Modelling the antecedents of students’ attitudes toward examination malpractice and intentions in distance education

Examination malpractice in distance education is a growing concern as it is gaining roots in the academic work of students in recent years. The prevalence of academic malpractice is difficult to measure, as it often goes unreported or undetected, but unravelling the determinants of examination malpractice attitudes and intentions will be helpful to halt its occurrence. Following a quantitative approach based on a correlational survey design, a questionnaire was used to collect data from 460 selected distance education students through a cluster sampling technique. Data collected were analysed using both descriptive statistics and Partial Least Squares-Structural Equation Modelling (PLS-SEM) techniques. Findings from the analysis revealed that examination malpractice awareness, examination malpractice management, and examination malpractice penalty determined students’ attitudes toward examination malpractice. Finally, students’ attitudes determined their intentions to engage in examination malpractice. The Importance-Performance Map Analysis (IPMA) showed that examination malpractice management was the most important factor influencing students’ attitudes toward examination malpractice. Based on the findings, recommendations were made for policy and practice towards the formulation of polices and best management practices against examination malpractice among students in distance higher education.