A Review of the Consent Management Literature

Abstract

The richness and complexity of consent present challenges to those aiming to make related contributions to computer information systems (CIS). This paper aims to support consent-related research in CIS by simplifying the understanding of existing literature and facilitating the framing of future consent management research. Firstly, it outlines existing consent management research and shows how it relates to the literature in law and ethics. Secondly, it presents some fundamental explanations and definitions that must be considered for further contributions to the consent management literature. Thirdly, it identifies five types of consent-related stances often taken in the consent management literature and explains each in some detail. Fourth, it explains one of the identified types of stances (i.e., the disciplinary stance) by expanding on the links between consent as a legal construct and its ethical counterpart. Fifth, considering another of the identified types of stances (i.e., the theoretical stances normally adopted in the consent management literature), the paper presents the key requirements for legally and ethically effective consent management based on three prominent theories. Sixth, it presents the identified types of stances in a conceptual model, contending that the model is novel, relevant, understandable, and useful.