Academic Honesty and Dishonesty in Different Disciplines and Degrees at the University of Medical Sciences : A Descriptive CrossSectional Study

ABSTRACT

Introduction: Dishonesty is considered as a basic challenge in ethics of care, which imposes great burden on the Educational System and the Society. Dishonesty is accompanied with negative impacts on all aspect of academic atmosphere. The aim of this cross-sectional, descriptive-analytical study was to determine dishonesty among 5 majors of study, Undergraduate and Graduate Degrees in School of Nursing and Midwifery. Materials and Methods: 340 Undergraduate and Graduate students completed a questionnaire about all kinds of academic dishonesty and their causes. Data were analyzed using descriptive and analytic statistics. Result: Suggested lowest levels of dishonesty among students of Midwifery (7.5%) and Anesthesiology (5.3%). Significant relationship was observed between sex and honesty (P<0.001). Also living place and the major had significant relationship with honesty (P<0.001). No significant relationships were found between dishonesty and education level and other demographic characteristics. Conclusions: Many types of cheating are preventable through rules, correct training and educational management, which will eventually promote honesty in the educational system. This reveals the necessity of medical students’ familiarity with ethical codes and faculties’ emphasis on importance and role of ethics in Medical Sciences.