Prime Directive
E498103
The Prime Directive is Starfleet’s fundamental non-interference policy that forbids its members from influencing the natural development of alien civilizations, especially those that are pre-warp.
Statements (53)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf |
Starfleet regulation
ⓘ
fictional law ⓘ legal principle in Star Trek universe ⓘ non-interference policy ⓘ |
| allowsExceptions |
direct orders from higher Starfleet authority in some storylines
ⓘ
situations involving imminent extinction of a species in some interpretations ⓘ |
| alsoKnownAs |
General Order 1
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
Starfleet General Order 1 NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| appliesTo |
Federation starships
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
Starfleet officers NERFINISHED ⓘ Starfleet personnel ⓘ |
| corePrinciple |
non-interference in natural development of alien civilizations
ⓘ
non-interference with internal affairs of foreign worlds ⓘ prohibition on cultural contamination ⓘ respect for self-determination of other species ⓘ |
| firstExplicitlyNamedIn | Star Trek: The Original Series NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| focus |
less technologically advanced societies
ⓘ
pre-warp civilizations ⓘ |
| forbids |
imposing Federation values on other cultures
ⓘ
interfering with cultural development ⓘ interfering with natural social development ⓘ interfering with political development ⓘ interfering with technological development ⓘ openly revealing existence of extraterrestrial life to pre-warp societies ⓘ revealing advanced technology to pre-warp societies ⓘ taking sides in internal conflicts of alien worlds ⓘ |
| governingBody |
Starfleet Command
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
United Federation of Planets NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| inUniversePurpose |
avoid repeating historical colonialism patterns
ⓘ
maintain ethical conduct in exploration ⓘ prevent exploitation of less advanced civilizations ⓘ |
| inUniverseStatus |
highest Starfleet directive
ⓘ
overrides most other Starfleet orders ⓘ |
| medium |
Star Trek comics
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
film ⓘ television ⓘ tie-in novels ⓘ |
| narrativeRole |
recurring ethical dilemma in Star Trek
ⓘ
source of moral conflict for Starfleet captains ⓘ |
| notableIn |
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
NERFINISHED
ⓘ
Star Trek: Discovery NERFINISHED ⓘ Star Trek: Enterprise NERFINISHED ⓘ Star Trek: Strange New Worlds NERFINISHED ⓘ Star Trek: The Next Generation NERFINISHED ⓘ Star Trek: The Original Series NERFINISHED ⓘ Star Trek: Voyager NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| oftenChallengedBy |
humanitarian crises on alien worlds
ⓘ
natural disasters threatening pre-warp civilizations ⓘ wars on alien planets ⓘ |
| theme |
cultural relativism
ⓘ
non-interventionism ⓘ responsibility of advanced civilizations ⓘ |
| universe | Star Trek franchise NERFINISHED ⓘ |
Referenced by (2)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.