Academic Integrity and Student Mental Well-Being: A Rapid Review
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.11575/cpai.v5i2.73748Keywords:
academic integrity, academic misconduct, mental well-being, stress, rapid review, higher education, studentsAbstract
Despite concerns arising from academic integrity practitioners, researchers, and stakeholders about the relationship between academic integrity (or violations of academic integrity) and student mental well-being (or distress), there is a lack of literature synthesizing available evidence. Particularly, it is unclear about when student mental well-being may be of concern during procedures that concern breaches of academic integrity. Our rapid review identified and analysed scholarly sources (n = 46) to understand the relationship between academic integrity and mental well-being among postsecondary students. Five themes emerged: a) negativity bias; b) inconsistency of definitions; c) paradigmatic tensions; d) focus on external stressors; and e) focus on mental health prior to a critical incident. We propose several calls to action and implications for practice. There is a need to better understand the impact of an alleged or actual academic integrity violation on students’ mental well-being. Practitioners should integrate supports for students’ mental well-being in processes and procedures that uphold academic integrity.
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