Examining undergraduates' understanding of academic dishonesty

This chapter reports on a small-scale action research conducted to examine undergraduates' understanding of academic dishonesty in higher education. The participants (n = 47) were undergraduates from the Sports Science and Management Program, and the Biological Sciences faculty in a university in Singapore, completing a compulsory science communication academic literacy course. The study comprised 3 parts. The first part elicited survey responses about students' experiences using Turnitin, while the second part surveyed students' understanding of the terms plagiarism and collusion. In the third part, students analyzed six case studies and assessed the extent to which, or if, plagiarism and/or collusion had been committed. Undergraduates' individual responses to the survey were analyzed focusing on measures of frequency and central tendency, while case studies responses were analyzed for recurring themes. The findings were used to identify areas of uncertainty and to recommend strategies that tutors may use to address the identified uncertainties.