Plagiarism in Higher Education: Tackling Tough Topics in Academic Integrity

253 Pages·2021·2.955 MB·English

by  Sarah Elaine Eaton

Plagiarism in
Higher Education
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Plagiarism in
Higher Education
TACKLING TOUGH TOPICS IN
ACADEMIC INTEGRITY
Sarah Elaine Eaton
Copyright © 2021 by Sarah Elaine Eaton
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval
system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical,
photocopying, recording, or other wise, except for the inclusion of brief quotations in a
review, without prior permission in writing from the publisher.
Library of Congress Cataloging- in- Publication Data
Names: Eaton, Sarah Elaine, author.
Title: Plagiarism in higher education : tackling tough topics in academic integrity /
Sarah Elaine Eaton.
Description: Santa Barbara, California : Libraries Unlimited, 2021. |
Includes bibliographical references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2020040794 (print) | LCCN 2020040795 (ebook) |
ISBN 9781440874376 (paperback) | ISBN 9781440874383 (ebook)
Subjects: LCSH: Plagiarism. | Education, Higher—Moral and ethical aspects. |
College teachers—Professional ethics.
Classification: LCC PN167 .E28 2021 (print) | LCC PN167 (ebook) |
DDC 808.06/6378—dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2020040794
LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2020040795
ISBN: 978-1-4408-7437-6 (print)
978-1-4408-7438-3 (ebook)
25 24 23 22 21 1 2 3 4 5
This book is also available as an eBook.
Libraries Unlimited
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This book is printed on acid- free paper
Manufactured in the United States of Amer i ca
As I was writing this book, my friend and mentor,
Dr. Tracey Bretag, was encouraging me every step of the way.
The book went into production just before she passed away.
We carry on our work and our commitment to academic
integrity in her absence, inspired by her commitment
to ethical teaching, learning, and living.
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Contents
Preface ix
Acknowle dgments xiii
Introduction xv
Chapter 1 A Brief History of Plagiarism 1
Chapter 2 Contextualizing and Defining Plagiarism
in Higher Education 14
Chapter 3 Intentionality, Textuality, and Other
Complicating Factors 37
Chapter 4 A Multistakeholder Systems Approach
to Plagiarism: The 4M Framework 58
Chapter 5 Evaluation and Assessment 84
Chapter 6 Self- Plagiarism 101
Chapter 7 Academic File Sharing: Sharing Is Caring,
and Other Myths 112
Chapter 8 Contract Cheating: Outsourced
Academic Work 131
vii
viii Contents
Chapter 9 Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion 153
Chapter 10 Recognizing, Reporting, and
Resolving Plagiarism 170
Chapter 11 Plagiarism by Professors and Researchers 195
Chapter 12 Conclusion: Contemplating the F uture
of Plagiarism 211
Index 227
Preface
The pro cess of writing a book begins long before the first words are ever
typed. At least, that’s how it has been for me. I suppose my obsession with
citing, referencing, and source attribution began when I was a doctoral
student. My PhD supervisor, Dr. J. Tim Goddard, had a par tic u lar way of
teaching his gradu ate students how to do a lit er a ture review, which I have
not seen written down anywhere before or since. He would tell us, “Imag-
ine you are coming to a conversation circle where p eople are talking about
your subject. The conversation has been going on for many years, maybe
even centuries. The p eople who are in this circle can be from any point in
history. When you join the circle, you sit down and listen to the voices of
those who have come before you. Listen closely to what they have to say,
and try to understand their point of view. Then pay attention to the rela-
tionship between the people in the circle. Who wrote on the topic first?
Who influenced whom? Who disagrees with whom, and why? How has the
conversation shifted over time? What have people been saying recently?
Your job when you first join this circle is to listen, and to understand. In
time, you will contribute your own voice to the conversation, but you d on’t
start by talking. You start by listening” (T. Goddard, oral teachings. Mul-
tiple dates from 2005 onward). Of course, by “listen,” he meant “read.”
Originally from the north of England, Tim’s career was deeply affected
by working with Indigenous populations in a number of countries. His way
of teaching us how to understand and undertake a lit er a ture review was no
doubt influenced by Indigenous perspectives and teachings. It was based
on the sacred tradition of sharing circles in Indigenous cultures.
Tim’s approach focused on p eople and relationship- building. He taught
us that starting with the sources first was backward. He was insistent that
people write the books and journal articles that we read and cite, and so we
must start with the p eople, rather than with the sources. Tim’s approach
ix