Attitudes toward plagiarism : the case of undergraduate health sciences students at the University of Pretoria

Abstract

The primary aim of the study on which this article is based was to investigate undergraduate health sciences students’ perceptions, attitudes to and awareness of plagiarism at the University of Pretoria in South Africa. The sample comprised 696 students from the School of Medicine and School of Healthcare Sciences in the Faculty of Health Sciences. Data were analysed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 25. Analytical tools included frequencies, custom tables, independent t-tests and one-way analysis of variance. Exploratory factor analysis and reliability analysis were used to assess construct validity and internal consistency of the instrument tool respectively. Findings revealed that overall, the sample group of students seem to be generally aware of the University’s plagiarism policy and what it entails. However, it became evident that there is still a fairly significant percentage of students whose responses suggest a lack of understanding and awareness of plagiarism. Findings further revealed statistically significant differences in attitudes to plagiarism and awareness of it among the six programmes and across the levels of study. The paper advocates that plagiarism policies should be clearly written and communicated to ensure that students have consistent understandings of how plagiarism is defined, its purpose, due process and specific consequences.