Imitations in Higher Education as a Social Problem
https://doi.org/10.31992/0869-3617-2021-30-5-88-106
Abstract
The review article summarizes the results of foreign and Russian studies of imitations in higher education and the understanding of their causes and consequences. The first section is devoted to the results of the analysis of university management imitations caused by the bureaucratization of the higher education management system and critical gaps between its strategic objectives and resource deficits. The second section examines the research strategies of the scientific and pedagogical community, which have a forced imitation character. The third section deals with the generalization of the experience of studying students’ imitation practices in a wide range – from academic fraud to the consumption of educational symbols. The end-to-end lines of analysis of the research results of the problem are imitations in the educational and scientific activities of universities, as well as in the “zones” of interaction of educational communities, in which they are mutually conditioned.
Keywords
sociology of higher education,
imitations in higher education,
imitation strategies of behavior and activity,
academic simulacra,
academic fraud,
bureaucratization,
educational communities,
interaction of educational communities,
university management
Supporting agencies: The reported study was funded by RFBR, project number 20-111-50166. The authors express their sincere gratitude to M.B. Sapunov, the Chief Editor, for his valuable comments on the previous version of the manuscript.
About the Authors
P. A. Ambarova
Ural Federal University named after the First President of Russia B.N. Yeltsin
Russian Federation
Russian Federation
Dr. Sci. (Sociology), Prof
19, Mira str., yekaterinburg, 620002, Russian Federation
G. E. Zborovsky
Ural Federal University named after the First President of Russia B.N. Yeltsin
Russian Federation
Russian Federation
Dr. Sci. (Philosophy), Prof
19, Mira str., yekaterinburg, 620002, Russian Federation
References
1. Kolesnikova, I.A. (2017). Academic Ghostwriting – the Market of Scientific and Educational Activity Imitation. Neprerivnoe obrazovaniye: ХХI vek = Lifelong Education: ХХI century. Vol. 2, no. 18, pp. 1-22, doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.15393/j5.art.2017.3509 (In Russ., abstract in Eng.).
2. Levin, V.I. (2018). Plagiarism, Its Essence and Measures to Prevent and Handle It. Vysshee obrazovanie v Rossii = Higher Education in Russia. Vol. 27, no. 1, pp. 143-150 (In Russ., abstract in Eng.).
3. Babintsev, V.P., Serkina, ya.I. (2019). Simulation in Higher Education of Russia. Innovatika i ekspertiza = Innovation and expertise. Vol. 2, no. 27, pp. 21–27, doi: 10.35264/1996-2274-2019-2-21-27 (In Russ., abstract in Eng.).
4. Shalyugina, T.A. (2011). Imitation in Society as a Subject of Social and Philosophical Analysis. Teoriya i praktika obshchestvennogo razvitiya = Theory and Practice of Social Development. Vol. 8, pp. 33-35. (In Russ., abstract in Eng.).
5. Babintsev, V.P., Sapryka, V.A. et al. (2016). Reform of Higher Education in Russia: Habitus Conflict. European Journal of Contemporary Education. Vol. 17, no. 3, pp. 284-294, doi: 10.13187/ejced.2016.17.284
6. Krasinskaya, L.F. (2016). Modernization, Optimization, Bureaucratization... What Awaits Higher School Tomorrow? Vysshee obrazovanie v Rossii = Higher Education in Russia. No. 3 (199), pp. 73-82 (In Russ., abstract in Eng.).
7. Trubnikova, E.I. (2018). «Red Tape» in the Sphere of Science and Education. Vysshee obrazovanie v Rossii = Higher Education in Russia. Vol. 27, no. 1, pp. 108-121 (In Russ., abstract in Eng.).
8. Jemielniak, D., Greenwood, D.J. (2015). Wake Up or Perish: Neo-Liberalism, the Social Sciences, and Salvaging the Public University. Cultural Studies – Critical Methodologies. Vol. 15, no. 1, pp. 72-82, doi: 10.1177/1532708613516430
9. Volchik, V.V., Filonenko, yu.V., Averkieva, E.S., Shiriaev, I.M. (2016). Bureaucratization and Adaptive Behvior in the Higher Education. Journal of Economic Regulation. Vol. 7, no. 4, pp. 57-71, doi: 10.17835/2078-5429.2016.7.3.057-071 (In Russ., abstract in Eng.).
10. Contreras, A.P. (2013). Everyday University Politics in the Philippines: A Tale of Two Universities. Philippine Political Science Journal. Vol. 34, no. 2, pp. 170-187, doi: 10.1080/01154451.2013.851490
11. Hall, H. (2018). The Marketisation of Higher Education: Symptoms, Controversies, Tends. Ekonomia i Prawo. Economics and Law. Vol. 17, no. 1, pp. 33-42, doi: 10.12775/EiP.2018.003
12. Serkina, ya., Loginova, A. (2019). Administrative Management of Universities: Background and Consequences. Amazonia Investiga. Vol. 8, no. 22, pp. 673-683. Available at: https://amazoniainvestiga.info/index.php/amazonia/article/view/818 (accessed 15.04.2021).
13. Donatiello, D., Gherardini, A. (2019). All that Glitters is Not Gold: The Surrogate Use of University Spin-Offs. Insights from Italy. Higher Education Policy. Vol. 32, no. 2, pp. 203-226, doi: 10.1057/s41307-017-0079-z
14. Stensaker, B., Lee, J.J., Rhoades, G., Ghosh, S. et al. (2019). Stratified University Strategies: The Shaping of Institutional Legitimacy in a Global Perspective. Journal of Higher Education. Vol. 90, no. 4, pp. 539-562, doi: 10.1080/00221546.2018.1513306
15. Trubnikova, E.I. (2020). Project 5-100: A View through the Prism of the Theory of Institutional Corruption. Mir Rossii = Universe of Russia. Vol. 29, no. 2, pp. 72-91, doi: 10.17323/1811-038X-2020-29-2-72-91 (In Russ., abstract in Eng.).
16. Lumby, J. (2019). Leadership and Power in Higher Education. Studies in Higher Education. Vol. 44, no. 9, pp. 1619-1629, doi: 10.1080/03075079.2018.1458221
17. O’Connor, P., Martin, P.y., Carvalho, N. et al. (2019). Leadership Practices by Senior Position Holders in Higher Educational Research Institutes: Stealth Power in Action? Leadership. Vol. 15, no. 6, pp. 722-743, doi: 10.1177/1742715019853200
18. Toth, J. (2014). Simulacrative Signification and Simulacrative Scenes – Analysis of a Deviant Publication Practice. Informacios Tarsadalom. Vol. 14, no. 2, pp. 24-44.
19. Onder, C., Erdil, S.E. (2017). Opportunities and Opportunism: Publication Outlet Selection under Pressure to Increase Research Productivity. Research Evaluation. Vol. 26, no. 2, pp. 66-77, doi: 10.1093/reseval/rvx006
20. Shoaib, S., Mujtaba, B.G. (2018). Perverse Incentives and Peccable Behavior in Professionals – A Qualitative Study of the Faculty. Public Organization Review. Vol. 18, pp. 441-459, doi: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11115-017-0386-2
21. Lopez-Cozar, E.D., Robinson-Garcia, N., Torres-Salinas, D. (2014). The Google Scholar Experiment: How to Index False Papers and Manipulate Bibliometric Indicators. Journal of the Association for Information Science and Technology. Vol. 65, no. 3, pp. 446-454, doi: 10.1002/asi.23056
22. Orduna-Malea, E., Martin-Martin, A., Lopez-Cozar, E.D. (2016). Metrics in Academic Profiles: A New Addictive Game for Researchers? Revista Española de Salud Pública. Vol. 90, Article number e1-5.
23. Stanciu, R., David, A.-E. (2020). Marginal Thinking Knowledge and Communication in the Postmodern Era. Postmodern Openings. Vol. 11, no. 2, pp. 256-266, doi: 10.18662/po/11.2/173
24. Denisova-Schmidt, E., Leontyeva, E. (2020). The Unified State Exam in Russia. In: Corruption in Higher Education: Global Challenges and Responses. Leiden : Brill/Sense, pp. 162-166, doi: 10.1163/9789004433885
25. Chapman, D.W., Lindner, S. (2016). Degrees of Integrity: The Threat of Corruption in Higher Education. Studies in Higher Education. Vol. 41, no. 2, pp. 247-268, doi: 10.1080/03075079.2014.927854
26. Balatsky, E.V. (2008). Formation of the «Dissertation Trap». Ekonomika Obrazovaniya = Economics of Education. No. 4, pp. 149-160 (In Russ., abstract in Eng.).
27. Kalimulin, T.R. (2005). The Russian Market of Dissertation Services. Ekonomicheskaya Sotsiologiya = Economic Sociology. No. 4-5, pp. 14-37 (In Russ., abstract in Eng.).
28. Osipian, A. (2012). Economics of Corruption in Doctoral Education: The Dissertations Market. Economics of Education Review. Vol. 31, no. 1, pp. 76-83, doi: 10.1016/j.econedurev.2011.08.011
29. White, J.L. (2016). Shadow Scholars and the Rise of the Dissertation Service Industry: Can We Maintain Academic Integrity? Journal of Research Practice. Vol. 12, no. 1, Article number VI. Available at: http://jrp.icaap.org/index.php/jrp/article/view/536/448 (accessed 15.04.2021).
30. Oravec, J.A. (2020). Academic Metrics and the Community Engagement of Tertiary Education Institutions: Emerging Issues in Gaming, Manipulation, and Trust. Tertiary Education and Management. Vol. 26, no. 1, pp. 5-17, doi: 10.1007/s11233-019-09026-z
31. Matheson, A. (2016). Ghostwriting: The Importance of Definition and Its Place in Contemporary Drug Marketing. British Medical Journal. Vol. 354, Article number i4578, doi: 10.1136/bmj.i4578
32. Sementelli, A.J., Garrett, T.M. (2015). MOOCs: Meaningful Learning Tools for Public Administration Education or Academic Simulacra? Education and Training. Vol. 57, no. 4, pp. 461-470, doi: 10.1108/ET-03-2014-0031
33. Kurbatova, M.V., Kagan, E.S. (2016). Opportunism of University Lecturers as a Way to Adapt the External Control Activities Strengthening. Zhurnal Institutsional’nykh Issledovaniy = Journal of Institutional Studies. Vol. 8, no. 3, pp. 116-136, doi: 10.17835/2076-6297.2016.8.3.116-136 (In Russ., abstract in Eng.).
34. Seliverstova, N.A. (2020). Simulation of Educational Practices in the System of Higher Education. Sotsiologicheskie issledovaniya = Sociological Studies. Vol. 3, pp. 71- 77, doi: 10.31857/S013216250008802-5 (In Russ., abstract in Eng.).
35. Denisova-Schmidt, E.V., Leontieva, E.O. (2015). The Category of «Uneducated» Students as a Social Phenomenon of Universities (on the Example of Far Eastern Universities). Sotsiologicheskie issledovaniya = Sociological Studies. No. 9, pp. 86-93. Available at: http://socis.isras.ru/files/File/2015/2015_9/86_93_Denisova.pdf (accessed 15.04.2021). (In Russ., abstract in Eng.).
36. Zborovsky, G.E., Ambarova, P.A. (2020). Risks of Educational Failure for Studying youth. Sotsiologicheskiy Zhurnal = Sociological Journal. Vol. 26, no. 2, pp. 60-81, doi: https://doi.org/10.19181/socjour.2020.26.2.7265 (In Russ., abstract in Eng.).
37. Brancaleone, D., O’Brien, S. (2011). Educational Commodification and the (Economic) Sign Value of Learning Outcomes. British Journal of Sociology of Education. Vol. 32, no. 2, pp. 501-519, doi: 10.1080/01425692.2011.578435
38. Radaev, V.V., Chirikov, I.S. (2006). The Attitude of Students and Teachers to Punishments for Plagiarism and Cheating. Universitetskoe upravlenie: praktika i analiz = University Management: Practice and Analysis. No. 4 (44), pp. 77-82 (In Russ., abstract in Eng.).
39. Sivak, E.V. (2006). Crime in the Audience. Determinants of Dishonest Behavior of Students (Plagiarism and Cheating). Preprint WP10/2006/06. Moscow : Higher School of Economics Publ., 44 p. (In Russ.).
40. Latova, N.V., Latov, yu.V. (2007). Deception in the Educational Process (Experience of «Cheat Sheet Studying»). Obshchestvennye nauki i sovremennost’ = Social Sciences and Modernity. No. 1, pp. 31-46 (In Russ., abstract in Eng.).
41. Terentyev, E.A., Gruzdev, I.A., Gorbunova, E.V. (2015). The Trial Goes on: The Discourse of Teachers about the Dropout of Students. Voprosy obrazovaniya = Educational Studies Moscow. No. 2, pp. 129-151, doi: 10.17323/1814-9545-2015-2-129-151 (In Russ., abstract in Eng.).
42. Chirikov, I., Shmeleva, E., Loyalka, P. (2020). The Role of Faculty in Reducing Academic Dishonesty among Engineering Students. Studies in Higher Education. Vol. 45, no. 12, pp. 2464-2480, doi: 10.1080/03075079.2019.1616169
43. Shmeleva, E., Semenova, T. (2019). Academic Dishonesty among College Students: Academic Motivation vs Contextual Factors. Voprosy obrazovaniya = Educational Studies Moscow. Vol. 3, pp. 101-129, doi: 10.17323/1814-9545-2019-3-101-129 (In Russ., abstract in Eng.).
44. Maloshonok, N.G. (2016). How the Perception of Academic Integrity of the University Environment is Interrelated with Student Involvement: The Possibilities of Conceptualization and Empirical Study. Voprosy obrazovaniya = Educational Studies Moscow. Vol. 1, pp. 35-60, doi: 10.17323/1814-9545-2016-1-35-60 (In Russ., abstract in Eng.).
45. MacLeod, P.D., Eaton, S.E. (2020). The Paradox of Faculty Attitudes toward Student Violations of Academic Integrity. Journal of Academic Ethics. Vol. 18, no. 4, pp. 347-362, doi: 10.1007/s10805-020-09363-4
46. Bretag, T., Harper, R., Burton, M. et al. (2019). Contract Cheating: A Survey of Australian University Students. Studies in Higher Education. Vol. 44, no. 11, pp. 1837-1856, doi: 10.1080/03075079.2018.1462788
47. Plyusnin, yu.M. (2007). Attend, Not Learn. C-Students and Excellent Students in Our Universities. Voprosy obrazovaniya = Educational Studies Moscow. Vol. 2, pp. 277-292 (In Russ., abstract in Eng.).
48. Zaborova, E.N., Glazkova, I.G., Markova, T.L. (2017). Distance Learning: Students’ Opinion. Sotsiologicheskie issledovaniya = Sociological Studies. Vol. 2, pp. 131-139 (In Russ., abstract in Eng.).
49. Maloshonok, N.G., Semenova, T.V., Terentyev, E.A. (2015). Educational Motivation of Students of Russian Universities: Possibilities of Theoretical Understanding. Voprosy Obrazovaniya = Educational Studies Moscow. Vol. 3, pp. 92-121, doi: 10.17323/1814-9545-2015-3-92-121 (In Russ., abstract in Eng.).
50. Semenova, T.V. (2016). Influence of Educational Motivation on Students’ Academic Performance: The Role of Educational Activity. Vysshee obrazovanie v Rossii = Higher Education in Russia. Vol. 7, pp. 25-37 (In Russ., abstract in Eng.).
Review
Views:
1175
Email this article 