Teen Dishonesty on the Rise Again: What can be done?

A recent national survey has revealed some alarming findings about the lack of honesty by high school students. According to the study (The Ethics of American Youth, 2002 Report Card) high schoolers are cheating, lying and stealing more than they did a decade ago. The number of students who admit they have cheated on an exam at least once in the past year jumped from 61% in 1992 to 74% in 2002; the number who stole something from a store within the past year rose from 31% to 38%, while the percentage who say they have lied to their parents or teachers increased considerably, from 83% to 93%.

The study also compared student ethics over the past two years. As might be expected, cheating rose from 71% in 2000 to 74% in 2002, theft increased from 35% to 38%, and those who said they would be willing to lie to get a good job jumped from 28% to 39%.

The report, was conducted by the Josephson Institute of Ethics, based in Marina del Rey, California, and recently released as part of National Character Counts! Week.

Some of the important and in many cases surprising findings from this study include:

1. Students participating in varsity sports were more likely to cheat than non-participants (78% vs. 73%).

2. Students attending religious schools were more likely to cheat than students at other schools (78% vs. 72%).

3. Males were more likely to steal from a store than females (41% vs. 35%)

4. Participation in varsity sports had no impact on store theft by teens.

5. More than one-third of students in leadership positions stole from a store but they stole at a lower rate than non-leaders.

6. Females were slightly more likely to lie to a parent than males (94% vs. 92%)

7. Students attending religious schools were more likely to lie to a parent (95% vs. 92%).

8. Gender, participation in varsity sports, student leadership, and personal religious convictions had no material impact on lying to teachers.

9. Students attending religious schools were more likely to lie to a teacher (86% vs. 81%)

10. Males were more willing to lie than females (42% vs. 34%) to get a job.

11. Participation in varsity sports (37%) or student leadership (36%) and attendance at private religious schools (38) had no material impact on one's willingness to lie to get a job.

About three-quarters (74%) of all students said that school tries hard to help students develop good character and 84% said that their parents want them to do the ethically right thing, no matter at what cost.

The press release and data summary generated by the survey results is available at Josephson's website.

What Schools are Doing to Dissuade Dishonesty

Many schools are cracking down on students who cheat by developing policy that sends a strong message to would be cheaters. Harsh punishments such as longer suspensions, loss of credit, having to repeat a course and expulsions for repeat violations is being implemented by many school districts who didn't have policy on the subject before. Districts with policy are making sure there is strict enforcement.

Parents of high school and middle school students at Poway Unified School District in the San Diego area got a letter at the beginning of the school year outlining policy, including consequences of cheating. Students were also shown a video on the policy during the first two weeks of school. You can read more about Poway's approach to cheating as well as other schools in the San Diego area at their website.

Teachers are working on ways to prevent cheating by doing a better job of modeling ethical behavior themselves and through closer supervision and scrutiny of student work. Donald McCabe, a Rutgers professor who has conducted several studies on the topic of dishonesty among youth, believes we would be better off promoting integrity among our students rather than trying to police their dishonesty. He suggest this approach because teens feel that their dishonesty is in part the result of a lack of good moral examples by adults and they don't feel they should be held to a higher standard.

School authorities at Herndon High School in Fairfax County, Virginia wrote a letter to students, parents and staff in September stating that they understand there is a problem of cheating. In the letter, the Herndon Honor Code is spelled out which states that a student is to behave honorably and that students will not lie, cheat, steal or plagiarize, or enable others. Responsibilities and consequences are clearly spelled out in the Honor Code and are reinforced at their website. Enter the words "Honor Code" on their search bar to read more about the steps they are taking to tackle their cheating problems.