The Perceived Corrupt Practices of Academics: What Conditions Promote Them?

Abstract

The study delved into corrupt practices perceived to be pervasive in academic institutions especially that of academics. The exercise was motivated by the paucity of information on where the alleged practice emanates from and the conditions in academic institutions perceived to be promoting the practice. The cross-sectional survey utilised students from two universities in Ghana. Questionnaire was the main research instrument used for the data gathering. The instrument was validated through peer review and pilot testing and the data was analysed using SPSS version 20. The study disclosed that students perceived favouritism, nepotism and examination malpractices to be the major forms that corruption of academics takes in the institutions and the majority of the respondents perceived staff to be the initiators of the acts. The survey also revealed that majority of the respondents believed that fear of victimization, fear of school authority and bureaucracy in dealing with such issues are some conditions that promote the perpetuation of the acts in the institutions. The study, therefore, recommends an enactment and enforcement of codes of conduct in the institutions to ensure high ethical standards. It is envisaged that the study would be beneficial to the Ministry of Education, university authorities, academic staff, and students of tertiary educational institutions.

DOI: 10.5901/ajis.2014.v3n1p189