指年滿 18 歲以上，因身心障礙、疾病、年齡或其他原因而需要照護與支持，並可能無法自我保護以免於重大傷害、忽視或剝削的成年人。此用語於英國法規與研究倫理中取代「弱勢成年人」（vulnerable adults），以避免帶有負面或汙名化之涵義。

Adults at risk refers to individuals aged 18 or over who, due to disability, illness, age, or other circumstances, have care and support needs and are unable to protect themselves from significant harm, neglect, or exploitation. This term has been adopted in UK law and research ethics to replace vulnerable adults,as it avoids stigmatizing connotations.

中文釋義翻譯自英文釋義之資料來源。

1. Oxford University. (n.d.). Research  ethics glossary: Adults at risk. Retrieved August 25, 2025, from https://researchsupport.admin.ox.ac.uk/governance/ethics/faqs-glossary/glossary

2. Ofcom. (2024). Safeguarding and ethics policy: Annex 7. London: Ofcom. https://www.ofcom.org.uk/siteassets/resources/documents/research-and-data/media-literacy-research/children/children-media-use-and-attitudes-2024/annex-7-revealing-reality-ethics-and-safeguarding-policy.pdf

• 原則上「單字中英文釋義」欄位的內容皆採用原文引用（即未經改寫），僅少部分內容有經微幅文字編輯。若欲對釋義內容有更深入的瞭解，敬請參考「資料來源」欄位所提供之原始出處的完整內容。
• 資料來源無編號：代表釋義內容出自同一筆來源。
• 資料來源有項目符號：代表釋義內容是引用多筆來源合寫而成。
• 資料來源有編號：代表該來源是相同編號之釋義內容的原始出處。