Guidance for stakeholders
The integration of generative AI into research will have distinct implications for various roles within the profession. Tailored strategies are therefore essential to ensure each stakeholder effectively navigates the opportunities and risks associated with AI adoption.
Note that there is some repetition in this guidance across domains of practice. We have collated the guidance from each section of the document into a table for easy reference.
Physiotherapy researchers
Impact: AI offers powerful tools for literature analysis, data processing, hypothesis generation, and collaboration across distances, potentially accelerating discovery and insight.
Guidance: Develop strong AI literacy, maintain critical thinking skills, use AI as a complement to human creativity, document AI methods transparently, and prioritise ethical data use practices.
Research supervisors and mentors
Impact: AI changes research supervision dynamics, introducing new tools while raising questions about skills development and research integrity.
Guidance: Guide mentees in balancing AI assistance with independent scientific thinking, establish clear expectations for AI use in research projects, and encourage critical evaluation of AI-generated outputs.
Academic institutions
Impact: AI integration requires infrastructure investments, policy development, and consideration of research equity across departments.
Guidance: Develop comprehensive AI research policies, ensure equitable access to AI tools across research groups, provide technical support for AI implementation, and create ethical review processes for AI-enhanced research.
Journal editors and publishers
Impact: AI transforms research production and review processes, requiring new standards for reporting and verification.
Guidance: Establish clear guidelines for reporting AI methods in manuscripts, develop processes to verify AI-generated analyses, and consider how to maintain research integrity in an AI-enhanced publication landscape.
Funding bodies
Impact: AI potentially changes research funding priorities and creates disparities between resourced and under-resourced institutions.
Guidance: Consider equitable funding distribution for AI research capabilities, develop specific funding streams for AI integration in physiotherapy research, and require robust AI ethics statements in research proposals.
Ethics committees
Impact: AI introduces new ethical considerations around data use, privacy, consent, and potential biases.
Guidance: Develop specialised expertise in AI ethics relevant to physiotherapy research, create updated frameworks for evaluating AI research ethics, and establish monitoring processes for ongoing AI-driven studies.
Research participants and patient representatives
Impact: AI changes how participant data may be used, potentially in ways not initially anticipated.
Guidance: Advocate for transparent communication about AI use in research, ensure informed consent processes address potential AI applications of participant data, and participate in developing patient-centred AI research priorities.
Early career researchers
Impact: AI provides powerful research , but may affect skill development and research independence.
Guidance: Embrace AI as an enhancing tool while developing strong foundational research skills, seek specific training in AI methods and limitations, and maintain critical perspective on AI-generated outputs.
Professional bodies
Impact: AI integration requires new professional standards and competency frameworks for research practice.
Guidance: Develop position statements on AI in physiotherapy research, incorporate AI literacy into professional development programs, and advocate for responsible AI implementation that aligns with professional values.
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