National Collegiate Honors Council
Date of this Version
Fall 2004
Abstract
Since cheating, or academic dishonesty, has appeared to increase over the years, it is important to observe the “new” forms of cheating present within higher learning institutions. Earlier studies have shown conflicting evidence regarding the deterrence rate of an honor code system in higher learning institutions. This study looked at the Honors and non-Honors students’ beliefs and actions regarding the honor code, the internet, and suspect cheating behaviors. Surprisingly 81 (75%) students, both Honors and non- Honors, did not believe that the honor code prevents cheating, contrary to most literature. One other area of interest dealt with the internet and its profound effects on the availability of information. Results indicated that 102 (94.4%) students believed that printing a paper from the internet is cheating, but respondents tend not to report such incidents. Chi-square analyses were also conducted for certain variables with only two being statistically significant at the .10 level or below. Possible explanations and limitations are discussed.
Comments
Published in Journal of the National Collegiate Honors Council 5:2, Fall/Winter 2004. Copyright © 2004 by the National Collegiate Honors Council.