This study explores how autonomy and related concepts, such as self-determination and participation, are understood in scientific articles on intellectual disability included in course literature. Using a qualitative discourse-analytical approach, eight articles were analyzed to examine how these concepts are defined, what assumptions they rely on, and which subjects are recognized as autonomous.

The findings show that autonomy is often linked to cognitive and communicative abilities, which may exclude individuals with more extensive support needs. At the same time, autonomy appears as relational and shaped by social and institutional contexts. The analysis highlights how some individuals risk being represented through others’ interpretations rather than as autonomous subjects.

The study concludes that dominant understandings of autonomy may reinforce implicit boundaries of inclusion, raising critical questions about how autonomy is conceptualized in research and practice.