A Longitudinal Study of the Ethical Development of Engineering and Non-engineering Students at a National Research University

Context Recent national reports (National Academy of Engineering, 2003; National Academy of Engineering, 2004; National Academy of Engineering, 2005) highlight the importance of promoting the development of ethical behavior among undergraduates. Academic dishonesty (i.e., cheating) provides one measure of ethical behavior, and it is particularly problematic on college campuses, with upwards of 80% of undergraduates reporting that they have cheated at least once during college (Bowers, 1964; Brown & Emmett, 2001; McCabe & Drinan, 1999; McCabe & Trevino, 1997; Spiller & Crown, 1995). It has been well documented that the rate of undergraduate cheating differs by college major, and findings in this regard consistently reflect those reported by McCabe (1997) – the percentage of undergraduates who report engaging in any type of cheating is highest for those students enrolled in “vocationally-oriented majors such as business and engineering”: business (91%), engineering (82%), social sciences (73%), and natural sciences (71%).