Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

The Role of Cultural Values in Plagiarism in Higher Education

  • Published:
Journal of Academic Ethics Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Student plagiarism is a rampant practice and major concern in higher education. How students perceive the overarching American cultural values and their impact on the practice will inform educators and help them to better combat the practice. It is also valuable for educators to know whether the students perceive the practice to be part of the dominant culture, currently, on college campuses. This study reports perceptions of plagiarism by students in an introductory sociology course. Open-ended questions explored perceptions of extent, justifications, and American values affecting plagiarism. Participants were clear on definitions and seriousness, but most were able to justify the behavior and identify American values contributing to or deterring the practice. Findings were consistent across gender, course grade, class standing, and college major. The authors discuss the cultural values students use as justifications for plagiarizing and the larger implications for higher education.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Ashworth, P., Bannister, P., & Thorne, P. (1997). Guilty in whose eyes? University students’ perceptions of cheating and plagiarism in academic work and assessment. Studies in Higher Education, 22(2), 187–203.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Baker, R. K., Berry, P., & Thornton, B. (2008). Student attitudes on academic integrity violations. Journal of College Teaching & Learning, 5(1), 9.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bennett, R. (2005). Factors associated with student plagiarism in a post-1992 university. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, 30(2), 137–162.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bernardi, R. A., Baca, A. V., Landers, K. S., & Witek, M. B. (2008). Methods of cheating and deterrents to classroom cheating: an international study. Ethics and Behavior, 18(4), 373–391.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bjorklund, M., & Wenestam, C. G. (1999). Academic cheating: Frequency, methods, and causes. Paper presented at the European Conference of Educational Research (ECER). Finland: Lahti.

  • Bradburn, N. M., Sudman, S., Blair, E., & Stocking, C. (1978). Question threat and response bias. Public Opinion Quarterly, 42(2), 221–234.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bretag, T. (2013). Challenges in addressing plagiarism in education. PLoS Medicine, 10(12), e1001574. doi:10.1371/journal.pmed.1001574.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Callahan, D. (2004). The cheating culture: Why more Americans are doing wrong to get ahead (1st ed.). Orlando: Harcourt.

    Google Scholar 

  • Colnerud, G., & Rosander, M. (2009). Academic dishonesty, ethical norms and learning. Assessment and Evaluation in Higher Education, 34(5), 505–517.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dee, T., & Jacob, B. (2010). Rational ignorance in education: A field experiment in student plagiarism. No. JEL No. I2, K4). Cambridge: National Bureau of Economic Research.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Devlin, M., & Gray, K. (2007). In their own words: a qualitative study of the reasons Australian university students plagiarize. Higher Education Research and Development, 26(2), 181–198. doi:10.1080/07294360701310805.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • DeVoss, D., & Rosati, A. C. (2002). “It wasn’t me, was it?” plagiarism and the web. Computers and Composition, 19(2), 191–203.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gibson, J. W., Blackwell, C. W., Greenwood, R., Mobley, I., & Blackwell, R. (2006). Preventing and detecting plagiarism in the written work of college students. Journal of Diversity Management, 1(2). Retrieved from http://journals.cluteonline.com/index.php/JDM/article/view/5033.

  • Hammond, M. (2002). Cyber-plagiarism: Are FE students getting away with words? Paper presented at the Association of Northern Ireland Colleges, Ireland. Retrieved from http://www.leeds.ac.uk/educol/documents/00002055.htm.

  • Hawley, C. S. (1984). The thieves of academe: plagiarism in the university system. Improving College and University Teaching, 32(1), 35–39.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hofstede, G. (1980). Motivation, leadership, and organization: do American theories apply abroad? Organizational Dynamics, 9(1), 42–63.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hofstede, G. (1991). Cultures and organizations: Software of the mind. London: McGraw-Hill.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hutton, P. A. (2006). Understanding student cheating and what educators can do about it. College Teaching, 54(1), 171–176.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Iyer, R., & Eastman, J. K. (2006). Academic dishonesty: are business students different from other college students? The Journal of Education for Business, 82(2), 101–110.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Macionis, J. J. (2008). Society: The basics (10th ed.). Boston: Pearson.

    Google Scholar 

  • Martin, D. E., Rao, A., & Sloan, L. R. (2009). Plagiarism, integrity, and workplace deviance: a criterion study. Ethics & Behavior, 19(1), 36–50. doi:10.1080/10508420802623666.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Maslen, G. (2003). Dirty marks. The Bulletin, 10, 18–22.

    Google Scholar 

  • McCabe, D. (2001). Cheating: why students do it and how we can help them stop. American Educator, 25(4), 38–43.

    Google Scholar 

  • McCabe, D., Trevino, L. K., & Butterfield, K. (2001). Cheating in academic institutions: a decade of research. Ethics & Behavior, 11(3), 219–232.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Miller, A. D., Murdock, T. B., Anderman, E. M., & Poindexter, A. L. (2007). Who are all these cheaters? Characteristics of academically dishonest students. In E. Anderman & T. B. Murdock (Eds.), Psychology of academic cheating (pp. 9–32). Amsterdam: Academic.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Milliron, V., & Sandoe, K. (2008). The net generation cheating challenge. Innovate: Journal of Online Education, 4 (7). Retrieved from http://innovateonline.info/pdf/vol4_issue6/The__Net_Generation_Cheating_Challenge.pdf.

  • Park, C. (2003). In other (people’s) words: Plagiarism by university students--literature and lessons. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, 28(5), 471–488. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aph&AN=10512060&site=ehost-live.

  • Park, C. (2004). Rebels without a clause: Towards an institutional framework for dealing with plagiarism by students. Journal of Further & Higher Education, 28(3), 291–306. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aph&AN=13802172&site=ehost-live.

  • Paulhus, D. L., Nathanson, C., & Williams, K. M. (2005). A new look at the link between cognitive ability and exam cheating. In B. D. Zumbo (Ed.), Developments in the theories and applications of measurement, evaluation, and research methodologies across disciplines. Vancouver: University of British Columbia Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Pickard, J. (2005). Using research into staff and student attitudes to plagiarism to change institutional culture. Paper presented at the Plagiarism: Prevention, Practice & Policy Conference, Newcastle upon Tyne, 163–172.

  • Power, L. G. (2009). University students’ perceptions of plagiarism. Journal of Higher Education, 80(6), 643–662. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aph&AN=50288526&site=ehost-live.

  • Scanlon, P. M., & Neumann, D. R. (2002). Internet plagiarism among college students. Journal of College Student Development, 43(3), 374–385.

    Google Scholar 

  • Selwyn, N. (2008). Not necessarily a bad thing: a study of online plagiarism amongst undergraduate students. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, 33(5), 465–479. doi:10.1080/02602930701563104.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Seppanen, R. (2002). Finns target master plagiarists. Times Higher Education Supplement, 1, 11.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sileo, J. M., & Sileo, T. W. (2008). Academic dishonesty and online classes: A rural education perspective. Rural Special Education Quarterly, 27(1), 55–60. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aph&AN=32000995&site=ehost-live.

  • Stephens, J. M., Young, M. F., & Calabrese, T. (2007). Does moral judgment go offline when students are online? A comparative analysis of undergraduates’ beliefs and behaviors related to conventional and digital cheating. Ethics & Behavior, 17(3), 233–254. doi:10.1080/10508420701519197.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Walker, J. (2010). Measuring plagiarism: researching what students do, not what they say they do. Studies in Higher Education, 35(1), 41–59. doi:10.1080/03075070902912994.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Weeks, S. (2001). Plagiarism: think before pointing finger of blame. Times Higher Education Supplement, 15, 24.

    Google Scholar 

  • White, E. M. (1993). Too many campuses want to sweep student plagiarism under the rug. The Chronicle of Higher Education, 24, A44.

    Google Scholar 

  • Williams, R. (1970). American Society. Third edition. New York: Knopf.

  • Wowra, S. A. (2007a). Academic dishonesty. Ethics & Behavior, 17(3), 211–214.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wowra, S. A. (2007b). Moral identities, social anxiety, and academic dishonesty among American college students. Ethics & Behavior, 17(3), 303–321.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Yardley, J., Rodriguez, M. D., Bates, S. C., & Nelson, J. (2009). True confessions?: Alumni’s retrospective reports on undergraduate cheating behaviors. Ethics & Behavior, 19(1), 1–14. doi:10.1080/10508420802487096.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Union University, 1050 Union University Dr., Box 3003, Jackson, TN, 38305, USA

    Nina C. Heckler

  2. University of North Florida, Jacksonville, FL, 32224, USA

    David R. Forde

Authors
  1. Nina C. Heckler
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. David R. Forde
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Nina C. Heckler.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Heckler, N.C., Forde, D.R. The Role of Cultural Values in Plagiarism in Higher Education. J Acad Ethics 13, 61–75 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10805-014-9221-3

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10805-014-9221-3

Keywords

Search

Navigation