Overview of Plagiarism
The U.S. Government's Office of Research Integrity, "...considers plagiarism to include both the theft or misappropriation of intellectual property and the substantial unattributed textual copying of another's work." Perhaps an even more fundamental definition of plagiarism is voiced by Jack Shafer in his article, "Eight Reasons Plagiarism Sucks," in which he states, "Plagiarism burns me up because it violates the implied warranty that comes with every piece of journalism. Unless qualified with citations or disclaimers such as 'compiled from wire reports,' news articles are supposed to be original work." (See Reference 1.) Intellectual property theft and fraud against the reader are two significant consequences of plagiarism.
Other People Are Reading
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Excuses, Not Reasons
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Using the word "reasons" in a discussion of why people plagiarize seems to lend a certain unintended legitimacy to this behavior. Any explanation of why plagiarism occurs should be denounced as an excuse for unacceptable behavior. For example, a student who fails to budget his time to allow for proper research to complete his paper cannot use lack of time as a "reason" to copy someone else's work. It's an excuse! Forgetting to make notes of reference sources while doing research for a project is neither a plausible or an excusable reason for plagiarizing. It's just another lame excuse.
Reasons Exposed
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When debating the reasons why people commit plagiarism, some may excuse it as the inadvertent act of an individual simply unaware of the definition of plagiarism. Yet, taking someone else's words as one's own or rephrasing another writer's ideas and claiming ownership can hardly be depicted as accidental. Unless the writer identifies himself as an expert on a particular subject, specific data cannot be deemed "common knowledge" as the reason for the lack of attribution. Such examples of plagiarism are willful and should not be tolerated when exposed.
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The Real Reasons for Plagiarism
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Jonathan Bailey, author and webmaster of "Plagiarism Today," believes that the "business plagiarist" does it for the money and the student plagiarist does it to get higher marks with less time and effort. He further states that, "... some people steal because they are simply stupid" and others plagiarize to show off their intelligence to someone they're trying to impress. He says, "This kind of theft usually stems from some kind of feeling of inadequacy. They usually feel that they, or at least their work and their skills, aren't good enough."
Reasons for Not Plagiarizing
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Engaging in a practice that is unethical, immoral and in some cases illegal will sooner or later take its toll on the plagiarist. The student that repeatedly cheats on assignments to get a higher grade will never experience the thrill of self-accomplishment. The scientist who uses a colleague's research without attribution will surely lose self-respect and the writer who claims the work of others as his own condemns himself to eternal anonymity and self-reproach. Success in any worthwhile endeavor is achieved through struggle, and the shortcuts along the way usually lead to dead ends.
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References
- Photo Credit writing image by Alison Bowden from Fotolia.com
