Relationship between religious commitment and academic dishonesty: is self-efficacy a factor?

ABSTRACT

Academic dishonesty has been found to be on the increase globally, affecting the quality of education, ethics of professional practices and career outcome. Substantial literature exists on the role of religious commitment (RC) in reducing academic dishonesty (AD), but few or no studies have examined the pathways explaining this link. The present study examined whether self-efficacy mediates the relationship between RC and AD. Undergraduates of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (N = 350, Mean age = 22.18 years) completed the Academic Dishonesty Scale (ADS), Religious Commitment Inventory (RCI-10) and New General Self-Efficacy Scale (NGSES) and also provided relevant demographic information. Results of statistical analysis indicated that RC was negatively associated with AD. Self-efficacy was also a partial mediation in the relationship between RC and AD. This implies that self-efficacy contributes to the pathways through which RC influences AD among students. Our findings suggest that consideration of students’ level of self-judgment on their ability to cope with academic demands may be an important target toward enhancing the influence of RC in reducing academic dishonest behaviors among students.     

Self processing in the brain: A paradigmatic fMRI case study with a professional singer

Understanding the mechanisms involved in perception and conception of oneself is a fundamental psychological topic with high relevance for psychiatric and neurological issues, and it is one of the great challenges in neuroscientific research. The paradigmatic single-case study presented here aimed to investigate different components of self- and other-processes and to elucidate corresponding neurobiological underpinnings. An eminent professional opera singer with profound performance experience has undergone functional magnetic resonance imaging and was exposed to excerpts of Mozart arias, sung by herself or another singer. The results indicate a distinction between self- and other conditions in cortical midline structures, differentially involved in self-related and self-referential processing. This lends further support to the assumption of cortical midline structures being involved in the neural processing of self-specific stimuli and also confirms the power of single case studies as a research tool.     

The role of psychologists in requests to hasten death: A literature and legislation review and an agenda for future research

The opportunity for patients to request support to die is legalised in several countries and is associated with the development of a social and political debate that has taken place in recent years. We believe that psychologists can contribute to this debate. Here, we conducted a literature and legislation review with the aim of understanding arguments regarding the roles of the psychologist in hastening death. A systematic review of the peer-review literature in this field was carried out. The legislation of each country with hasten death practices was analysed to understand if psychologists are included in the protocols of hasten death practices. Despite a lack of literature, we found competence assessment, communication, psychological counselling, research and training and public policy to be the possible roles of psychologists in requests to hasten death. Based on the review, an agenda for future research is developed. We highlight the importance of psychology, raising its profile in the study of the various forms of death hastening requests.     

Understanding the link between work engagement and affective organisational commitment: The moderating effect of role stress

This study aimed to explore the moderating effect of role ambiguity and role conflict on the relationship between work engagement and affective organisational commitment. Using convenience sampling, a final sample of 179 IT-specialists of services companies in southern Spain was obtained. Moderation analyses were performed using the hierarchical regressions and bootstrapping method (Bias-Corrected confidence intervals). Results showed that work engagement was positively related to affective commitment while role ambiguity and role conflict were negatively related to it. However, only role conflict moderated the relationship between work engagement and affective commitment. That is, at high levels of role conflict, IT-specialists perceiving higher levels of work engagement reported lower levels of affective commitment. This study highlights the hindrance effect of role conflict on one of the most important consequences of work engagement: affective commitment with the organisation. An adequate definition of role and positions could help to reduce the levels of role conflict, increasing the emotional bond to the organisation.