Multidimensional Scaling of High School Students' Perceptions of Academic Dishonesty

Although cheating on tests and other forms of academic dishonesty are considered rampant, no standard definition of academic dishonesty exists. The current study was conducted to investigate the perceptions of academic dishonesty in high school students, utilizing an innovative methodology, multidimensional scaling (MDS). Two methods were used to gather data: a sorting task, which was used to indirectly assess the students' perceptions, and a rating scale task, which was used to externally validate the results of the sorting task. Two dimensions emerged: Seriousness and Papers versus Exams. Implications for future research regarding high school students' perceptions of academic dishonesty are discussed.