Dan was a dedicated student, but had fallen behind on some work. Without thinking twice, he decided to skip class the next morning to give him time to catch up on missed assignments. Subsequently Dan missed an exam and submitted a false doctor’s note excusing his absence.
When his professor found out about the false document from a classmate, he reported Dan to the honor council.
Although Dan’s is a hypothetical situation, psychologists say lying about absences is commonplace among college students.
“People tend to lie if they will personally gain from telling a lie, and if they can convince themselves that the lie is not really a lie, but instead a ‘misrepresentation’ or a ‘white lie’ and hence is harmless,” said Don Forsyth, a professor of psychology at VCU.
According to the honor code, it is a violation for a student to make any oral or written statement related to academic matters, which the individual knows to be untrue.
Faculty members often emphasize both orally and in their syllabi that their classes will be held to the honor code and provide students with a copy of or link to the code.
Forsyth said that method should suffice.
“I don’t feel (professors) should spend their class time reviewing the codc with students,” he said. “Students are required to read the code, and they are required to pledge and conform to the code when they enroll at VCU.”
Psychologists contend that there are many factors that contribute to academic dishonesty.
“Classroom climate can contribute to whether students lie,” said Charles Klink, director of university counseling services. “If it is an antagonistic climate they will be less likely to be honest about absences.”
Oftentimes it is poor planning on the part of the student, Klink said, and so they look for a temporary solution.
Forsyth said students generally find themselves pressured by circumstances to lie about the reason for absences.
“If a professor will permit students to bargain for an excused absence, then students will feel pressured to come up with an acceptable excuse for their missing a class,” he said. “Students will be more likely to misrepresent the circumstances the greater the pressure on them to do so.”
Klink said peer influence has a tremendous impact on behavior.
“Some students feel justified (to lie). They feel that the professor doesn’t care (why they were really absent). Also, if students believe other people cheat they are more prone to do it themselves,” Klink said, pointing out that there is a conjoined responsibility of the students and the faculty to clarify the honor code.
“With academic dishonesty everyone has a role in creating a climate that doesn’t condone dishonesty,” Klink said.
Moreover, even if they lie impulsively students often have a good reason for it, Klink said because most behavior is purposeful.
“I think professors and faculty are more understanding than students give them credit for,” Klink said.
It is partly a communication element that contributes to the problem of academic dishonesty, Klink said, adding that there is a joint responsibility between students and faculty to clarify the honor code.
Forsyth designs his course attendance policies to reduce pressures on students to lie about absences.
“Only if they miss too many classes will their grade be negatively impacted, and so they are less likely to need to lie about an absence I also give students the opportunity to make up tests without any excuse at all,” he said.
In addition, students do not always understand the specific elements of the honor code. Most realize they cannot cheat on a test by copying off another’s test or taking in crib notes, Forsyth said.
“But what they do not realize as frequently is that the code also bans other types of academic dishonesty, including plagiarism, lying about the absence and even theft.”
Attendance policies vary from class to class and professor to professor.
Forsyth, who teaches both graduate and undergraduate courses in psychology, said he requires attendance in some of his classes while it’s optional in others.
Likewise, methods of taking attendance vary. Some professors pass out role sheets for students to sign or have students complete assignments or quizzes in class. But professors like Forsyth will use a combination of all three methods.
Klink said everyone has a role in creating a climate that doesn’t condone academic dishonesty.
“(Lying) doesn’t start when people come to college. It starts at a very young age and creates an environment that makes cheating more likely,” Klink said. “People learn by imitation. If you grow up in an environment where the truth is compromised then it makes it easier for you to compromise the truth.”
However, he said lying is not isolated to students, and research shows that institutions with honor codes have fewer problems with academic dishonesty.
Editor’s Note: This is the third installment of an eight-part series intended to introduce and help students navigate VCU’s Honor Code. The series will be published every Thursday.