As artificial intelligence (AI) becomes increasingly integrated into marketing and consumption practices, Griffith University research is investigating how these technologies are reshaping consumer behaviour and marketplace relationships.
PhD researcher Nhung Trinh is studying AI-induced consumer vulnerability, a state that can affect consumers when intelligent systems alter their perceptions, emotions, or trust in digital environments. The research highlights a crucial insight: vulnerability is not limited to disadvantaged groups but can affect any consumer, especially as AI-driven technologies become more widespread and less transparent in how they function.
“Although AI is widely used to improve efficiency and relevance, there is limited understanding of when and how it causes consumers to perceive vulnerability,” Ms Trinh explains.
“The research seeks to fill that gap by exploring how consumers experience and interpret AI-induced vulnerability.”
AI now influences nearly every stage of the consumer journey — from product discovery and personalisation to purchasing decisions and post-sale engagement. However, as algorithms become more adept at predicting and shaping human preferences, they can also manipulate emotional responses and cognitive biases. Ms Trinh’s work sheds light on the psychological mechanisms behind these interactions, helping to clarify when AI enhances empowerment and when it risks undermining consumer autonomy.
Her research also has broader implications for consumer trust and digital well-being. In an era of deepfakes, targeted advertising, and opaque recommendation systems, understanding how consumers interpret and react to AI-generated content is critical. By identifying patterns of perceived manipulation or over-reliance on automated systems, the study provides valuable evidence to guide both ethical technology design and consumer protection policy.
Combining a comprehensive literature review with experimental studies, the research examines the psychological and relational patterns that arise when AI systems tailor, monitor, or simulate human interaction. It focuses on how different AI-driven practices and phenomena, such as personalisation, surveillance, social interaction, or algorithmic bias, affect consumers’ responses and marketplace experiences.
By integrating insights from psychology, technology, and marketing, the research explains the nature of AI-induced consumer vulnerability and identifies its corresponding outcomes. The findings aim to inform ethical AI development and responsible marketing practices by clarifying the conditions under which technological influence is beneficial or detrimental.
Supervised by Dr Mai Nguyen (Griffith University), Dr Jiraporn Surachartkumtonkun (Griffith University), and Associate Professor Liem Viet Ngo (University of New South Wales), this research contributes to a growing body of knowledge on how businesses can implement and govern AI technologies in ways that promote both business and consumer outcomes.
