Students’ Perceptions of Plagiarism Policy in Higher Education: a Comparison of the United Kingdom, Czechia, Poland and Romania

Students’ attitudes towards plagiarism and academic misconduct have been found to vary across national cultures, although the relationship between national culture and students’ perceptions of plagiarism policy remains unexplored. Student survey data ( n  = 1757) from the UK, Czechia, Poland and Rom...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of academic ethics 2019-09, Vol.17 (3), p.271-289
Main Authors: Mahmud, Saadia, Bretag, Tracey, Foltýnek, Tomas
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Administration
Cheating
College Students
Comparative Education
Cultural Context
Education
Educational Policy
Ethics
Foreign Countries
Organization and Leadership
Plagiarism
Punishment
Student Attitudes
Students
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Summary:Students’ attitudes towards plagiarism and academic misconduct have been found to vary across national cultures, although the relationship between national culture and students’ perceptions of plagiarism policy remains unexplored. Student survey data ( n  = 1757) from the UK, Czechia, Poland and Romania were analysed for differences in students’ perceptions of three specific aspects of plagiarism policy – access, support and detail – at their respective universities. Considered through the lens of Hofstede’s cultural dimensions, the study found significant differences between the UK and the three Eastern European countries for all measures except students’ awareness of the penalties applied for plagiarism. Low ‘power distance’ and high ‘individualism’ were related to positive perceptions of plagiarism policy and process. The findings suggest that institutional plagiarism policy and procedures need to be responsive to the unique characteristics of national cultural context.
ISSN:1570-1727
1572-8544
DOI:10.1007/s10805-018-9319-0