Academic Dishonesty: A Mixed-method Study of Rational Choice among Students at the College of Basic Education in Kuwait

Abstract

The research herein used a sequential mixed methods design to investigate why academic dishonesty is widespread among the students at the College of Basic Education in Kuwait. Qualitative interviews were conducted to generate research hypotheses. Then, using questionnaire survey, the research hypotheses were quantitatively tested. The findings suggested that academic dishonesty is widespread among the students at the College of Basic Education because the benefits of academic dishonesty are high, whereas the certainty of detection and severity of the sanctions are relatively low.

Keywords: academic dishonesty, rational choice theory, sequential mixed methods design