Aurora A.C. Teixeira; Maria Fátima Rocha "Academic misconduct
in Portugal: results from a large scale survey to university
economics/business students",
Journal of Academic Ethics,
Springer, 8(1): 21-41.
Resumo/Abstract
The phenomenon of cheating in higher education is of
overwhelming importance in that the students engaging in these
acts are unlikely to have the skills necessary for their future
professional life. Despite its relevance, the empirical
evaluation of cheating in universities has been almost
exclusively focused on the US context. Little is known about
cheating at the European level, let alone in Portugal. Even less
is explored at the regional level. In this paper we present
evidence on the perception of cheating by Portuguese
undergraduate students of economics/business degrees. We
undertake a large-scale survey, involving 2675 students from all
Portuguese mainland public universities (10). We found that
copying-favourable environments are associated with a higher
propensity to cheat. Moreover, in universities where 'codes of
honour' exist, this propensity tends to be lower. Finally, the
propensity to copy seems to be highly influenced by the cultural
systems and socially-related factors of different regions.
Aurora A.C.
Teixeira; Maria Fátima Rocha (2010), "Cheating by economics and
business undergraduate students. An exploratory international
assessment",
Higher Education, Springer; 59 (6): 663-701.
Resumo/Abstract
Today’s economics and business students are expected to be our
future business people and potentially the economic leaders and
politicians of tomorrow. Thus, their beliefs and practices are
liable to affect the definition of acceptable economics and
business ethics. The empirical evaluation of the phenomenon of
cheating in academia has almost exclusively focused on the US
context, and non-US studies usually only cover a narrow range of
countries. This paper presents a comprehensive, cross-country
study on the magnitude and determinants of cheating among
economics and business undergraduates, involving 7,213 students
enrolled in 42 universities located in 21 countries from the
American (4), European (14), Africa (2) and Oceania (1)
Continents. We found that the average magnitude of copying among
economics and business undergraduates is quite high (62%) but
there was significant cross-country heterogeneity. The
probability of cheating is significantly lower in students
enrolled in schools located in the Scandinavian, and the US and
British Isles blocks when compared with their Southern European
counterparts; quite surprisingly this probability is also lower
for the African block. On a distinctly different level, however,
students enrolled in schools in Western and especially Eastern
European countries reveal statistically significant higher
propensities towards committing academic fraud.
Aurora A.C.
Teixeira; Maria de Fátima Rocha (2008); "Academic cheating in
Portugal and Spain: an empirical explanation",
International
Journal of Iberian Studies, Intellect, Vol. 21, Nº 1, pp.
3-22.
Resumo/Abstract
Despite its obvious interest and potential for concern,
empirical research on the cheating phenomenon among university
students has almost exclusively been carried out in the United
States, usually covering only a few universities in a given
region. Little is known about cheating in European universities,
let alone the Iberian Peninsula. In this article we aim to
contribute towards filling this gap by presenting evidence of
this illicit behaviour in Portugal and Spain. Based on a survey
of undergraduate students on Economics and Management courses,
we conclude that there is a pervasive ‘culture’ of cheating in
these two countries, reaching relatively high levels in
universities. Using econometric techniques, which control for a
wide set of variables likely to influence a student's propensity
to cheat, we found that Spanish students are relatively more
prone to breaching the academic code of conduct than their
Portuguese counterparts, and that the implementation of Honour
Codes by universities constitute a promising approach in curbing
cheating in academia.
Aurora A.C.
Teixeira; Maria de Fátima Rocha (2006); "College cheating in
Austria, Portugal, Romania and Spain: a comparative analysis"
Research in Comparative and International Education,
Symposium Journals, Vol. 1, Nº 3, pp. 198-209.
Resumo/Abstract
The empirical evaluation of academic cheating has been almost
exclusively focused on the US context. Little is known about
cheating in European universities. This article aims to
contribute further evidence on this highly relevant phenomenon
afflicting higher education throughout Europe. Based on a large
sample of undergraduate students of Economics and Management in
Austria, Portugal, Romania and Spain, the authors estimated an
econometric model and controlled for a variety of factors most
likely to influence the probability of cheating (e.g. student
characteristics, location, grades). It was found that (1) the
likelihood of copying increases when the expected benefit from
copying is positive; (2) in copying-favourable environments, the
students' propensity to copy tends to be higher; (3) the greater
and more serious the perceived sanctions, the fewer the
incentives students have to perpetrate dishonest behaviours; (4)
in schools where 'codes of honour' exist, the propensity to copy
among students is lower; and (5) the propensity to copy seems to
be influenced by the countries' education systems and social
factors - for instance, Portuguese students are less prone to
fraudulent behaviour, whereas Spanish students are more likely
to cheat than their Austrian counterparts; no significant
difference was found between Austrian and Romanian students.
