From awareness to action: the mediating role of plagiarism avoidance techniques in upholding academic integrity and ensuring legal and institutional consequences

Purpose This research explores the intricate relationship between awareness of plagiarism, using plagiarism prevention techniques and promoting the academic integrity of university students. The study also investigates the mediating role of techniques to avoid plagiarism in ensuring academic integrity and Institutional consequences. Design/methodology/approach This study's research design was primarily quantitative, utilizing an online survey to gather numerical data from a sample of students. Data was collected from students enrolled at Noakhali Science and Technology University, a public university in Bangladesh, through an online survey. The questionnaire was distributed via email invitations and chat groups. The researchers employed the SmartPLS-4 software to implement structural equation modelling techniques. Findings The results indicated that a significant proportion of participants, namely N = 152 out of N = 199 respondents, exhibited an understanding and awareness about “plagiarism”. Measurement model evaluation demonstrated that each construct had Cronbach's alpha values over 0.700, and AVE exceeded 0.500, indicating a strong level of internal consistency and strong convergent validity. The analysis of the structural model's findings revealed that most R2 values reach or surpass the 0.1 threshold, showing strong predictive capacity for TAP, LIC and EAI. Additionally, the Q2 values of EAI, LIC and TAP highlight the strong predictive relevance of the relevant constructs. Furthermore, the mediation analysis yielded compelling evidence to support hypotheses and highlighted the crucial function of techniques to avoid plagiarism as a mediator in these connections. Originality/value By investigating the mediating function of plagiarism avoidance strategies, this study offers an innovative perspective on the shift from knowledge to action in combating plagiarism.