Cheating on exams: Investigating Reasons, Attitudes, and the Role of Demographic Variables

Abstract

Cheating is an academically dishonest behavior about which there has been a thrust of research. However, it has not been extensively researched in an Iranian context. Therefore, the current study was conducted with 310 Iranian students. A cheating questionnaire was devised and administered to the participants. Certain demographic variables were investigated. Both descriptive and inferential statistics were employed to analyze the obtained data. The results of the descriptive statistics revealed that cheating was common among participants, and most students did not harbor any negative attitude toward cheating or at least were neutral about it. The most common method of cheating was “letting others look at their papers while taking exams.” The most common reason for cheating was “not being ready for the exam.” As for inferential statistics, one-way analysis of variance, an independent t-test, and correlational analyses were used to test the effect and relationship of demographic variables on and between the cheating behaviors of the participants. It was found that none of the two demographic variables of gender and year level had any effect on students’ cheating behaviors. Furthermore, achievement scores and age were not significantly correlated with cheating behavior scores.