Wei Wang

Research Fellow

“We feel and know that we are eternal”

Baruch Spinoza

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Inclusive AI Consent: Adaptive, Accessible Consent for Diverse Research Participants

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Investigators

  • Wei Wang, Research Fellow, Faculty of Business and Economics, Monash University
  • Professor Charmine Hartel, Distinguished Professor & Director, Opportunity Tech Lab, Monash University
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Funding details

Monash Business School 2026 ECA Research Grant

  • AU$9,992 (awarded)
  • Administering department/centre: Opportunity Tech Lab
Funding amount AU$9,992
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Project summary

Before people join a research study, they need to understand what the study is about and what they are agreeing to.

Consent forms can be hard to read. They often use long sentences, legal words, and a lot of information at once. This can make consent difficult for people with low literacy, disability, limited English, sensory needs, or stress during recruitment.

This project will test whether AI can help turn standard consent information into clearer formats. These may include plain language, Easy Read text, audio, video, captions, and guided steps.

People will still check the AI output. This is important because consent information must stay accurate, safe, and ethical.

  • The person gets information in a format they can understand.
  • The person can ask questions or choose what to read next.
  • The research team can check that important rights and risks are still included.
  • The project will compare this approach with standard consent materials.
Need Design People Impact
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Status

Current research status

👤 Investigators

  • Wei Wang, Research Fellow, Faculty of Business and Economics, Monash University
  • Professor Charmine Hartel, Distinguished Professor & Director, Opportunity Tech Lab, Monash University

💲 Funding details

  • Monash Business School 2026 ECA Research Grant
  • AU$9,992 (awarded)
  • Administering department/centre: Opportunity Tech Lab

🎓 Project summary

This project addresses a core research ethics challenge: consent processes are often compliant in form but difficult to understand in practice for many participants, especially those with low literacy, cognitive disability, limited English proficiency, sensory impairment, or high stress at recruitment.

The project will design and pilot an adaptive AI-assisted consent prototype that transforms standard consent materials into more accessible and understandable formats while preserving critical risk and rights information. The prototype combines:

  • Plain-language and Easy Read content support
  • Multimodal delivery (readable text, guided structure, audio-ready content)
  • Participant-controlled navigation and clarification pathways
  • Human-in-the-loop governance and auditable review checkpoints

The pilot will generate proof-of-concept evidence on whether adaptive accessible consent improves participant comprehension, confidence, and trust compared with standard text-based consent. It will also produce practical implementation guidance to support broader adoption in Australian research settings.

📌 Status