Abstract

This study examines circumstances when academic integrity rules may not apply. To this end, we conducted a multinational survey of teaching, research, administrative and support staff (N = 79). The results suggest that exemptions may be granted on compassionate grounds such as personal welfare, situations where institutional policies are perceived to be unfair or discriminatory, in cases of honest mistakes, and for special activities such as ideological and philosophical debates. Exceptions to academic integrity rules may also be granted to first-time offenders and international students. We argue that inconsistency in policy objectives coupled with differences in staff attitudes, values and beliefs create additional challenges for the implementation of academic integrity measures. However, where policy is perceived to be morally questionable, non-compliance is regarded as an attempt to restore a personal sense of fairness and trust. We further stress that ambiguity of expectations and a disproportionate focus on student action, but not on that of staff, results in an environment where different, and often conflicting, academic integrity practices may operate in parallel leading to even greater inconsistency and procedural unfairness. We discuss the implications and offer recommendations for practice and future research.

摘要

本研究调查了学术诚信规则可能不适用的情况。为此，我们对教学、研究、行政和支持人员进行了多国调查（N = 79）。结果表明，可以出于同情心的理由给予豁免，例如个人福利、制度政策被认为不公平或歧视的情况、在诚实错误的情况下以及意识形态和哲学辩论等特殊​​活动。学术诚信规则的例外情况也可能授予初犯者和国际学生。我们认为，政策目标的不一致以及员工态度、价值观和信仰的差异，为学术诚信措施的实施带来了额外的挑战。然而，当政策被认为在道德上有问题时，不遵守被视为试图恢复个人的公平感和信任感。我们进一步强调，期望的模糊性和对学生行为的不成比例的关注，但不是对员工而言，这会导致不同且通常相互冲突的学术诚信实践可能并行运作，从而导致更大的不一致和程序上的不公平。我们讨论其影响并为实践和未来研究提供建议。