Predicting Academic Cheating Tendencies Among Students Based on Self-Handicapping, Spiritual Intelligence, and Responsibility
Keywords:
Cheating tendency, Female Students, responsibility, self-handicapping, spiritual intelligenceAbstract
Objective: This study aimed to predict academic cheating tendencies among students based on the variables of self-handicapping, spiritual intelligence, and responsibility.
Methodology: The present research employed a descriptive-correlational design. The statistical population included all undergraduate students at Payame Noor University of Ardabil during the 2021–2022 academic year (N = 365), selected through stratified random sampling. Data were collected using standardized questionnaires: King’s Spiritual Intelligence Questionnaire (2008), Kordloo’s Academic Responsibility Questionnaire (2014), the Self-Handicapping Scale by Jones and Rodwalt (1982), and Rasouli Azar’s Cheating Tendency Scale (2014). Data analysis was conducted using Pearson correlation coefficients and multiple regression analysis.
Findings: The results indicated that self-handicapping had a significant positive relationship with cheating tendencies (P = .001), and a significant negative relationship with both spiritual intelligence and responsibility (P = .001). Regression analysis showed that the three predictor variables accounted for 17% of the variance in cheating tendencies (P = .001).
Conclusion: The findings suggest that self-handicapping acts as a risk factor, while spiritual intelligence and responsibility serve as protective factors against the tendency to engage in academic cheating. These results underscore the importance of considering individual psychological variables when designing educational interventions aimed at reducing academic dishonesty in university settings.
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