ABA Family Legal Guide

Health-Care Law

Regulating Health-Care Professionals

Research on Humans

What does "informed consent" mean in this context?

While each state may require something a little different, the basic concept of informed consent to research remains the same: You must be given sufficient opportunity to decide whether to be part of the research. When the research is explained to you, the researchers must use language that you understand. If they do not, your consent is not informed because you do not have all the information necessary to make your decision.