Definition of Informed Consent
(noun) A protocol in ethical research practices that participants are made fully aware of the purpose of the research, the costs or risks involved in participation, possible benefits to the participant, what will be done with the data collected, and the assurance that no research will occur without their permission.
Informed Consent Pronunciation
Syllabification: in·formed con·sent
Audio Pronunciation
Phonetic Spelling
- American English – /in-fORmd kuhn-sEnt/
- British English – /in-fAWmd kuhn-sEnt/
International Phonetic Alphabet
- American English – /ɪnˈfɔrmd kənˈsɛnt/
- British English – /ɪnˈfɔːmd kənˈsɛnt/
Usage Notes
- Plural: informed consents
- Consent must be given freely, without coercion and by a fit participant.
- Informed consent is typically granted tacitly, verbally, or by signing a consent form.
Related Video
Additional Information
- Qualitative Research Resources – Books, Journals, and Helpful Links
- Quantitative Research Resources – Books, Journals, and Helpful Links
- Word origin of “informed” and “consent” – Online Etymology Dictionary: etymonline.com
Related Terms
- analysis
- case
- continuer
- data
- detached observation
- ethnography
- gatekeeping
- method
- observation
- qualitative research
- research
Works Consulted
Andersen, Margaret L., and Howard Francis Taylor. 2011. Sociology: The Essentials. 6th ed. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.
Branscombe, Nyla R., and Robert A. Baron. 2017. Social Psychology. 14th ed. Harlow, England: Pearson.
Ferris, Kerry, and Jill Stein. 2010. The Real World: An Introduction to Sociology. 2nd ed. New York: Norton.
Kornblum, William. 2008. Sociology in a Changing World. 8th ed. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.
Wikipedia contributors. (N.d.) Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikimedia Foundation. (https://en.wikipedia.org/).
Cite the Definition of Informed Consent
ASA – American Sociological Association (5th edition)
Bell, Kenton, ed. 2014. “informed consent.” In Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Retrieved April 1, 2023 (https://sociologydictionary.org/informed-consent/).
APA – American Psychological Association (6th edition)
informed consent. (2014). In K. Bell (Ed.), Open education sociology dictionary. Retrieved from https://sociologydictionary.org/informed-consent/
Chicago/Turabian: Author-Date – Chicago Manual of Style (16th edition)
Bell, Kenton, ed. 2014. “informed consent.” In Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Accessed April 1, 2023. https://sociologydictionary.org/informed-consent/.
MLA – Modern Language Association (7th edition)
“informed consent.” Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Ed. Kenton Bell. 2014. Web. 1 Apr. 2023. <https://sociologydictionary.org/informed-consent/>.