On Campus: Author Discusses the "Cheating Culture" With College Students

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Abstract

In a recent discussion with college students, [1] David Callahan probed the "dark side of American life", the cheating culture which has taken root in business, sports, academe and other areas of American society. He explains the three great forces driving the cheating culture, and he questions whether people really want to live in a society characterized by a panoply of cheating behaviors. His message to students is that change is on the way. He is optimistic about the potential for a more fair, more honest society based on equal opportunity and rewards for those who work hard, dream big, and push forward. His concrete suggestions for leveling the playing field and resisting the cheating culture are a challenge to college students to "Be the change you want to see in the world".

Introduction

You know, I've written a number of books, but I'll confess: Most of the other ones sank without a trace and nobody paid any attention as seems to happen to so many authors. But this book about The Cheating Culture has been different. It's really struck a nerve! I suppose that's because there's quite a bit of cheating these days.

One of the best results of this book has been getting invited to speak to students. While the Cheating Culture spotlights many disturbing facts about greed and deceit and cynicism, and about good people doing things they really shouldn't be doing, I'm optimistic that this culture is not here to stay and that we will again see a society that is more honest and more fair than now. But I very much doubt that such change will come from the older generations that hold power now. That's not the way things work. It is usually the next generation coming up that has the idealism and energy to overturn the status quo. And often these efforts start at universities, with students working for change and also trying to build, on our campuses, a microcosm of the kind of society they would like to see.

A Crisis of Ethics and Fairness

Now, I can say with some certainty that issues such as cheating and academic integrity have rarely been a great student cause. In fact, they are rarely even a great faculty cause . . . But they should be. They should be. As I see it, widespread student cheating is connected to a much bigger crisis around ethics and fairness in America. For anyone interested in making this country a better place, these issues of integrity are actually a pretty good place to start. If we can make America's campuses operate more fairly and more honestly, we've taken a big step in the right direction.

Before saying more about this, though, let me say a bit about The Cheating Culture. I started writing this book a few years ago when the corporate scandals involving Enron and WorldCom exploded onto the headlines. And, in fact, Ken Lay is on trial right now for his evident complicity in the Enron meltdown. And since these scandals, I've been researching, writing, and speaking about the ethics of Americans. It's been interesting, if disturbing. I've learned a lot of things that I would have preferred not to know.

I learned that the greed and dishonesty in corporate America of recent years has been worse than anything we've seen since the Robber Barons of 100 years ago, and that the scandals involved not just a few bad apples in a few rogue companies, but dozens of respected companies, investment banks, and law firms.

I also learned out that there was much more cheating by ordinary Americans than you might expect. I found out that tax evasion has more than doubled in the past decade — soaring to over $345 billion a year! I learned that employee theft was the single biggest form of crime in the United States — $600 billion a year in employee theft. That's 6% of our GDP! I learned that ethics of many doctors - the professionals we trust more than any others - are not what they should be, and that pharmaceutical companies often use money and gifts to tempt doctors to prescribe this or that drug, neglecting the interests of their patients.

I learned that many people lie about their credentials and, indeed, that half of all résumés contain lies. I learned that the problem of steroids in major league baseball and other sports is worse now than ever before. And I learned that cutting corners was starting earlier. According to surveys, between two-thirds and three quarters of high school and university students admit to some cheating within the past year.

It is commonly assumed that technology is what's behind more cheating going on these days. The Internet makes it infinitely easier to plagiarize, and plagiarism is now the biggest form of cheating. It's so easy, and it's so tempting in a crunch to jump on the Internet to grab somebody else's work. Some students may even be confused about what plagiarism is, exactly, and it seems confusion results from teachers not clearly explaining how to properly cite sources after scholarly convention. Schools haven't done a good enough job in this area. Meanwhile, other technology can also help with cheating. Cell phones can be used for text messaging. Calculators can be programmed with formulas.

All this is true. In fact, though, research shows that new technology is not what is driving more cheating in our schools. Yes, Internet plagiarism is way up. But many forms of cheating that are not facilitated by new technology are also widespread. Like cheating on tests.

Separate Moral Compasses

As I probed into the dark side of American life, one thing that surprised me most along the way is that so many of those who are cutting corners to get ahead - academically, financially, or professionally - are otherwise honest, ordinary people - people who see themselves as upstanding members of society - people who could never even imagine shoplifting. This is not a "them" problem, but an "us" problem in the US.

Another thing that surprised me is that all this cheating is occurring at the same time that Americans are exercising more personal responsibility in many areas. After all, consider all the good news from recent times:

Crime declined sharply through the 1990s, reaching some of the lowest levels ever recorded in 2004.

Drunk driving deaths dropped by 40 percent during the 1980s and 1990s.

Teenage pregnancy rates fell by 30 percent during the 1990s, and now are at the lowest levels since 1946.

The same surveys that find that young people are more willing to cheat in school or lie to get a job, also show that they are more cautious and prudent in other areas of their life (sex, drugs, drunk driving).

Many people, young and old alike, seem to go through life with two separate moral compasses: one shapes their decisions when it comes to sex, drunk driving or violence. A second, and utterly different compass governs people's lives when it comes to academic advancement, money, and career success. Getting ahead these days means doing well in school, keeping up that GPA to land a good job.

Honesty vs. Compromise

Now, if you look at polls, you'll find that most people value honesty. Nearly all of us want to live a life of integrity. One recent survey of high school students found that over 90 percent said that they considered themselves honest and said being honest was important. In fact, high school students said on average that it was more important to them to be honest than it was to be attractive or popular. Integrity matters to us.

But when the heat is on, or the price is right, many of us will make compromises. And the reason for such compromises, I believe, is that it's gotten harder not to compromise these days. Things have changed in America over the past few decades. We've become more of a cut-throat society where it's every man for himself. At the same time, we've seen less worship of God and more worship of the Almighty Dollar, less focus on others and more focus on self. I don't think these changes are permanent. I know we can do better, and I'll explain how.

But let me begin first by discussing in more depth why we are doing so poorly - and what all this cheating tells us about changes in American life.

Three Great Forces Driving the Cheating Culture

Building a More Fair and More Honest Society

The good news is that the cheating culture does not have to be a permanent feature of our lives. I'm optimistic that we can build a more fair and more honest society. We can change the dynamic we're in. There are several ways to do this. One is to change the way our schools and our professions operate. A second is to try to change how society writ large operates. And the third is to change how we operate and make personal choices. All three are important, and they are connected to each other.

So, I propose the following concrete recommendations for reducing cheating in different professions. To keep lawyers and doctors honest, we need to enforce the code of ethics in law and medicine. To keep athletes from using steroids, we need tougher drug testing in sports. To keep business leaders honest, we need tougher government watchdogs and more ethics rules, particularly a focus on corporate ethics.

And to keep students honest, we need a much bigger push on academic integrity, as well as strong rules around college sports to create an ethos around learning as an end in itself. I've been heartened to hear that this school and others are making a major push for academic integrity today. Let me say a bit about this. I know a lot of students think of cheating as no big deal. I know a lot of faculty don't bother to go after cheaters because it's not worth the hassle. I know a lot of administrators choose not to make this issue a priority. At some schools, the collective attitude is "whatever."

Equal Opportunity and Meritocracy

I see things differently. The big idea of America is that of equal opportunity. Meritocracy. The notion that we all should have a fair shot at success, no matter where we came from or what color we are, or who are parents are. And that the people who get rewarded in America are the people who deserve those rewards - because they worked hard, and dreamed big, and pushed forward. America hasn't always lived up this ideal. We probably never will. But we all believe in it.

And cheating... well, cheating is the opposite of this idea. When some students cheat, and when schools let them cheat, fairness goes out the window. Success becomes less about hard work and self-discipline and more about how well you can lie and deceive, and whether you can pull the right strings should you get caught. And the outcomes of cheating are real. This not a victimless crime. Cheaters get rewards they don't deserve. Scholarships, admissions to college or grad school, internships, jobs. I have stories in my book of kids caught cheating on the SAT and yet still getting into Harvard, taking somebody else's place who deserved it more, all because their parents gave a lot of money to the school. That's not right. So cheating is not "whatever." In fact, it strikes at the very foundation of a fair and just society.

Fighting for Academic Integrity

This is why academic integrity is a good cause to fight for on campus. And there is a lot that can be done by any student or any faculty member. There is a whole movement out there of people who are working to reduce cheating. And in many cases, students are spearheading these efforts. They are taking ownership of the problem, and taking leadership. And guess what? When students take the lead on this problem, other students will follow. A lot of people may cheat these days, but even more people believe in a level playing field for everyone.

As for changing how society operates, writ large, this too is crucial if we want to take down the cheating culture. Ultimately, we can't police everybody all the time. We can't have a watchdog looking over everyone's shoulder. There will never be enough watchdogs. People must want to follow the rules - because they think the rules are fair and just. They need to subscribe to the social contract that governs society. And right now, a lot of people don't think that. A big reason there is so much dishonesty, is that our social contract is broken. People don't think the rules are fair, so they make up their own rules. So we need to create a new social contract. In broad terms, this means ensuring that:

First, anyone who works hard and plays by the rules should be able to feel secure. What does this mean in practice? It means that we need to invest more in higher education so four years of college doesn't leave students with four decades of debt. We need a system of universal health insurance so that millions of people aren't one illness away from personal bankruptcy. We need to make sure that people who work full time make enough money to provide for their family and put a roof over their head. Simple stuff, really.

Second, anyone who breaks the rules, rich or poor, should be held to the same standard of justice. There are too many cheaters at the top - the people who are our role models often get away with a slap on the wrist. And that makes everyone else cynical. We need to change this by waking up the watchdogs that police corporate America and giving them some real teeth. Agencies like the SEC and IRS and Justice Department still need more resources to do their job of policing white collar crime.

Third, everyone must have a say in how the rules are made. Right now, a lot of ordinary people don't feel they have any power over the rules that govern their lives. And such cynicism, an incredible cynicism about our democracy, is particularly intense among young people. So we need major reforms to open up the democratic system. Simply put, to get big money out of the system - all those special interests — and to get ordinary voters in.

These three principles are pretty much common sense. And if we really want to see a more honest society, they need to have more meaning. If the rules were fairer, and seen as fair, people would cheat less. I deeply believe that. But, of course, changing direction and creating a new social contract isn't going to happen overnight. And in the meantime, even as we work for positive change,all of us will still face choices about how we live our lives. I'm sorry, but just because the system is screwed up, doesn't mean that we have a blank ethical check to do as we please.

Taking Responsibility and Avoiding Shortcuts

We need to police ourselves and take responsibility. At every step in life there are always short cuts—when you write a term paper or do your resume or file your taxes. And there will often be people around us who take those short cuts. And here is something I can guarantee you: some of those people will get rewards that they don't deserve, which is infuriating. That is unfortunate, but true.

Why should we resist these shortcuts? There are a few good reasons. First, I think that being true to ourselves and our values is a key to happiness. You know, everyone wonders about the formula for happiness, and recent research by researchers in the field of "happiness studies" sheds some light on this question. These "happiness" researchers find that money doesn't make people happy beyond a point, which is around $50,000 or $60,000 a year. One psychologist interviewed a handful of the richest people in America, many of whom said that they weren't happy. Rather, people are most happy when we use what one psychologist has called our "signature strengths." That is, when we do what we are best at, and what we are meant to do.

If this is true, if money doesn't make us that happy, then it doesn't make sense to be so obsessed with "getting ahead" and being rich and coming out on top that you'll compromise your values and your integrity to achieve goals. Instead, happiness will come by developing the best and strongest parts of yourself.

A second reason to forget the short cuts is that we all have to live with ourselves. Abraham Lincoln once said that "When I do good, I feel good; when I do bad, I feel bad. That's my religion." Sounds simple enough, but of course we may not feel bad at the moment we do bad. Regret has a way of sneaking up on us, and it may only be later that we feel bad - because maybe we took a short cut we didn't really need to take, and got something that we didn't deserve. It's something to watch out for. A life of integrity equals a life with fewer regrets.

A third powerful reason for why integrity should be important in our lives is that each of us plays a role in shaping the society we live in, and that our children will live in. It may not feel that way at the time, of course. We may feel that we're just a pinball getting knocked around by the powers that be.

Conclusion: "Be the Change . . . "

But actually, I do think we all have a say in how our society ought to be, even if just in our own little corner. And I believe we all have a responsibility to make personal choices that line up with our views of how things ought to be. Mahatma Gandhi said "Be the Change you want to see in the world." A very powerful piece of advice.

And I think everybody would agree that it's better to live in a fair, less corrupt society than a corrupt one, for all the reasons I've mentioned. And so we all have a responsibility to make choices that line up with this view, even when those choices are difficult ones to make. We should live an honest life. Even if means occasionally losing out to dishonest competitors. Even if means taking hits in a dishonest system. Even if means that we don't get everything we want. Remember, "Be the change you want to see in the world."

The choices about how to honor your values as you go through life aren't easy, and you don't just figure this out when you're twenty one. It's an ongoing thing. The Roman philosopher Seneca once said that "Nature does not bestow virtue; to be good is an art." How true this is.

REFERENCES

Callahan, D. (2004). The Cheating Culture: Why More Americans Are Doing Wrong to Get Ahead. Orlando, Florida: Harcourt.

NOTES

1. On February 22, 2006, the author of The Cheating Culture: Why More Americans Are Doing Wrong To Get Ahead visited Saginaw Valley State University to meet with students and discuss the "cheating culture" (by invitation of the SVSU Student Association). This paper is an edited version of David Callahan's 4 P.M. lecture in the Rhea Miller Recital Hall. This lecture was based on The Cheating Culture, and full citations of the information used by Callahan are available in his book.

David Callahan is a popular speaker and author. He is also a co-founder of Demos, a think tank and public policy center dedicated to strengthening democracy and expanding economic opportunity within the United States. Visit his website at <http://www.cheatingculture.com>