Why students don’t report dishonesty.

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_row_inner css=”.vc_custom_1623750593755{margin-top: 32px !important;}”][vc_column_inner][vc_column_text]What should you do if you as a student know that another student has cheated with an assignment? In the traditional literature on student integrity, the answer is clear: The only morally right thing to do is to tell the teacher. We all have an obligation to fight dishonesty, and if students report each other, it will be much more difficult to get away with cheating.

However, students are very reluctant to report peer dishonesty. According to the literature this reluctance is caused by fear of retaliation from other students and by misguided camaraderie. Further, according to the literature, the solution it to promise anonymity or to introduce honor codes specifying obligations towards the institutions.

As part of INTEGRITY we interviewed a total of 72 upper secondary, bachelor and Ph.D. students. In the interviews we touched upon the problem of reporting fellow students. The interviews clearly confirm that students on all levels are reluctant to report their peers. However, the students gave more complex reasons for not reporting than the literature suggests.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column_inner][/vc_row_inner][vc_row_inner css=”.vc_custom_1592560273619{margin-top: 32px !important;margin-right: 1px !important;margin-bottom: 32px !important;margin-left: 1px !important;padding-top: 16px !important;padding-right: 16px !important;padding-bottom: 16px !important;padding-left: 16px !important;background: #388bc2 url(http://h2020integrity.eu/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/INTEGRITY_Icon-Quote04.png?id=2644) !important;}”][vc_column_inner][nd_options_text nd_options_text_tag=”h2″ nd_options_text_weight=”normal” nd_options_text_family=”nd_options_first_font” nd_options_text=”According to the literature this reluctance is caused by fear of retaliation from other students and by misguided camaraderie.” nd_options_text_line_height=”36″ nd_options_text_color=”#ffffff”][/vc_column_inner][/vc_row_inner][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner][vc_column_text]Broadly speaking, the students gave three different types of reasons for not reporting. Some were indeed driven by fear of retaliation, and others failed to see that they had any responsibility for the actions of their peers. We thus confirmed the existence of the two major types of reasoning mentioned in the literature. However, we also saw something entirely different. The students in our study often combined group loyalty with a deep sense of responsibility when they explained why they wouldn’t report peer dishonesty. The latter type of reason had not previously been documented in the literature.

To the students, transparency and honesty are strong moral values, but so is loyalty, and the students generally recognized the internal tension between these values and expressed how they struggled to navigate them.

Imagine that you are a student. What would you do if you knew that another student, whose mother just got hospitalized with a critical illness, had partially copied her homework for this week from a friend? Or what would you do if a student, that you know will be punished by her parents if she fails, has cheated on a minor test? The answer to these questions are in our view not straightforward. On the one hand you ought to report dishonesty, but on the other you may recognize a responsibility for fellow students who are in need.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column_inner][/vc_row_inner][vc_row_inner css=”.vc_custom_1592560273619{margin-top: 32px !important;margin-right: 1px !important;margin-bottom: 32px !important;margin-left: 1px !important;padding-top: 16px !important;padding-right: 16px !important;padding-bottom: 16px !important;padding-left: 16px !important;background: #388bc2 url(http://h2020integrity.eu/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/INTEGRITY_Icon-Quote04.png?id=2644) !important;}”][vc_column_inner][nd_options_text nd_options_text_tag=”h2″ nd_options_text_weight=”normal” nd_options_text_family=”nd_options_first_font” nd_options_text=”The students in our study often combined group loyalty with a deep sense of responsibility when they explained why they wouldn’t report peer dishonesty.” nd_options_text_line_height=”36″ nd_options_text_color=”#ffffff”][/vc_column_inner][/vc_row_inner][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner][vc_column_text]The students in our study would try to navigate such dilemmas by assessing the specific situation instead of relying on simplistic, general rules (such as: you should always report peer cheating). To them there is a difference between cheating because you are lazy and cheating because you are ill, and a difference between cheating on a random assignment and cheating on an important exam, and the students would adjust their actions accordingly.

In some cases, the students would simply turn the blind eye to a peer transgressing the rules, but more often they would show a remarkable level of responsibility by getting directly involved. This could play out in several different ways. If a student is aware that a peer has done something dishonest, the student may confront the peer instead of reporting her and make her aware of the risks and possible detrimental consequences of the dishonest actions. Similarly, if a student knows that a peer is in trouble for a worthy reason (such as illness or family problems) she might accept that the peer breaks some rules, but might also assume responsibility for the learning of the peer in trouble e.g. by helping with homework or by arranging tuition sessions in the next break. In such cases the student might even assist the peer with breaking the rules. As we see it, this is not moral indifference or lack of responsibility, but rather an expression of a high level of responsibility.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column_inner][/vc_row_inner][vc_row_inner css=”.vc_custom_1592560273619{margin-top: 32px !important;margin-right: 1px !important;margin-bottom: 32px !important;margin-left: 1px !important;padding-top: 16px !important;padding-right: 16px !important;padding-bottom: 16px !important;padding-left: 16px !important;background: #388bc2 url(http://h2020integrity.eu/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/INTEGRITY_Icon-Quote04.png?id=2644) !important;}”][vc_column_inner][nd_options_text nd_options_text_tag=”h2″ nd_options_text_weight=”normal” nd_options_text_family=”nd_options_first_font” nd_options_text=”In some cases, the students would simply turn the blind eye to a peer transgressing the rules, but more often they would show a remarkable level of responsibility by getting directly involved.” nd_options_text_line_height=”36″ nd_options_text_color=”#ffffff”][/vc_column_inner][/vc_row_inner][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner][vc_column_text]In cases like the ones here described there seems to be a mistrust in the ability of the institution to handle the situation appropriately. The students fear that minor transgressions will be treated too harshly by the institution or that fellow students who are in trouble will be punished instead of getting the help they needed.

So, in sum what we see here is that the students recognize the tension between the obligations they have to the academic institution and the obligations they have to their peers, and they handle this tension but assuming personal responsibility of the situation.

This more detailed understanding of students’ reluctancy to report each other has some clear educational implications. Promising anonymity will probably not change things. Strengthening the feeling of moral obligation to the institution through the introduction of honor codes might lead to more reporting of peer dishonesty, but it will also increase the tension felt by the students.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column_inner][/vc_row_inner][vc_row_inner css=”.vc_custom_1592560273619{margin-top: 32px !important;margin-right: 1px !important;margin-bottom: 32px !important;margin-left: 1px !important;padding-top: 16px !important;padding-right: 16px !important;padding-bottom: 16px !important;padding-left: 16px !important;background: #388bc2 url(http://h2020integrity.eu/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/INTEGRITY_Icon-Quote04.png?id=2644) !important;}”][vc_column_inner][nd_options_text nd_options_text_tag=”h2″ nd_options_text_weight=”normal” nd_options_text_family=”nd_options_first_font” nd_options_text=”A way forward could be for institutions to show more empathy towards students in trouble when dealing with cases of dishonesty.” nd_options_text_line_height=”36″ nd_options_text_color=”#ffffff”][/vc_column_inner][/vc_row_inner][vc_row_inner css=”.vc_custom_1623753602119{margin-top: 32px !important;}”][vc_column_inner][vc_column_text]Furthermore, it should be noted that not only academic integrity but also loyalty are virtues important to foster. It is difficulty to create a safe learning environment and to facilitate collaboration and group work if the students do not trust each other and are willing to take responsibility for the academic development and general well-being of their peers.

A way forward could be for institutions to show more empathy towards students in trouble when dealing with cases of dishonesty. Also, it may be important to have an open discussion about loyalty and the limits of loyalty.

Students do not (only) need to be reminded about the obligations they have towards their academic institutions and society at large. They need real guidance in navigating the tension they experience between peer loyalty and these larger obligations. So, let the conversation begin!

Get all the details and read more about the results from our interview study here:

Goddiksen, M. P., Quinn, U. , Kovács, N., Lund, T. B., Sandøe, P., Varta, U. and Johansen, M. W. (2020): Good Friend or Good Student? – An Interview Study of Perceived Conflicts Between Personal and Academic Integrity Among Students in Three European Countries. Accountability in Research, DOI: 10.1080/08989621.2020.1826319

Feature image author – @freepik

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