Exploring the Intention to Cheat Among Undergraduate Students through the Lens of the Theory of Planned Behaviour

Authors

  • Mohd Yusoff Yusliza Faculty of Business, Economics and Social Development, Universiti Malaysia Terengganu, Malaysia
  • Olawole Fawehinmi Faculty of Business, Economics and Social Development, Universiti Malaysia Terengganu, Malaysia
  • Nik Hazimah Nik Mat Faculty of Business, Economics and Social Development, Universiti Malaysia Terengganu, Malaysia
  • Monizaihasra Mohamed Faculty of Business, Economics and Social Development, Universiti Malaysia Terengganu, Malaysia

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.33736/ijbs.4857.2022

Keywords:

Intention to cheat, attitude, conscientiousness, perceived behavioural control, subjective norms, theory of planned behaviour

Abstract

The escalation of academic dishonesty cases is becoming alarming. This study uses the Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB) and conscientiousness as an antecedent of the intention to cheat. Data were collected through electronic and paper forms. Partial least squares path modeling (PLS-SEM) was used to analyze the responses from 917 undergraduate students in a Malaysian public university. The results support that conscientiousness is a valid predictor of the intention to cheat among students. Further, the three constructs of the TPB, subjective norms, perceived behavioural control, and attitude, significantly mediated the conscientiousness-intention to cheat relationship. Researchers are encouraged to test the model in private universities and other countries. This study is the first to study the intention to cheat among undergraduate students in Malaysia using conscientiousness as an antecedent of the TPB model. Implications for ethics education and research are discussed.

References

Abaraogu, U. O., Henning, M. A., Okpara, M. C., & Rajput, V. (2016). Disclosing academic dishonesty: Perspectives from Nigerian and New Zealand health professional students. Ethics and Behavior, 26(5), 431-447. https://doi.org/10.1080/10508422.2015.1055494

Abu Bakar, M. Y., & Wan Jamaliah, W. J. (2015). Testing the theory of planned behavior in determining intention to use digital coupon among university students. Procedia Economics and Finance, 31, 186-193. https://doi.org/10.1016/S2212-5671(15)01145-4

Abusafia, A. H., Roslan, N. S., Mohd Yusoff, D., & Nor, M. Z. M. (2018). The prevalence of academic dishonesty among Malaysian nursing students. Journal of Taibah University Medical Sciences, 13(4), 370-376. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jtumed.2018.04.003

Ajzen, I. (1989). Attitude structure and behavior. In A. R. Pratkanis, S. J. Brecker, & A. G. Greenwald (Eds.), Attitude structure and function (pp. 241-274). Lawrence Erlbaum.

Ajzen, I. (1991). The theory of planned behavior. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 50(2), 179-211. https://doi.org/10.1016/0749-5978(91)90020-T

Ajzen, I. (2012). Attitudes and persuasion. In K. Deaux, & M. Snyder (Eds.), The Oxford handbook of personality and social psychology (pp. 367-393). Oxford University Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780195398991.013.0015

Ajzen. I. (1985). From intentions to actions: A theory of planned behavior. In J. Kuhl, & J. Beckman (Eds.), Action-control: From cognition to behavior (pp. 11-39). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-69746-3_2

Aljurf, S., Kemp, L., & Williams, J. (2019). Exploring academic dishonesty in the Middle East: A qualitative analysis of students' perceptions. Studies in Higher Education, 45(7), 1461-1473. https://doi.org/10.1080/03075079.2018.1564262

Anderman, E. M., & Won, S. (2019). Academic cheating in disliked classes. Ethics and Behavior, 29(1), 1-22. https://doi.org/10.1080/10508422.2017.1373648

Armitage, C. J., & Conner, M. T. (2001). Efficacy of the theory of planned behavior: A meta-analytical review. British Journal of Social Psychology, 40, 471-499. https://doi.org/10.1348/014466601164939

Baker, E. W., Al-Gahtani, S. S., & Hubona, G. S. (2007). The effects of gender and age on new technology implementation in a developing country: Testing the theory of planned behavior. Information Technology and People, 20(4), 352-375. https://doi.org/10.1108/09593840710839798

Beck, L., & Ajzen, I. (1991). Predicting dishonest actions using the theory of planned behavior. Journal of Research in Personality, 25(3), 285-301. https://doi.org/10.1016/0092-6566(91)90021-H

Bokosmaty, S., Ehrich, J., Eady, M. J., & Bell, K. (2019). Canadian university students' gendered attitudes toward plagiarism. Journal of Further and Higher Education, 43(2), 276-290.

Booth‐Kewley, S., & Vickers, R. R. (1994). Associations between major domains of personality and health behavior. Journal of Personality, 62(3), 281-298. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-6494.1994.tb00298.x

Bratton, V. K., & Strittmatter, C. (2013). To cheat or not to cheat? The role of personality in academic and business ethics. Ethics and Behavior, 23(6), 427-444. https://doi.org/10.1080/10508422.2013.811077

Brimble, M. (2016). Why students cheat: An exploration of the motivators of student academic dishonesty in higher education. In T. Bretag (Ed.), Handbook of academic integrity (pp. 365-382). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-287-098-8_58

Chen, M. F., & Tung, P. J. (2014). Developing an extended theory of planned behavior model to predict consumer's intention to visit green hotels. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 36, 221-230. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhm.2013.09.006

Chhetri, B., Goyal, L. M., Mittal, M., & Battineni, G. (2021). Estimating the prevalence of stress among Indian students during the COVID-19 pandemic: A cross-sectional study from India. Journal of Taibah University Medical Sciences, 16(2), 260-267. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jtumed.2020.12.012

Chudzicka-Czupała, A., Grabowski, D., Mello, A. L., Kuntz, J., Zaharia, D. V., Hapon, N., Lupina-Wegener, A., & Börü, D. (2016). Application of the theory of planned behavior in academic cheating research-cross-cultural comparison. Ethics and Behavior, 26(8), 638-659. https://doi.org/10.1080/10508422.2015.1112745

Coats, K. J. (2018). Cheating in dental school: A look at how student conscientiousness and satisfaction relate to attitudes towards cheating (Unpublished master's thesis). Creighton University.

Cohen, J. (1992). A power primer. Psychological Bulletin, 112(1), 155-159. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.112.1.155

Costa, P. T., & McCrae, R. R. (1992). The revised NEO personality inventory (NEOPI-R) and NEO Five-Factor Inventory (NEO-FFI) professional manual. Psychological Assessment Resources.

de Bruin, G. P., & Rudnick, H. (2007). Examining the cheats: The role of conscientiousness and excitement seeking in academic dishonesty. South African Journal of Psychology, 37(1), 153-164. https://doi.org/10.1177/008124630703700111

de Vries, A., de Vries, R. E., & Born, M. P. (2011). Broad versus narrow traits: Conscientiousness and honesty-humility as predictors of academic criteria. European Journal of Personality, 25, 336-348. https://doi.org/10.1002/per.795

Diamantopoulos, A., & Siguaw, J. A. (2006). Formative versus reflective indicators in organizational measure development: A comparison and empirical illustration. British Journal of Management, 17(4), 263-282. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8551.2006.00500.x

Engler, J. N., Landau, J. D., & Epstein, M. (2008). Keeping up with the Joneses: Students' perceptions of academically dishonest behavior. Teaching of Psychology, 35(2), 99-102. https://doi.org/10.1177/009862830803500207

Falk, R. F., & Miller, N. B. (1992). A primer for soft modeling. University of Akron Press.

Fawehinmi, O. O., & Yahya, K. K. (2018). Investigating the linkage between proactive personality and social support on career adaptability amidst undergraduate students. Journal of Business and Social Review in Emerging Economies, 4(1), 81-92. https://doi.org/10.26710/jbsee.v4i1.370

Fawehinmi, O., Yusliza, M. Y., Muhammad, Z., & Saputra, J. (2021). Understanding the antecedents of employee green behaviour through the lens of psychological variables. Proceedings of the 11th Annual International Conference on Industrial Engineering and Operations Management Singapore, 3292-3301.

Fornell, C. G., & Cha, J. (1994). Partial least squares. In R. P. Bagozzi (Ed.), Advanced methods of marketing research (pp. 52-78). Blackwell.

Fornell, C., & Larcker, D. F. (1981). Evaluating structural equation models with unobservable variables and measurement error. Journal of Marketing Research, 18(1), 39-50. https://doi.org/10.1177/002224378101800104

Franke, G., & Sarstedt, M. (2019). Heuristics versus statistics in discriminant validity testing: A comparison of four procedures. Internet Research, 29(3), 430-447. https://doi.org/10.1108/IntR-12-2017-0515

Geisser, S. (1974). A predictive approach to the random effect model. Biometrika, 61(1), 101-107. https://doi.org/10.1093/biomet/61.1.101

Gholami, R., Sulaiman, A. B., Ramayah, T., & Molla, A. (2013). Senior managers' perception on green information systems (IS) adoption and environmental performance: Results from a field survey. Information and Management, 50(7), 431-438. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.im.2013.01.004

Giluk, T. L., & Postlethwaite, B. E. (2015). Big five personality and academic dishonesty: A meta-analytic review. Personality and Individual Differences, 72, 59-67. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2014.08.027

Grasmick, H. G., & Bursik Jr, R. J. (1990). Conscience, significant others, and rational choice: Extending the deterrence model. Law and Society Review, 24(3), 837-862, https://doi.org/10.2307/3053861

Griebeler, M. D. C. (2017). Friendship and in-class academic dishonesty. Economics Letters, 150, 1-3. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.econlet.2016.10.040

Ha, H. Y., & Janda, S. (2012). Predicting consumer intentions to purchase energy-efficient products. Journal of Consumer Marketing, 29(7), 461-469. https://doi.org/10.1108/07363761211274974

Hair Jr, J. F., Hult, G. T. M., Ringle, C., & Sarstedt, M. (2016). A primer on partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM). SAGE Publishing.

Hair, J. F., Hult, G. T. M., Ringle, C. M., Sarstedt, M., & Thiele, K. O. (2017). Mirror, mirror on the wall: A comparative evaluation of composite-based structural equation modeling methods. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 45(5), 616-632. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11747-017-0517-x

Harding, T. S., Carpenter, D. D., Finelli, C. J., & Passow, H. J. (2004). Does academic dishonesty relate to unethical behavior in professional practice? An exploratory study. Science and Engineering Ethics, 10(2), 311-324. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11948-004-0027-3

Haswell, S., Jubb, P., & Wearing, B. (1999). Accounting students and cheating: A comparative study for Australia, South Africa and the UK. Teaching Business Ethics, 3(3), 211-239. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1009830308143

Hendy, N. T., & Montargot, N. (2019). Understanding academic dishonesty among business school students in France using the theory of planned behavior. International Journal of Management Education, 17(1), 85-93. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijme.2018.12.003

Henseler, J., Ringle, C. M., & Sarstedt, M. (2015). A new criterion for assessing discriminant validity in variance-based structural equation modeling. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 43(1), 115-135. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11747-014-0403-8

Hofstede, G. (1986). Cultural differences in teaching and learning. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 10, 301-320. https://doi.org/10.1016/0147-1767(86)90015-5

Iberahim, H., Hussein, N., Samat, N., Noordin, F., & Daud, N. (2013). Academic dishonesty: Why business students participate in these practices? Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, 90, 152-156. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2013.07.076

Ismail, S., & Yussof, S. H. (2016). Cheating behaviour among accounting students: Some Malaysian evidence. Accounting Research Journal, 29(1), 20-33. https://doi.org/10.1108/ARJ-05-2014-0050

Iyer, R., & Eastman, J. K. (2006). Academic dishonesty: Are business students different from other college students? Journal of Education for Business, 82(2), 101-110. https://doi.org/10.3200/JOEB.82.2.101-110

Jalilian, F., Moazami, P., Mirzaei-Alavijeh, M., Moazami, A. M., & Jalili, C. (2016). Sensation seeking and the intention to cheating among college students: An application of the theory of planned behavior. Research Journal of Applied Sciences, 11(8), 645-649.

Kam, C. C. S., Hue, M. T., & Cheung, H. Y. (2018). Academic dishonesty among Hong Kong secondary school students: Application of theory of planned behaviour. Educational Psychology, 38(7), 945-963. https://doi.org/10.1080/01443410.2018.1454588

Kececi, A., Bulduk, S., Oruc, D., & Celik, S. (2011). Academic dishonesty among nursing students: A descriptive study. Nursing Ethics, 18(5), 725-733. https://doi.org/10.1177/0969733011408042

Kertechian, S. K. (2018). Conscientiousness as a key to success for academic achievement among French university students enrolled in management studies. The International Journal of Management Education, 16(2), 154-165. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijme.2018.02.003

Khare, A. (2015). Antecedents to green buying behavior: A study on consumers in an emerging economy. Marketing Intelligence Planning, 33(3), 309-329. https://doi.org/10.1108/MIP-05-2014-0083

Kremmer, M. L., Brimble, M., & Stevenson-Clarke, P. (2007). Investigating the probability of student cheating: The relevance of student characteristics, assessment items, perceptions of prevalence and history of engagement. International Journal for Educational Integrity, 3(2), 3-17. https://doi.org/10.21913/IJEI.v3i2.162

Krou, M. R., Acee, T. W., Pino, N. W., & Hoff, M. A. (2019). Rationalizing the decision to cheat: An empirical analysis to determine whether social rational orientation can predict academic dishonesty. Journal of College and Character, 20(1), 9-24 https://doi.org/10.1080/2194587X.2018.1559196

LaDuke, R. D. (2013). Academic dishonesty today, unethical practices tomorrow? Journal of Professional Nursing, 29(6), 402-406. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.profnurs.2012.10.009

Lee, J., Cerreto, F. A., & Lee, J. (2010). Theory of planned behavior and teachers' decision regarding use of educational technology. Journal of Educational Technology and Society, 13(1), 152-164.

Lonsdale, D. J. (2017). Intentions to cheat: Ajzen's planned behavior and goal-related personality facets. Journal of Psychology: Interdisciplinary and Applied, 151(2), 113-129. https://doi.org/10.1080/00223980.2016.1241737

Lucas, G. M., & Friedrich, J. (2005). Individual differences in workplace deviance and integrity as predictors of academic dishonesty. Ethics and Behavior, 15(1), 15-35. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15327019eb1501_2

Macale, L., Ghezzi, V., Rocco, G., Fida, R., Vellone, E., & Alvaro, R. (2017). Academic dishonesty among Italian nursing students: A longitudinal study. Nurse Education Today, 50, 57-61. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nedt.2016.12.013

Maloshonok, N., & Shmeleva, E. (2019). Factors influencing academic dishonesty among undergraduate students at Russian universities. Journal of Academic Ethics, 17, 313-329. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10805-019-9324-y

Marcus, B., Lee, K., & Ashton, M. C. (2007). Personality dimensions explaining relationships between integrity tests and counterproductive behavior: Big five, or one in addition? Personnel Psychology, 60(1), 1-34. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1744-6570.2007.00063.x

Mazar, N., Amir, O., & Ariely, D. (2008). The dishonesty of honest people: A theory of Self-Concept Maintenance. Journal of Marketing Research, 45(6), 633-644. https://doi.org/10.1509/jmkr.45.6.633

McCabe, D. L., Feghali, T., & Abdallah, H. (2008). Academic dishonesty in the Middle East: Individual and contextual factors. Research in Higher Education, 49(5), 451-467. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11162-008-9092-9

Meng, C. L., Othman, J., D'Silva, J. L., & Omar, Z. (2014). Ethical decision making in academic dishonesty with application of modified theory of planned behavior: A review. International Education Studies, 7(3), 126-139. https://doi.org/10.5539/ies.v7n3p126

Moser, A. K. (2015). Thinking green, buying green? Drivers of pro-environmental purchasing behavior. Journal of Consumer Marketing, 32(3), 167-175. https://doi.org/10.1108/JCM-10-2014-1179

Murdock, T. B., Miller, A. D., & Goetzinger, A. (2007). Effects of classroom context on university students' judgments about cheating: Mediating and moderating processes. Social Psychology of Education, 10(2), 141-169. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11218-007-9015-1

Mustapha, R., & Nik Ali, N. A. (2017). An empirical survey of an academic dishonesty at a major public universities in recent years: The Malaysian evidence. Asian Journal of Educational Research, 5(3), 43-49.

Mustapha, R., Hussin, Z., Siraj, S., & Darusalam, G. (2016). Does Islamic religiosity influence the cheating intention among Malaysian Muslim students? A modified theory of planned behavior. International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences, 6(12), 389-406. https://doi.org/10.6007/IJARBSS/v6-i12/2504

Nguyen, J. G., Keuseman, K. J., & Humston, J. J. (2020). Minimize online cheating for online assessments during COVID-19 pandemic. Journal of Chemical Education, 97(9), 3429-3435. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jchemed.0c00790

O'Connor, M. C., & Paunonen, S. V. (2007). Big Five personality predictors of post-secondary academic performance. Personality and Individual Differences, 43(5), 971-990. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2007.03.017

Park, E. J., Park, S., & Jang, I. S. (2013). Academic cheating among nursing students. Nurse Education Today, 33(4), 346-352. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nedt.2012.12.015

Park, H. S. (2000). Relationship among attitudes and subjective norm: Testing the theory of reasoned action across cultures. Community Studies, 51(2), 162-175. https://doi.org/10.1080/10510970009388516

Peled, Y., Eshet, Y., Barczyk, C., & Grinautski, K. (2019). Predictors of academic dishonesty among undergraduate students in online and face-to-face courses. Computers and Education, 131, 49-59. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2018.05.012

Poropat, A. E. (2009). A meta-analysis of the Five-Factor Model of personality and academic performance. Psychological Bulletin, 135(2), 322-338. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0014996

Portnoy, J., Legee, K., Raine, A., Choy, O., & Rudo-Hutt, A. S. (2019). Biosocial risk factors for academic dishonesty: Testing a new mediation model in young adults. Journal of Contemporary Criminal Justice, 35(1), 21-35. https://doi.org/10.1177/1043986218810590

Rammstedt, B., & John, O. P. (2007). Measuring personality in one minute or less: A 10-item short version of the Big Five Inventory in English and German. Journal of Research in Personality, 41(1), 203-212. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jrp.2006.02.001

Roberts, B. W., Jackson, J. J., Fayard, J. V., Edmonds, G., & Meints, J. (2009). Conscientiousness. In M. Leary, & R. Hoyle (Eds.), Handbook of individual differences in social behavior (pp. 369 -381). Guilford Press.

Rusdi, S. D., Hussein, N., Rahman, N. A. A., Noordin, F., & Aziz, Z. Z. A. (2019). Academic dishonesty among tertiary students in Malaysia. International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences, 9(3), 512-520. https://doi.org/10.6007/IJARBSS/v9-i3/5710

Sarver, V. T. (1983). Ajzen and Fishbein's "theory of reasoned action": A critical assessment. Journal of Theory Social Behavior, 13(2), 155-163. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-5914.1983.tb00469.x

Stone, T. H., Jawahar, I. M., & Kisamore, J. L. (2010). Predicting academic misconduct intentions and behavior using the theory of planned behavior and personality. Basic and Applied Social Psychology, 32(1), 35-45. https://doi.org/10.1080/01973530903539895

Stone, T. H., Kisamore, J. L., & Jawahar, I. M. (2007). Predicting academic dishonesty: Theory of planned behavior and personality. Proceedings of the 2007 Management Education Division of the Administrative Sciences Association of Canada, 40-57.

Tsui, A. P. Y., & Ngo, H. Y. (2016). Social predictors of business student cheating behaviour in Chinese societies. Journal of Academic Ethics, 14(4), 281-296. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10805-016-9266-6

Underwood, J., & Szabo, A. (2003). Academic offences and e-learning: Individual propensities in cheating. British Journal of Educational Technology, 34(4), 467-477. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-8535.00343

Yu, H., Glanzer, P. L., Johnson, B. R., Sriram, R., & Moore, B. (2018). Why college students cheat: A conceptual model of five actors. The Review of Higher Education, 41(4), 549-576. https://doi.org/10.1353/rhe.2018.0025

Yusliza, M. Y., Saputra, J., Fawehinmi, O., Mat, N. H. N., & Mohamed, M. (2020). The mediating role of justification on the relationship of subjective norms, perceived behavioral control and attitude on intention to cheat among students. Management Science Letters, 10(16), 3767-3776. https://doi.org/10.5267/j.msl.2020.7.035

Yussof, S. H., & Ismail, S. (2018). Academic dishonesty among accounting students in Malaysia. Management and Accounting Review, 17(1), 17-46. https://doi.org/10.24191/mar.v17i1.579

Zhou, Y., Thagersen, J., Ruan, Y., & Huang, G., (2013). The moderating role of human values in planned behavior: The case of Chinese consumers' intention to buy organic food. Journal of Consumer Marketing, 30(4), 335-344. https://doi.org/10.1108/JCM-02-2013-0482

Downloads

Published

2022-08-08

How to Cite

Mohd Yusoff Yusliza, Olawole Fawehinmi, Nik Hazimah Nik Mat, & Monizaihasra Mohamed. (2022). Exploring the Intention to Cheat Among Undergraduate Students through the Lens of the Theory of Planned Behaviour. International Journal of Business and Society, 23(2), 1042–1065. https://doi.org/10.33736/ijbs.4857.2022