Economic Democracy, Democratic Planning, and Human Autonomy: A Comment on Adaman and Devine

Abstract

This essay explores Fikret Adaman and Pat Devine’s position that democratic planning would expand human autonomy. It argues that economic democracy involving workplace democracy, private property, and widespread markets would generally be more autonomy enhancing than a system of democratic planning with social ownership and few markets. However, it acknowledges the problems ecological limits may place on the autonomy of future populations, making the choice between democratic planning and economic democracy more ambiguous.