Justifying academic dishonesty: A survey of Canadian university students

Academic dishonesty is a growing problem in the higher education sector. Using a sample of 321 undergraduate students at a medium-sized Canadian university, this paper explores the respondents’ acceptability of the various reasons for engagement in academically dishonest behaviour. The findings revealed that respondents displayed moderately negative attitudes toward academic dishonesty and that the top three circumstances under which academically dishonest behaviour would be considered acceptable were pressure to maintain a scholarship, pressure from parents to perform well, and the heavy academic work load. Multiple ordinary least-squares regression analysis revealed that male respondents and those who reported a higher family income, enrolled in more classes, witnessed academic misconduct more frequently, expressed dissatisfaction with academic performance, indicated dissatisfaction with school life, placed less emphasis on intrinsic motivation to pursue higher education, and adopted a surface approach to learning were found to be associated with a greater likelihood of accepting the various justifications for academic dishonesty. The results of this investigation may be utilized by university administrators, academic advisors, and academic counselors to aid in the design of support services and interventions (e.g., explicit guidelines and practical teaching/learning resources) that will serve to prevent academic misconduct and to promote academic integrity.