Does creative thinking contribute to the academic integrity of education students?

Abstract

The current research focuses on the nature of the relationship comprising personality traits, creative thinking, and academic integrity. Scholars have confirmed that personality traits and creative thinking correlate positively with academic integrity. However, a discussion of academic integrity, personality traits, and creative thinking is missing in the scholarly literature. This study used a questionnaire survey based on the Big Five Factor to identify personality characteristics, the Academic Integrity Inventory, and the Torrance Tests of Creative Thinking. The sample included 976 students studying in four academic colleges in Israel, of which two are teacher training colleges and two colleges awarding a degree in education. The findings show that most of the students (71%) reported they had cheated at some point during their academic studies, and only one-fifth (21%) thought that they would condemn their peers’ lack of integrity. Creative thinking students and emotionally stable persons tend to be more ethical. Hence, we conclude that it is recommended to deliver creative thinking courses in the teacher’s educational training programs to improve creative thinking levels, reduce academic dishonesty, and create more effective curricula.

Academic integrity in pre-service teacher education: a review of the literature

“…Furthermore, 68% of these admitted to committing serious acts of dishonesty, including cheating on exams or in the submission of written papers and essays. Eshet and Margaliot (2022) provide additional evidence, finding that 71% of the students surveyed admitted to cheating during their preservice teacher training. Despite these high rates, a significant disconnect in perception exists, with many not considering academic dishonesty a serious issue, deeming such incidents as "rare" or "occasional" (Daniel et al, 1991).…”

“…A significant aspect in the perception of academic dishonesty is the influence of observing dishonest behaviour among peers. Studies show that future teachers are more likely to admit to engaging in similar behaviours if they perceive their peers have done so (Eshet & Margaliot, 2022;Unal, 2011). Moreover, more negative attitudes or perceptions toward academic dishonesty are associated with a lower incidence of these behaviours, indicating that attitudes toward academic integrity can predict their perpetuation (DiPaulo, 2022;Fontaine et al, 2020).…”

Academic integrity in the HyFlex learning environment

“…Furthermore, it has become clear that HyFlex and hybrid pedagogy will continue beyond the COVID-19 era [ 42 , 43 ]. It has been shown that unethical academic behaviour could lead to undeveloped credentials or skills, thus resulting in professional incompetence, which would severely affect the validity of learning and the broader application of learning in future professional life [ 26 , 44 , 45 ]. Hence, studying the prevalence of academic dishonesty in the HyFlex learning environment will become ever more important, as will developing strategies to prevent it.…”

The impact of innovative behaviors on academic misconduct among graduate students: a mediated moderation model

“…However, when graduate students engage in fewer innovative behaviors and cannot fulfill their academic or research goals, some may resort to academic misconduct driven by internal and external motivations ( Krou et al, 2021 ; Yu and Zhang, 2021 ). Previous research has found that creative thinking has a positive impact on academic integrity, and education in creative thinking can reduce the occurrence of academic misconduct ( Eshet and Margaliot, 2022 ). There are also studies that theoretically suggest that insufficient innovative capability among graduate students, resulting in an inability to produce valuable research outcomes, directly leads to academic misconduct ( Su and Wang, 2022 ).…”