To Cheat or Not to Cheat : An Insight into the Mindset and Pressures Behind Academic Dishonesty

Story by Emily Messall | Design by Sara Roach

An alarming 82 percent of college alumni admitted to cheating on a test or an assignment during their time at school, according to a study from Taylor and Francis Online. At Central Washington University (CWU), that is roughly 10,120 out of 12,342 students (CWU Quick Facts).

Professors, department directors and students were interviewed for their thoughts and experiences with cheating in order to dig deeper into the nitty-gritty details behind academic dishonesty.

What Cheating Looks Like

 Cheating is a term that encompasses many different actions. The Rochester Institute of Technology notes that plagiarism can be having someone else do the work for you, copying answers, using an electronic device to look up the answers, having someone transmit answers to you— the list goes on.

Katelynn Vincent senior English Language and Literature major, mentions “working together on tests if you have the same class with someone, opening other tabs if your professor doesn’t require a lockdown browser and using your cell phone to look up the answers” are all different ways of cheating she has seen.

 Most of the time, students don’t know that what they’re doing is cheating, explains Joseph Bryant, Executive Director of Student Rights and Responsibilities. 

Cultural differences can also be a factor that contributes to cheating. What other countries might consider simply working together can be seen as cheating in America. 

 “If I had a group of students...and they had one person in that group who they considered to be a very good writer, the cultural expectation would be for that person to do the work for that whole group and they really didn’t view that as cheating,” says Katie Boswell, Director of the Academic Success Center. Cheating is a broad term that covers so many different actions and ideas; there isn’t just one way to describe it.

Why Students Cheat

Students are all different people who have had unique experiences in life that shape them into the students they are. 

Three main reasons for cheating have arisen in many departments across CWU: internal and external pressures, procrastination and lack of effort. 

William Thelen, Director of Testing Services, discusses a variety of internal pressures. Students put so much pressure on themselves to pass classes that sometimes they feel like cheating is their only feasible option.

 “You’re paying a lot of money, you want to pass, you want to graduate and get a good job,” he describes. Students are faced with pressure when everything falls back onto their grades or their GPA. 

Bryant discusses the procrastination factor that can lead to cheating. “More often than not…it is often due to procrastination. They wait until the last minute and then they try and get it done quickly and by doing it quickly they don’t have time to put the effort [in] so they use other sources” says Bryant. Thus ensues a copy-and-paste party until the student reaches their page count and finally hits that daunting ‘submit’ button. Students can become so desperate to pass, they risk putting their academic integrity in danger instead of asking for an extension.

“When we have an idea that our self-worth or intellect is tied to our performance, and not necessarily strategies that we’re using, then we tend to cheat or lie about that a lot more. It’s...a protective mechanism,” says Boswell.

 It’s important for students to remember that they are more than their GPA. You’re a student, but you are a human being with struggles and emotions first.

Bryant also mentions that when students are sent to speak with him about cheating, they open up to him about their own lack of effort. He says that students are usually ready to own up about what they’ve done and are honest about why they felt driven to do so. 

If a student feels as though they cannot pass the assignment, they aren’t going to put in the effort, describes Boswell. 

Personal reasons aside, it is important to understand how often academic dishonesty occurs and what the implications are.

Since Spring of 2015, there have been 235 reports of academic dishonesty explains Bryant. He also mentions that during midterms and finals, there is a higher count in reports of academic dishonesty as the pressure to pass increases.

It’s important to remember that just because something was reported doesn’t mean it turned out to be true that a student was cheating. 

The Impact of Cheating

A variety of things can happen when a student cheats— it really depends on a number of factors. 

Typically, on a first offense, a student is told not to do it again and is asked to complete an educational online course through the Academic Success Center, according to Bryant. From there, when it comes to repeated offenses, consequences can go from a slap on the wrist, to disciplinary probation, to failing a class, all the way up to suspension from the university. 

Another thing that needs to be considered is what academic dishonesty does to other students, professors and the university as a whole. Thelen describes that “if a student cheats in the class, it affects the ranking of all the other students in the class. If they cheat throughout their career and go out to get a job and don’t know what they’re doing, then that affects the reputation of Central.” 

Bryant mentions that professors can take academic dishonesty very personally. Why didn’t the student just come and talk to the professor about their concerns? 

Another thing to keep in mind is that consequences are much more serious after college. An employer might not just give you a slap on the wrist and tell you not to do it again.

It is important to not make a habit out of academic dishonesty. Even cheating in high school should be taken seriously; cheating on entrance exams and tests like the ACT and the SAT can cause students to be ill-prepared for higher-levels of education. This can affect the lives of other students who didn’t cheat on these entrance exams by pushing them out of the running, mentions Thelen. 

Whether a student is caught cheating or not, this can still have a big impact on themselves, others and the university later on. Before a student considers cheating, they should think about the consequences that include themselves, but also the lasting effects on their future.

Preventing Cheating

One main resource for helping students succeed without choosing the path of academic dishonesty is the Academic Success Center, formerly known as the Learning Commons, located on the first floor of the library. 

The Academic Success Center is where students can find tutoring for so many different subjects. Within this department there are four main forms of tutoring: math, writing, PALs (Peer-Assisted Learning) and academic coaching according to the CWU Academic Success website. 

The Math and Writing Centers are pretty straight forward; come in with any math or writing assignment that you need help on, and you’ll be paired up with a tutor (CWU Academic Success).

 PALs can be described as a study group where a student who has taken the class before works with a group of students to find common themes that many are struggling with and to answer questions students may have, as noted by CWU Academic Success. 

Academic coaching features a variety of helpful resources to students. Your academic coach can work with you in developing study skills and helping you to keep that balance of school-work-sports- or whatever else you have going on (CWU Academic Success).

Another really important thing to keep in mind is taking advantage of your professors’ office hours. If you don’t know when their office hours are or aren’t sure where their office is, try checking your syllabus— or just ask them.

If you need an extension, ask for one. If you don’t understand the assignment, seek clarification. Taking some time to ask your professor questions can be better than being called in to talk to a staff member about why you cheated. 

Believe in Yourself

Overall, there is a lot more to cheating than students may realize. Cheating has a huge impact on not only the student themselves, but people around them as well. 

Students cheat for so many different reasons, but all can be prevented by something as small as asking for help when you need it. So ask for help, visit your professors’ office hours, go to the Academic Success Center and keep working hard. You can make it through college without cheating.

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