ATTITUDE OF UNDERGRADUATE DENTAL STUDENTS ABOUT PLAGIARISM - CROSS SECTIONAL STUDY

Introduction: Plagiarism is one of the most common types of research misconduct that leads to an increase in the number of published papers without adding any scientific value. Despite an increased awareness of the dangers of plagiarism in academic circles and the media, plagiarism is present in scientific writing. Aim: To evaluate the knowledge, attitude and awareness of plagiarism among undergraduate dental students. Materials and Methods: The present cross sectional descriptive study was conducted among 150 undergraduate dental students. The survey was conducted on an online forum using google form. The questionnaire included 10 questions along with sociodemographic factors such as age, gender and year of study. Descriptive statistics were expressed by means of frequency and percentage. Chi Square test was used to find the association between the variables. P value less than 0.05 were considered to be statistically significant. Results: A total of 150 persons responded to the questionnaire. 99 (66%) were females, and 51 (34%) were males. 35.33% of study subjects were of 17-20 years, 50% were of 21-24 years, 14.67% were of 25-28 years. 25.33% of them were 2nd year BDS, 25.33% were 3rd year BDS, 26.67% were 4th year BDS and 22.67% were intern BDS. A significant difference was noted in attitude towards plagiarism with respect to their year of study(P <0.05). Conclusion: Within the limitations of this study, among the 2nd year BDS, 3rd year BDS, 4th year BDS and intern BDS, intern BDS were found to have comparatively good levels of seriousness and awareness towards plagiarism. Therefore it is evident that awareness about plagiarism should be improved among undergraduate dental students.