A conceptual framework is presented for discussing teacher autonomy in a historical perspective against the background of a profound decentralization in the Swedish educational system introduced in the early 1980s. The way teachers use a broadened space of action cannot be fully understood unless a distinction is made between private and collective autonomy. The question of where the exertion of influence stems from has to be followed by two additional questions when the autonomy of teachers, either private or collective, is discussed: In what way and by whom has influence been exerted? and Is it exerted today? When these dimensions are taken into account, Swedish decentralization seems to imply a strong appeal to the professionalism of teachers--if teachers use their collective autonomy. Opportunities to form a strong professionalism have not been considered a challenge, either for the teachers themselves or for teacher education. The traditional definition of teacher autonomy in terms of a private autonomy is still dominating. (LL)