Student Advice
TIPS on Plagiarism
The TIPS (Teaching in Psychological Science) list has produced a number of interesting discussions of plagiarism. In some cases, faculty have provided useful guidelines to their students (which they have shared with the list) and in other cases faculty have actually conducted research on plagiarism. Below are selections from the TIPS list related to plagiarism.
Examples of Plagiarism—a Taxonomy
Patrick A. Cabe
University of North Carolina at Pembroke
Direct plagiarism: Material of substantive length is copied verbatim from the source without attribution or the use of quotation marks.
Truncation: Material is copied verbatim from the source with the original shortened by the deletion of beginning or ending words or phrase.
Excision: Material is copied verbatim from the source with one or more words deleted from the middle of sentences.
Insertions: Material is copied verbatim from the source with additional words or phrases (often qualifiers such as "very") inserted into the material from the original source.
Reordering: Material is copied verbatim from the source with (a) sentences in a different order, or (b) words or (c) clauses in a given sentence in a different order.
Inversion: Material is copied verbatim from the source with the order of (a) clauses, or (b) words in the original source inverted.
Substitution: Material is copied verbatim from the source with a synonym or phrase substituted for words or phrases of the original source.
Change of tense or person or number: Material is copied verbatim from the source except that verb tenses have been changed (e.g., from present to past), or the person of pronouns has been changed e.g., from first to third person), or the sense of the sentence has been changed from singular to plural.
Change of voice: Material is copied (essentially) verbatim from the source, with sentences in the active voice changed to passive, or vice versa
Grafting: (a) Material is copied verbatim from the source with two or more simple sentences conjoined into a compound or complex sentence. (b) Material is copied verbatim from the source with part of two or more sentences from different sections of the original source joined to form a new sentence. (c) Words or phrases putatively original with the author are used to precede or follow material copied verbatim from the source.
Undocumented factual information: Factual material is copied verbatim from the source without attribution (e.g., statistics, survey results).
Inappropriate use of quotation marks: (a) Material is copied verbatim from the source and enclosed in quotation marks, but with some of the original source words or phrases altered, and no indication that such has been done. (b) Indirect quotation is not indicated by the use of single quotation marks.
Inappropriate paraphrasing: Material is not copied verbatim from the source, i.e., the wording is original, but the ideas and their order is the same as that in the original source
Mixtures: Any number of the above, in virtually any combination, may occur.
Some practices that may look like plagiarism, but may not be
Proverbs, well-known sayings, common knowledge: Material that may have appeared elsewhere, but which is of such common usage that it clearly cannot be original with the writer.
Standard phrases: Material that may have occurred in the original source, but is a standard phrase or cliché (e.g., all things being equal, on the other hand, in alphabetical order).
Specific names, places, terms that cannot be paraphrased: Material that may have occurred in the original source, but for which there are no paraphrases possible (e.g., names of cities and states, standard units of measure, standard technical terms).
Brief phrases that are intended as names or indicators of some sort: Material that may have occurred in the original source, but which is used as a specific referent to an element in the original source and therefore cannot be reasonably paraphrased (e.g., the Red Team, the Experimental group, the fifth-grade class).
Plagiarism Knowledge Survey
Miguel Roig
St. John's University
Paragraph 1 (High Readability)
Plagiarism is defined as taking others' ideas, text, etc., and using them as one's own. For the purpose of this study, let's assume that you are in the process of writing a paper. In researching material for the topic you are writing about, you locate the following relevant paragraph in a published source:
"Since subjective and objective tests of imagery ability have not resulted in predicted performance differences, the only way to determine if a person thinks visually or nonvisually is to ask that question directly. ... One important finding is that many nonvisual thinkers have rather vivid imagery, but they can state with confidence that they do not think in pictures." (Zenhausern, 1978, p. 382).
It would be legitimate to include this portion of text in your paper by enclosing it in quotations and adding the "Zenhausern" citation at the end of the paragraph just as it appears above, or in the form of a footnote, depending on the style of writing you use (e.g., MLA, APA). However, let's assume that you want to include the information from the Zenhausern paragraph in your paper but that you do not want to use a direct quote as shown above. Instead, you are considering the rewritten versions shown below. How different does the rewritten, paraphrased version have to be so as to not be classified as a case of plagiarism?
Please examine each rewritten paragraph carefully, compare it with the original version above, and circle the appropriate abbreviation to indicate whether, in your opinion, the rewritten version constitutes a case of plagiarism (P), not plagiarism, that is, the paragraph has been appropriately paraphrased (NP), or you simply cannot determine (CD) whether the rewritten version has been plagiarized or not. Please indicate the reasons for your decision in the space provided. Also, in making your decision, assume that a correct citation (e.g., a footnote; Zenhausern, 1978) appears in the rewritten version and in the paper's reference section or bibliography in accordance with the specific writing style used in your profession.
1. One important finding is that many nonvisual thinkers have rather vivid imagery, but they can state with confidence that they do not think in pictures. Since subjective and objective tests of imagery ability have not resulted in predicted performance differences, the only way to determine if a person thinks visually or nonvisually is to ask that question directly.
2. Given that objective and subjective tests of imagery have not resulted in predicted differences in performance, the only way to determine if a person thinks visually or nonvisually is to ask that question directly. An interesting finding is that some nonvisual thinkers have vivid imagery, but they can say with a lot of confidence that they do not think in pictures.
3. Subjective and objective tests of imagery ability have not resulted in differences in performance and therefore the only way to determine if a person thinks visually or nonvisually is to ask that question directly. One important finding is that many nonvisual thinkers who state with confidence that they do not think in pictures have rather vivid imagery.
4. According to one researcher, subjective and objective tests of imagery ability have not resulted in differences in performance and therefore the only way to determine if a person thinks visually or nonvisually is to ask that question directly. One important finding is that many nonvisual thinkers who state with confidence that they do not think in pictures have rather vivid imagery.
5. According to one researcher, various types of instruments designed to measure imagery have yielded inconsistent results. He suggests that the only technique that will tell us whether someone engages in visual thinking or not is to ask the person directly. However, he also notes that some individuals who admit that they do not think in pictures report that they have vivid imagery.
6. Various types of instruments designed to measure imagery have yielded inconsistent results. One researcher in this field suggests that the only technique that will tell us whether someone thinks visually or not is to ask the person directly. However, this author also notes that some individuals who admit that they do not think in pictures report that they have vivid imagery.
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Paragraph 2 (Low Readability)
Plagiarism is defined as taking others' ideas, text, etc., and using them as one's own. For the purpose of this study, let's assume that you are in the process of writing a paper. In researching material for the topic you are writing about, you locate the following relevant paragraph in a published source:
"If you have ever had your astrological chart done, you may have been impressed with its seeming accuracy. Careful reading shows many such charts to be made up of mostly flattering traits. Naturally, when your personality is described in desirable terms, it is hard to deny that the description has the 'ring of truth'." (Coon, 1995, p. 29).
It would be legitimate to include this portion of text in your paper by enclosing it in quotations and adding the Coon citation at the end of the paragraph just as it appears above, or in the form of a footnote, depending on the style of writing you use (e.g., MLA, APA). However, let's assume that you want to include the information from the Coon paragraph in your paper but that you do not want to use a direct quote as shown above. Instead, you are considering the rewritten versions shown below. How different does the rewritten, paraphrased version have to be so as to not be classified as a case of plagiarism?
Please examine each rewritten paragraph carefully, compare it with the original version above, and circle the appropriate abbreviation to indicate whether, in your opinion, the rewritten version constitutes a case of plagiarism (P), not plagiarism, that is, the paragraph has been appropriately paraphrased (NP), or you simply cannot determine (CD) whether the rewritten version has been plagiarized or not. Please indicate the reasons for your decision in the space provided. Also, in making your decision, assume that a correct citation (e.g., a footnote; Coon, 1995) appears in the rewritten version and in the paper's reference section or bibliography in accordance with the specific writing style used in your profession.
1. Naturally, when your personality is described in desirable terms, it is hard to deny that the description has the 'ring of truth'. If you have ever had your astrological chart done, you may have been impressed with its seeming accuracy. Careful reading shows many such charts to be made up of mostly flattering traits.
2. If you ever had your astrological chart done, you may have been impressed by how accurate it seemed. A careful reading indicates many such charts to be made up of mainly flattering traits. Of course, when your personality is described in desirable terms, it is hard to deny that the description has the 'ring of truth'.
3. If you have ever had your astrological chart done, you were probably impressed by how accurate it seemed. A careful reading indicates many such charts to be made up of mainly flattering traits. Of course, it is hard to deny that the description has the 'ring of truth', when your personality is described in desirable terms.
4. According to Coon, if you ever have had your astrological chart done, you were probably impressed by how accurate it seemed. A careful reading indicates many such charts to be made up of mainly flattering traits. Of course, it is hard to deny that the description has the 'ring of truth' when your personality is described in desirable terms.
5. According to Coon, individuals who have had their astrological chart profiled may have been swayed by their apparent precision. If you study these charts, however, you realize that they are primarily composed of complimentary attributes. Obviously, as Coon notes, when one is described with positive, laudable traits, it is difficult to argue against such a flattering portrait of oneself.
6. Individuals who have had their astrological chart profiled may have been swayed by their apparent precision. If you study these charts, however, you realize that they are primarily composed of complimentary attributes. Obviously, when one is described with positive, laudable traits, it is difficult to argue against such flattering portrait of oneself.
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References:
Coon, B. (1995). Introduction to Psychology: Exploration and Application (7th ed.). New York: West.
Zenhausern, R. (1978). Imagery, cerebral dominance, and style of thinking: Unified field model. Bulletin of the Psychonomic Society, 12, 381-384.
The 10 Commandments of Paper Writing
Edward Pollak
West Chester University
I. Thou shalt not cite directly a paper thou hast not read. Neither shalt thou include in thy reference section any paper that thou hast not read nor any paper which has not been cited in the body of thy paper. Such practices constitute the "padding" of thy reference section. They are an abomination.
II. When paraphrasing part of an article, thou must significantly rewrite the relevant material. Failure to paraphrase constitutes plagiarism for which you will be cut down.
III. Excessive quotations are to be avoided. If thou canst not paraphrase a thing, thou dost not understand that thing. If thou dost not understand a thing, study it until thou dost understand it and by that understanding, are able to paraphrase it. Excessive quotes are naught more than "filler material" used by slothful students who do not have enough material to write a decent paper.
IV. In the rare case that thou must use a quotation thou must know that short quotations shalt always be enclosed within quotation marks. Quotations longer than one or two sentences shall be indented. All quotations must be followed by both the reference and the relevant page number (e.g., Pollak, 1974, p.322). Thou shalt include page numbers only for quotations. For paraphrased material though shalt cite only the author(s) and date.
V. Thou shalt use APA style in all things. Thou shalt consult the APA style manual or any current issue of the American Psychologist. APA style means that thou shalt use few (if any) footnotes and that all references will be cited in the body of the paper (e.g., Pollak, 1974). Thou shalt not use numbered references. They are an abomination.
VI. Thou shalt avoid long, flowery, complex sentences in favor of a crisp, telegraphic style.
VII. Thou shalt include an abstract at the beginning of thy paper. An abstract is a summary of thy paper. It is not an introduction to thy paper.
VIII. Thou shalt use only those sources that come from scholarly journals and books. Psychology Today and other popular magazines are not scholarly journals. Neither are Internet sources and encyclopedias appropriate for college-level papers. These things are an abomination before our eyes.
IX. Thou must know that many of thy resources will not be contained within the library of West Chester University and must be sought elsewhere or must be ordered through inter-library loan. Therefore I say unto thee, verily must thou begin thy research at the earliest possible time lest the day of judgment approach and thou art found wanting before thy professor.
X. Thy professor is a jealous professor. Do not attempt to place upon his lectern a paper first written for another professor. But know too that thy professor is also gentle and gracious professor and that thou mayest consult with thy professor at any and all stages of the research and writing process that thou might not fall into error. Thy professor shalt treat thy inquiries with helpfulness and charity even unto reading an early draft of thy work. If thou dost listen to my words and do these things that I command, thou will be found worthy and thy grade point average will prosper even unto summa cum laude
