Influencing Student Academic Integrity Choices using Ethics Scenarios

Academic misconduct seems to have increased substantially during the pandemic, with a worldwide upsurge in reported cases. The aim of this project is to construct a framework for helping students engage with issues concerning academic integrity and avoid academic misconduct. This Work-In-Progress paper reports on the construction of a scenario-based framework to investigate the beliefs and attitudes of university stakeholders when confronted with decisions about potential academic misconduct. The framework will be based on using scenarios to spur individual reflections and discussions among the students regarding values related to academic integrity focusing on Uppsala University context. A repository of "misconduct" scenarios related to different cultures, including different views and regulations, is intended to support teachers to develop modules tailored to their current need. The underlying idea is to provide students with an understanding of what constitutes academic misconduct in Uppsala University setting and to help them find honest alternatives when faced with temptations to "cheat". Our view is that students, in general, want to behave honestly, and that this framework will provide a means to help students follow their moral "compass" and avoid dishonest behaviour.