Virtues of Honesty in a Higher Education Institution

Adrian M. Tamayo

This study was conducted to determine the degree of honesty practiced by students at home and when they are at school, how the students perceived professors’ practice of honesty, and how do the students consider the importance of honesty in the future. The paper also simulated the likelihood of practicing honesty given their socio-demographic characteristics. A total of 228 students participated in the study. A 5-point Likert type questionnaire was used to measure practice of honesty. Non-parametric test was employed to establish relationship of honesty with the conditions of the respondents; a relationship was revealed between the academic achievers and dishonesty; students are more honest in home than in school; professors are perceived to be less honest except among the first year students. It is good to note that the respondents believed in the importance of honesty as investment in the future. Ordinal regression estimation revealed that females are likely to observe high degree of honesty than males. Also, it was found that honesty is eroding as student progress through the education ladder, though honesty is evident among the first year and second year students.

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