Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Predicting Students’ Intention to Plagiarize: an Ethical Theoretical Framework

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

Abstract

This article investigates whether acts of plagiarism are predictable. Through a deductive, quantitative method, this study examines 517 students and their motivation and intention to plagiarize. More specifically, this study uses an ethical theoretical framework called the Theory of Reasoned Action (TORA) and Planned Behavior (TPB) to proffer five hypotheses about cognitive, relational, and social processing relevant to ethical decision making. Data results indicate that although most respondents reported that plagiarism was wrong, students with strong intentions to plagiarize had a more positive attitude toward plagiarizing, believed that it was important that family and friends think plagiarizing is acceptable, and perceived that plagiarizing would be an easy task. However, participants in the current study with less intention to plagiarize hold negative views about plagiarism, do not believe that plagiarism is acceptable to family, friends or peers, and perceive that the act of plagiarizing would prove difficult. Based on these findings, this study considers implications important for faculty, librarians, and student support staff in preventing plagiarism through collaborations and outreach programming.

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.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Ajzen, I. (1985). From intentions to actions: a theory of planned behavior. In J. Kuhl & J. Beckman (Eds.), Action-control: from cognition to behavior (pp. 11–39). Heidelberg: Springer.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Ajzen, I. (1988). Attitudes, personality, and behavior. Chicago: Dorsey Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ajzen, I. (1991). The theory of planned behavior. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 50, 179–211.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ajzen, I., & Fishbein, M. (1980). Understanding attitudes and predicting social behavior. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.

    Google Scholar 

  • Amsberry, D. (2009). Deconstructing plagiarism: international students and textual borrowing practices. The Reference Librarian. doi:10.1080/02763870903362183.

    Google Scholar 

  • 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 

  • Barnes, B. D. (2014). Plagiarism, morality, and metaphor. (Doctoral dissertation). Retrieved from Proquest Dissertation and Theses (Accession order number: 3668689).

  • Barry, E. S. (2006). Can paraphrasing practice help students define plagiarism? College Student Journal, 20, 377–384.

    Google Scholar 

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

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bloch, J. (2012). Plagiarism, intellectual property and the teaching of L2 writing: new perspectives on language and education. Brooklyn, NY: Multilingual Matters.

    Google Scholar 

  • Canagarajah, A. S. (2010). A rhetoric of shuttling between languages. In P. K. Matsuda, M-Z. Lu, & B. Horner (Eds.), Cross-language relations in composition (pp. 158–182). Carbondale: Southern Illinois University Press.

  • Carroll, J. (2005). Handling student plagiarism: moving to mainstream. Brookes eJournal of Learning and Teaching, 1(2), 1–5.

    Google Scholar 

  • Chang, M. K. (1998). Predicting unethical behavior: a comparison of the theory of reasoned action and the theory of planned behavior. Journal of Business Ethics, 17(16), 1825–1834.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Choo, T., & Paull, M. (2013). Reducing the prevalence of plagiarism: a model for staff, students, and universities. Issues in Educational Research, 23(2), 283–298.

  • Clarke, R., & Lancaster, T. (2007, July). Establishing a systematic six-stage process for detecting contract cheating. In 2nd International Conference on Pervasive Computing and Applications, 2007. ICPCA 2007. (pp. 342–347). IEEE. doi:10.1109/ICPCA.2007.4365466.

  • Collins, A., Judge, G., & Rickman, N. (2007). On the economics of plagiarism. European Journal of Law and Economics. doi:10.1007/s10657-007-9028-4.

    Google Scholar 

  • Conway, M., & Groshek, J. (2008). Ethics gaps and gains: differences and similarities in mass communication student’s perceptions of plagiarism and fabrication. Journalism and Mass Communication Educator. doi:10.1177/107769580806300203.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ehrich, J., Howard, S. J., Mu, C., & Bokosmaty, S. (2016). A comparison of Chinese and Australian university students’ attitudes towards plagiarism. Studies In Higher Education, doi:10.1080/03075079.2014.927850.

  • Engler, J. N., Landau, J. D., & Epstein, M. (2008). Keeping up with the Joneses: Students’ perceptions of academically dishonest behavior. Teaching of Psychology, doi:10.1080/00986280801978418.

  • Ercegovac, Z., & Richardson, J. V. (2004). Academic dishonesty, plagiarism included, in the digital age: a literature review. College & Research Libraries, 65(4), 301–318.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Flint, A., Clegg, S., & Macdonald, R. (2006). Exploring staff perceptions of student plagiarism. Journal of Further and Higher Education. doi:10.1080/03098770600617562.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gross, E. (2011). Clashing values: contemporary views about cheating and plagiarism compared to traditional beliefs and practices. Education, 132(2), 435–440.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ha, P. L. (2006). Plagiarism and overseas students: stereotypes again? ELT Journal. doi:10.1093/elt/cci085.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hosny, M., & Shameem, F. (2014). Attitudes of students toward cheating and plagiarism:University case study. Journal of Applied Sciences, doi:10.3923/jas.2014.748.757.

  • Howard, R. M. (1995). Plagiarism, authorship, and the academic death penalty. College English, 57(7), 788–806.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Howard, R. M. (2007). Understanding “internet” plagiarism. Computers and Composition, 24(1), 3–15.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Howard, R. M., & Davies, L. (2009). Plagiarism in the internet age. Educational Leadership, 66(6), 64–67.

    Google Scholar 

  • Howard, R. M., & Watson, M. (2010). The scholarship of plagiarism: where we’ve been, where we are, and what’s needed. Writing Program Administration, 33(3), 116–124.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kiehl, E. M. (2006). Using an ethical decision-making model to determine consequences for student plagiarism. Journal of Nursing Education, 45(6), 199–203.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kline, T. (2005). Psychological testing: a practical approach to design and evaluation. Thousand Oaks: SAGE Publications, Inc..

    Google Scholar 

  • Kock, N., & Davison, R. (2003). Dealing with plagiarism in the information systems research community: a look at factors that drive plagiarism and ways to address them. MIS Quarterly, 27(4), 511–532.

    Google Scholar 

  • Laird, E. (2000). We all pay for internet plagiarism. Education Digest, 67(3), 56–60.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lambert, E., & Hogan, N. (2004). Academic dishonesty among criminal justice majors: a research note. American Journal of Criminal Justice, 29(1), 1–20.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lampert, L. D. (2008). Combating student plagiarism: An academic librarian’s guide. Oxford: Chandos.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Landau, J. D., Druen, P. B., & Arcuri, J. A. (2002). Methods for helping students avoid plagiarism. Teaching of Psychology, 29, 112–115.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lathrop, A., & Foss, K. (2000). Student cheating and plagiarism in the internet era: a wake-up call. Englewood, CO: Libraries Unlimited.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lau, G. K. K., Yuen, A. H. K, & Park, J. (2013). Toward an analytical model of ethical decision making in plagiarism. Ethics & Behavior. doi:10.1080/10508422.2013.787360.

  • Leask, B. (2006). Plagiarism, cultural diversity, and metaphor: implications for academic staff development. Assessment and Evaluation in Higher Education, 31(2), 183–199.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lim, V., & See, S. (2001). Attitudes toward, and intentions to report, academic cheating among students in Singapore. Ethics & Behavior, 11(3), 261–274.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lunsford, A., & West, S. (1996). Intellectual property and composition studies. College Composition and Communication, 47(3), 383–411.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mavrinac, M., Brumini, G., Bilic-Zule, L., & Petrovecki, M. (2010). Construction and validation of attitudes toward plagiarism questionnaire. Croatian Medical Journal, 51(3). doi:10.3325/cmj.2010.51.195.

  • McCabe, D. L., & Trevino, L. K. (1996). What we know about cheating in college. Change, 28, 28–33.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McCabe, D. L., & Trevino, L. K. (2002). Honesty and honor codes. Academe, 88(1), 37–41.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McCabe, D. L., Trevino, L. K., & Butterfield, K. D. (2001a). Dishonesty in academic environments: the influence of peer reporting requirements. The Journal of Higher Education, 72(1), 29–45.

    Article  Google Scholar 

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

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McCuen, R. L. (2008). The plagiarism decision process: the role of pressure and rationalization. Transactions on Education. doi:10.1109/TE.2007.904601.

    Google Scholar 

  • McCullough, M., & Holmberg, M. (2005). Using the Google search engine to detect word-for-word plagiarism in Master’s theses: a preliminary study. College Student Journal, 39(3), 435–441.

    Google Scholar 

  • McKenzie, J. (1998). The new plagiarism: seven antidotes to prevent highway robbery in an electronic age. Educational Technology Journal, 7(8), 1–11.

    Google Scholar 

  • Muhammad, R., Muhammad, A. M., Nadeem, S., & Muhammad, A. (2012). Awareness about plagiarism amongst university students in Pakistan. Higher Education, doi:10.1007/s10734–011–9481-4.

  • Olutola, F. (2016). Towards a more enduring prevention of scholarly plagiarism among university students in Nigeria. African Journal of Criminology and Justice Studies, 9(1), 83–97.

    Google Scholar 

  • Park, C. (2003). In other (people’s) words: plagiarism by university students literature and lessons. Assessment and Evaluation in Higher Education, 28(5), 471–488.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pecorari, D. (2013). Teaching to avoid plagiarism: how to promote good source use. London: Open University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Perkins, H. W. (2003). The emergence and evolution of the social norms approach to substance abuse prevention. In H. W. Perkins (Ed.), The social norms approach to preventing school and college age substance abuse: a handbook for educators, counselors, and clinicians (pp. 3–17). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

    Google Scholar 

  • Pickard, J. (2006). Staff and student attitudes to plagiarism at university college Northampton. Assessment and Evaluation in Higher Education. doi:10.1080/02602930500262528.

    Google Scholar 

  • Postle, K. (2009). Detecting and deterring plagiarism in social work students: implications for learning for practice. Social Work Education. doi:10.1080/02615470802245926.

    Google Scholar 

  • Power, L. (2009). University students’ perceptions of plagiarism. The Journal of Higher Education, 80(6), 643–662.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rakovski, C., & Levy, E. (2007). Academic dishonesty: perceptions of business students. College Student Journal, 41(2), 466–481.

    Google Scholar 

  • Randall, D. (1989). Taking stock: can the theory of reasoned action explain unethical conduct? Journal of Business Ethics, 8(11), 873–882.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Randall, M. (2001). Pragmatic plagiarism: authorship, profit, and power. Toronto: University of Toronto Press.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Risquez, A., O’Dwyer, M., & Ledwith, A. (2013). “thou shalt not plagiarize”: from self-reported views to recognition and avoidance of plagiarism. Assessment & Evaluation In Higher Education. doi:10.1080/02602938.2011.596926.

    Google Scholar 

  • Roig, M., & Caso, M. (2010). Lying and cheating: fraudulent excuse making, cheating, and plagiarism. The Journal of Psychology. doi:10.3200/JRLP.139.6.485-494.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sharma, M. (2007). Theory of reasoned action & theory of planned behavior in alcohol and drug education. Journal of Alcohol & Drug Education, 51(1), 3–7.

    Google Scholar 

  • Shi, L. (2004). Textual borrowing in second language writing. Written Communication, 21(2), 171–200.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Siaputra, I. B. (2013). The 4PA of plagiarism: a psycho-academic profile of plagiarists. International Journal for Educational Integrity, 9(2), 50–59.

    Google Scholar 

  • Simon, C. A., Carr, J. R., McCullough, S. M., Morgan, S. J., Oleson, T., & Ressel, M. (2004). Gender, student perceptions, institutional commitments, and academic honesty: who reports in academic dishonesty cases? Assessment and Evaluation in Higher Education, 29(1), 75–90.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Stapleton, P. (2012). Gauging the effectiveness of anti-plagiarism software: an empirical study of second language graduate writers. Journal of English for Academic Purposes, 11(2), 125–133.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Stone, T. H., Kisamore, J. L., & Jawahar, I. M. (2007, June). Predicting academic dishonesty: Theory of planned behavior and personality. Proceedings of the 2007 Management Education Division of the Administrative Sciences Association of Canada. Retrieved from http://ojs.acadiau.ca/index.php/ASAC/article/viewFile/1203/1038.

  • Stone, T. H., Jawahar, I. M., & Kisamore, J. L. (2010). Predicting academic misconduct, intentions and behaviors using the theory of planned behavior and personality. Basic and Applied Social Psychology. doi:10.1080/01973530903539895.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sutherland-Smith, W. (2005). The tangled web: internet plagiarism and international students’ academic writing. Journal of Asian Pacific Communication, 15(1), 15–29.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sutherland-Smith, W. (2008). Plagiarism, the internet, and student learning: improving academic integrity. New York: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sutherland-Smith, W. (2010). Retribution, deterrence and reform: the dilemmas of plagiarism management in universities. Journal of Higher Education Policy and Management. doi:10.1080/13600800903440519.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sutherland-Smith, W. (2011). Crime and punishment: an analysis of university plagiarism policies. Semiotica. doi:10.1515/semi.2011.067.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sutherland-Smith, W. (2014). Legality, quality assurance, and learning: competing discourses of plagiarism management in higher education. Journal of Higher Education Policy & Management. doi:10.1080/1360080X.2013.844666.

    Google Scholar 

  • Thompson, C. H. (2009). Plagiarism, intertextuality and emergent authorship in university students’ academic writing. PORTAL Journal of Multidisciplinary International Studies. doi:10.5130/portal.v6i1.775.

    Google Scholar 

  • Turnitin.com. (2013, May 23). Does Turnitin detect plagiarism? [Web log post]. Retrieved April 2, 2016, from http://turnitin.com/en_us/resources/blog/421-general/1643-does-turnitin-detect-plagiarism.

  • 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 

  • Werner, P. (2004). Reasoned action and planned behavior. In S. J. Peterson & T. S. Bredow (Eds.), Middle range theories: application to nursing research (pp. 125–147). Philadelphia: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.

    Google Scholar 

  • Whiteneck, P. (2002, July 8). What to do with a thought thief. Community College Week, 14(24), 4–7.

    Google Scholar 

  • Williams, B. (2007). Trust, betrayal and authorship: plagiarism and how we perceive students. Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy. doi:10.1598/JAAL.51.4.6.

    Google Scholar 

  • Yeo, S. (2007). First-year university science and engineering students’ understanding of plagiarism. Higher Education Research and Development. doi:10.1080/07294360701310813.

    Google Scholar 

  • Young, J. R. (2001, July 6). The cat-and-mouse game of plagiarism detection. The Chronicle of Higher Education, 47(43), A26–A28.

    Google Scholar 

  • Yousafzai, S., Foxall, G. R., & Pallister, J. G. (2010). Explaining internet banking behavior: theory of reasoned action, theory of planned behavior, or technology acceptance model? Journal of Applied Social Psychology. doi:10.1111/j.1559-1816.2010.00615x.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Communication Studies Department, California State University, Northridge, CA, USA

    S. K. Camara

  2. University Library, California State University, Northridge, CA, USA

    Susanna Eng-Ziskin, Laura Wimberley & Katherine S. Dabbour

  3. Annenberg School of Communication, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA

    Carmen M. Lee

Authors
  1. S. K. Camara
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Susanna Eng-Ziskin
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Laura Wimberley
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Katherine S. Dabbour
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Carmen M. Lee
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Katherine S. Dabbour.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Camara, S.K., Eng-Ziskin, S., Wimberley, L. et al. Predicting Students’ Intention to Plagiarize: an Ethical Theoretical Framework. J Acad Ethics 15, 43–58 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10805-016-9269-3

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10805-016-9269-3

Keywords

Search

Navigation