1,720,963 research outputs found

    Examining the dynamics of plagiarism: a comparative analysis before, during, and after the COVID-19 pandemic

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    Abstract This research explores the impact of the unforeseen global crisis on education and assessment practices, investigating plagiarism rates through a comprehensive analysis of 25,864 written assignments from 42 academic institutions in 2019, 2020, and 2023 before, during, and after crises, such as pandemics. Utilising the theory of planned behaviour comparing undergraduate plagiarism rates before, during, and after the COVID-19 pandemic using an automated plagiarism detection tool (Originality). The comparison traverses academic fields, disciplines, institutional rankings, and written language assessments. Contextualising this phenomenon is crucial for a comprehensive understanding and targeted interventions against undesirable behaviour. The results show that before and after COVID-19, plagiarism rates were similar, while during COVID-19, plagiarism rates augmented. Furthermore, assignments written in English contained higher plagiarism rates than those in Arabic and Hebrew. We discuss post-pandemic plagiarism rates bounce-back in higher education on the one hand and concern about artificial intelligence writing tools on the other hand. We also discuss plagiarism among multilingual students. The study concludes with practical implications and suggestions for future research in the evolving landscape of academic integrity

    Academic Integrity Crisis: Exploring Undergraduates’ Learning Motivation and Personality Traits over Five Years

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    Academic misconduct is ubiquitous, a fortiori during crisis periods. The present research examines undergraduates’ learning motivation, based on Self-Determination Theory and personality traits factors, according to the Big Five Factor Model, affecting academic misconduct across different time spans: Before, during, and after a life-changing event. Using online questionnaires, we measured the level of academic misconduct, learning motivation, and personality traits of 1090 social sciences students during five different time spans pre-COVID-19, during COVID-19 (before and after vaccination), and after COVID-19 (post and long post). The results showed significant differences in students’ self-reported academic misconduct levels among the different periods and similar misconduct levels in pre-COVID-19 and long post-COVID-19. Additionally, the findings exhibited that external motivation significantly increases academic misconduct and that two out of five personality traits (agreeableness and emotional stability) reduce their occurrences. We conclude that higher education preparedness for academic integrity during an emergency is still a desideratum and that ethical concerns should not be abandoned but rather be fully addressed during emergency periods. This could be addressed by instructors allocating tasks during emergency groups involving students with pro-social personalities (agreeableness and emotional stability) and intrinsic motivation to serve as social agents in deterring academic misconduct

    Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis

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    The present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed

    No Anxious Student Is Left Behind: Statistics Anxiety, Personality Traits, and Academic Dishonesty—Lessons from COVID-19

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    Scholarly studies have revealed that exposure to statistics courses affect students’ anxiety levels and that this has been associated with unethical misconduct. Thus, the present research’s main objective is to comprehend the mediating role Statistics Anxiety plays on the relationship comprising students’ personality traits and academic dishonesty as manifesting before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. Its aim is to understand this phenomenon and provide theoretical tools for fostering sustainably personalized distance learning and instruction. Data were collected from students studying for a bachelor’s degree in the social sciences at three different Israeli colleges. The sample comprises 316 participants and data were analyzed using Structural Equation Modelling (SEM). The results show a significant mediation manifested by an indirect effect between personality traits and academic dishonesty via statistics anxiety only in emergency remote teaching, although no parallel significant mediation was observed in the face-to-face course. These results could be explained by differences in delivery methods. Thus, we recommend that in the emergency remote teaching environment instructors’ presence include: (1) supportive, emphatic interaction to reduce virtual distance and (2) Social Emotional Learning (SEL) strategies, which foster students’ learning challenges and prevent anxiety and academic dishonesty

    Relationship between Statistics Anxiety and Academic Dishonesty: A Comparison between Learning Environments in Social Sciences

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    The current research examines the impact of Statistics Anxiety on academic ethical behavior as manifesting in undergraduate social science students attending introductory statistics courses in different learning environments: Covid-19-Emergency Remote Teaching (ERT), Planned Online Environment (POE), and Face-to-Face (F2F) courses. Data were collected from students in academic institutions studying for a bachelor’s degree in the social sciences. Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) was used to examine the relationship between students’ previous academic achievements and Academic Dishonesty mediated by Statistics Anxiety. The results of multi-group analysis show that path coefficients differ between the three learning environments (POE, F2F, and ERT). Specifically, the results support a model in which previous math and academic achievements are significantly related to Academic Dishonesty mediated by Statistics Anxiety in a POE context only. Accordingly, POE statistics learning is less effective than F2F instruction and practice. Our research shows that instructors’ presence in the learning process reduces students’ anxiety levels and unethical behavior. Thus, we recommend that in POE, the instructor’s presence includes supportive, emphatic, and interpersonal interaction to reduce virtual distance. We conclude that introductory courses in statistics need to empower students experiencing Statistics Anxiety for a better sustainable statistical literacy population

    To behave or not (un)ethically? The meditative effect of mindfulness on statistics anxiety and academic dishonesty moderated by risk aversion

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    Abstract Despite the growing interest in mindfulness in higher education, the literature on its relation to decision-making under risk (i.e. academic misconduct) and statistics anxiety is scarce. The present research shall fill this gap. Based on the prospect theory, we assessed the mediating effect of mindfulness on the relationship between statistics anxiety and academic dishonesty moderated by risk aversion. Data were collected from 791 undergraduate students in six Israeli academic institutions studying for bachelor’s degrees in social sciences. Questionnaires included the following measures: risk behaviour according to the prospect theory framework, Mindful Attention Awareness Scale, Statistics Anxiety Rating Scale, Academic Misconduct Scale and sociodemographic variables. Correlations among these variables were explored. The data was analysed using Structural Equation Modelling (SEM). The results indicate that the variance in academic dishonesty is explained by students' statistics anxiety with a mediation of Mindfulness moderated by Risk Aversion. Mindfulness negatively affects Academic Dishonesty, while Risk Aversion has a significant positive effect on Mindfulness. Finally, among individuals with high statistics anxiety, Risk Averse individuals show significantly higher Mindfulness than Risk Seekers. We conclude that mindfulness-based interventions might be a constructive tool to reduce risk-taking and promote ethical decision-making among individuals who experience high levels of statistics anxiety. Furthermore, developing mindful skills may help individuals with higher anxiety levels neutralize these unwanted feelings and get along with their learning tasks. Hence, avoid academic unethical behaviours

    Variations on the Author

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    “Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
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