Plagiarism in the Economics Profession Walter Enders and Gary A. Hoover University of Alabama Department of Economics, Finance, and Legal Studies

What is Plagiarism? The Modern Language Association’s Style Guide “Using another person’s ideas or expressions in your writing without acknowledging the source constitutes plagiarism.” Black’s Law Dictionary “the act of appropriating the literary composition of another, or parts or passages of his writings, or the ideas or language of the same, and passing them off as the product of one's own mind.” The Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary ( “to steal and pass off (the ideas or words of another) as one's own.”

Which of the following constitute plagiarism? Not at allNot likelyLikelyDefinitelyTotal Unattributed sentences (several) 2 (1.8%) 21 (19.8%) 47 (44.3%) 36 (34%) 106 Unattributed proof (derivation) from working paper 0 10 (9.3%) 35 (32.4%) 63 (58.3%)108 Unattributed proof (derivation) from published paper 0 5 (4.6%) 32 (29.4%) 72 (66.1%)109 Unattributed idea 4 (3.9%) 45 (43.7%) 37 (35.9%) 17 (16.5%) 103 Use of privately collected data without permission 3 (2.8%) 18 (16.8%) 35 (32.7%) 51 (47.7%)107

In a clear case of plagiarism, which of the following are appropriate responses? Not at allNot likelyLikelyDefinitelyTotal Notify the original author (if possible) 2 (1.8%) 9 (8.2%) 21 (19.1%)78 (70.9%)110 Notify department chair, dean, provost…. 11 (11%) 42 (42%) 23 (23%) 24 (24%) 100 Ban future submissions to journal 1 (1%) 23 (21.5%) 38 (35.5%)45 (42.1%)107 Public notice of plagiarism19 (19.2%) 50 (50.5%) 17 (17.2%)13 (13.1%)99

Code of Ethics Many professions have a professional “code of ethics”. Do you think the economics profession would benefit from such a code? YesNoResponses All63 (67%) 31 (33%) 94 List of 2010 (58.8%) 7 (41.2%) 17

Information about the Respondents INFORMATION ABOUT RESPONDENTS Academic Assistant Professor Associate Professor Full Professor Instructor/Lecturer # of Government Non- academics # of Private Sector Non- academics # of Other Non- academics Non- academics (19.9%)(46.3%)(34.2%)(19.2%)

Information about the Respondents JEL Listed Articles Non JEL Listed ArticlesBooksBook ChaptersOther Referee Number

Ever Plagiarized by Decade Decade of Receiving PhD Number and Percentage of Receiving PhD Ever been plagiarized by decade (5.43%)(9.4%) (15.6%)(19.8%) (22.7%)(25%) (34.5%)(31.6%) (21.8%)(14.2%) Total

Which of the Following Constitute Plagiarism? (All) Not at allNot LikelyLikelyDefinitelyTotal Unattributed sentences (2.8%)(16.6%)(41.7%)(38.9%) Unattributed proof from working paper (2.5%)(16.6%)(41.7%)(38.9%) Unattributed proof from published paper (2.2 %)(4.8%)(27.5%)(65.5%) Unattributed idea (3.0%)(32.3%)(46.1%)(18.6%) Use of privately collected data (7.7%)(16.8%)(31.4%)44.0(%)

In a Clear Case Of Plagiarism, Which Of the Following Are Appropriate Responses Not at AllNot LikelyLikelyDefinitelyTotal Notify the original author (if possible) %4.07%24.94%69.24% Notify plagiarist's department chair, dean, provost, %21.85%43.28%30.84% Ban future submissions to journal from plagiarist %23.04%39.87%32.21% Public notice of plagiarism %40.99%31.97%17.77%

Which of the Following Constitute Plagiarism? (Outside US) Not at allNot LikelyLikelyDefinitelyTotal Unattributed sentences (4.8%)(17.7%)(45.1%)(32.4%) Unattributed proof from working paper (3.2%)(7.0%)(32.0%)(57.8%) Unattributed proof from published paper (2.8%)(5.3%)(24.8%)(67.4%) Unattributed idea (3.7%)(24.9%)(47.7%)(24.0%) Use of privately collected data (6.7%)(15.6%)(33.3%)(44.5%)

Code of Ethics “Clear statement regarding what does and what does not constitute plagiarism; consistent standards across journals/institutions for dealing with plagiarism so that individuals know a) what the consequences are, and b) how to deal with the situation.” yesnototal Code of ethics (67.1%)(32.9%)