treating disability as incapacity.
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