Directives were described by Searle (1975) as one of five basic speech acts. In his approach, taken from linguistic philosophy, speech acts were defined by a particular fit between words (propositional content) and the world. Directives are the class of speech acts that attempt to fit the world to the words; they are attempts by
Advance directive is the general term used to describe statements given in advance of incapacitating illness regarding how individuals want medical decisions made for them if they become too ill to speak for themselves. Advance directives come in two basic forms. Proxy advance directives (e.g., a durable power of attorney for health care) designate a