The Golden Rules of Academic Integrity

Academic integrity often seems like a rather nebulous concept to incoming university students. The term sounds strong, but it is also incredibly vague. The result is that many simply embrace the “I know it when I see it” approach to something which really ought to be approached with care. As scholars at a public research university, it is our responsibility to equip society at large with knowledge which frequently affects the lives of millions. It is thus necessary that we are consistently scrupulous with our research. In my experience as a student here at UBC, I have found that sometimes that is easier said than done. That is not to say that I or my peers are impetuous, but because the boundaries of academic integrity are ill-defined, it is easy for one to find themselves acting dishonestly because they either do not know the rules or do not understand the consequences of breaking of them. As such, I did some research to figure out what academic integrity really looks like in practice, and I’ll do my best to delineate some of the most recurrent themes from the present discourse here.

What is Academic Integrity?

Before proceeding, we need to be responsible scholars, which means that we must carefully define our terms. The expression ‘academic integrity’ was first coined by a man named Don McCabe, whose aim was to create an ethical framework for scholarly research. I wish that I could say that he developed a single, clear-cut definition for the term which is now used universally, but the fact of the matter is that it has gone on to mean different things to different people. To put it succinctly, academic integrity means ‘honest scholarship’, but there is a narrower set of what I would call ‘golden rules’ attached to this definition which came up often during my research. Though these rules do not constitute the be-all and end-all of honest scholarship, they all matter, and each one of them is embedded in a broader conversation which all universities – UBC included – are constantly participating in. So without further ado, here they are:

1. Refrain from Plagiarism – plagiarism can be defined as intellectual theft, and it occurs when an individual presents the work of someone else as if it were their own. Imagine if you had spent ten years of your life building up a business, and just as that business started to become profitable, someone else kicked you off of its board of directors. It would not be farfetched to suggest that plagiarism is akin to the above scenario. Oftentimes the people whose ideas you build upon have dedicated their lives to their research. The articles that they write are quite literally the means by which they pay their bills and feed their families. This is why it is imperative that whenever you use their ideas, you acknowledge them by way of citation. If you are unsure of how to properly cite your sources, you can check out some UBC guidelines for the APA, MLA, and Chicago styles.
2. Don’t Falsify Research and/or Data – I can tell you from experience that many undergraduates treat this rule as ‘no harm, no foul’. Because most undergraduate research is not subjected to rigorous peer review, it often seems harmless to put a citation next to a claim that is not actually supported by the source that you have cited. In a similar vein, ‘playing with the numbers’ to get your desired result may not seem that harmful when it is for an assignment which won’t see the light of day outside of your class, but it builds bad habits which can carry over to more important work in the future. Don’t bank on the fact that your professors don’t have the time to verify your sources.
3. Don’t Cheat – you might ask, “well, don’t cheat on what?” and the answer is, “don’t cheat on anything.” The lines for cheating are not all that blurry. You know when you’re doing it, and you know when others are doing it. However, here are a few examples of cheating that I’m sure you’ll recognize: bringing unauthorized materials into an exam, having someone else write your papers, or lying to your professors about medical conditions. Universities are stressful places, and your peers work incredibly hard to succeed. When you cheat, you disrespect them by tilting the playing field.
4. Disclose Conflicts of Interest – this one is geared a little more towards faculty, though some of you may ultimately become faculty one day, and it is important that your professors exemplify the integrity that they expect of you. A conflict of interest is a situation in which a person is in a position to derive benefit from actions made in their official capacity. Academics carry a certain degree of authority when it comes to influencing both public and private affairs. Sometimes, special interests pay academics to research certain topics. Obviously, these interests want said research to come out in their favour, meaning that academics have a monetary incentive to ensure that it does. This is why it is absolutely necessary for academics to disclose whether their research is funded or heavily influenced by an interested party. Otherwise, they risk producing biased work which serves a narrow subset of society.

The Consequences of Academic Dishonesty

Unfortunately, we live in the real world, and academic integrity is something of an ideal type. The above rules are frequently broken in high-profile cases, and just so you are aware of how serious these infractions are, here are a few examples:

1. Plagiarism – in 1997, a professor at the University of Ottawa was found guilty by an Ontario court of plagiarizing the work of one of his M.B.A. students. Not only did the professor submit the student’s paper at an academic conference in 1991, but he also sold that paper as a class handout at $9 a pop. The court required him to pay the student an estimated $32,000 in damages and reimbursed legal fees.
2. Research Falsification – in 2011, a professor and dean at the University of Amsterdam was found to have falsified the results of a number of his studies. At the time, he was highly regarded both nationally and abroad. Since then, he has been stripped of his titles, and 58 of his articles have been retracted.
3. Mass Cheating – in 1994, an electrical engineering student at the U.S. Naval Academy obtained a copy of an upcoming exam, and sold it to 134 of his peers at $50 a pop. The uniformity across test takers’ answers was readily apparent, and 24 students were expelled, with another 62 disciplined for violating the school’s academic honour code.
4. Severe Conflicts of Interest – in 2006, the Icelandic Chamber of Commerce paid a Governor of the U.S. Federal Reserve $124,000 to investigate the stability of its banking system. The governor promptly published an article which praised the soundness of Icelandic banks without disclosing that they had paid him to write it, and without actually visiting the country. Two years later, Iceland’s banking system collapsed. Whether or not the Governor made an error in his evaluation, his article was used as an appeal to authority which legitimized reforms that ultimately hurt the Icelandic public while benefiting those who paid for his services.

The Do’s of Academic Integrity

While the aforementioned examples imply that most academic dishonesty is the result of malicious intent, it is important to remember that many cases are actually derived from an insufficient understanding of the rules. The Office of the Independent Adjudicator (OIA) – a company representing student grievances in the United Kingdom – finds that in most plagiarism cases the student involved simply did not know what constituted plagiarism. Moreover, even in cases where students knowingly engage in academic dishonesty, most do so only because they feel overwhelmed by the exigencies of an ever-more-demanding world. Hence, the ‘Golden Don’ts’ of academic dishonesty could equally be read as a more empathetic list of ‘Golden Dos’ to uphold one’s academic integrity:

1. Do brush up on proper citation methodology: different professors prefer different citation styles, and sometimes they differ on how to present the same citation style. So always consult with your professor if you are unsure of how to cite properly. Additionally, many students unintentionally plagiarize because they improperly read their own notes!
2. Do be candid when your results don’t match your expectations: being wrong is part of the journey, so instead of presenting the wrong information, do you best to discover the right answer.
3. Do prepare in advance: likely, you would not feel compelled to cheat if you were prepared. As a working student, I know that preparation time can often be difficult to garner, in which case, you should do your best to learn what resources are available to you, so as to avoid putting yourself in a situation where cheating appears to be the only option.

The purpose of this post was not just to provide a more concrete definition of academic integrity, but also to make it clear that academic dishonesty has real consequences. There is a reason that universities impress upon their students the values of transparency, candor, truth, and rigor. It is a privilege that our research carries such great influence, but with that privilege comes a responsibility to respect one another. The most difficult part about upholding these ideals is that what counts as ‘integrity’ changes from day to day, and we may not always agree on what counts as ‘dishonesty’. However, it is important that we continue to have these conversations, and that we hold each other to the highest possible standards.

Did I leave out anything in my Golden Rules? Do you think that any of them missed the mark? If so, join the conversation by commenting below, or tweeting us @UBCLearn. Hopefully together we can facilitate an honest, and responsible campus culture.