the case of plagiarism in research

Famous Plagiarism Cases (And How They Could’ve Been Avoided)

• Posted on January 5, 2024 January 5, 2024

Famous Plagiarism Cases (And How They Could’ve Been Avoided)

Plagiarism is the bane of the creative arts, and it’s highly frowned upon in many professional spaces. Essentially, plagiarism is using someone else’s words or creative work as your own. In addition to professional discrediting, you could also face massive lawsuits and financial consequences if you are caught.

Although there are varying levels of plagiarism, it’s all considered highly unethical and illegal. This can range from stealing someone else’s work to self-plagiarism and even subconscious inspiration from another uncredited source without attribution.

Some of the best-known instances of plagiarism involve highly-regarded professionals and even Pulitzer prize winners taking the intellectual property of others. Unfortunately, even legacy companies like the New York Times and CNN aren’t immune.

Since even allegations of plagiarism can be enough to harm your career seriously, it’s essential to avoid being labeled a plagiarist. This includes only using your own creative work in real life and on social media, always using quotation marks to indicate sources, and understanding various cases of plagiarism.

Fortunately, if you’re careful, you can avoid a plagiarism scandal. These famous examples of plagiarism and what went wrong in each should shed some light on how you can avoid making the same errors in your work.

Famous People who Plagiarized in Music

Some of the world’s most famous plagiarism cases involve music , and the reigning kings and queens of the art form are not immune. George Harrison of Beatles fame got into some boiling water when his song “My Sweet Lord” sounded a bit too much like The Chiffons’ “He’s So Fine.” Harrison was charged with copyright infringement and had to pay $587,000 for his error.

More recently, Robin Thicke and Pharrell Williams found themselves in plagiarism’s crosshairs with their famous mega-hit “Blurred Lines.” Marvin Gaye accused the pair of ripping on his song “Got to Give It Up.” Although Thicke and Pharrell fought the claim, they were both found guilty of plagiarism and required to pay five million dollars apiece.

Professionals Caught Plagiarizing in Writing

When you think about famous plagiarism cases, the first thing that probably crosses your mind is the literary sphere. There are plenty of professionals caught plagiarizing in their writing. Self-plagiarism is still considered a massive no-no in the academic and creative worlds, so some, like Jonah Lehrer, plagiarized from themselves. When Jonah Lehrer stole from one of his old articles for a New Yorker piece, sharp-eyed readers found out and exposed him.

Although self-plagiarism might not rise to the heights of plagiarizing from others in terms of financial costs, it can still cause significant problems for your career. Lehrer lost valuable credibility points, and his reputation took a significant hit.

Alex Haley, Pulitzer Prize winner and author of Roots, found himself in serious trouble when Harold Courtlander accused him of lifting material from his novel The African. However, unlike some of the other cases on our list, Haley conceded that he’d taken parts of The African, and the case was ultimately settled outside of court.

Cases of Plagiarism in Politics

Plenty of politicians have lifted parts of their speeches from other people, but when you’re stealing from a beloved national figure, you’re likely to get caught. For example, former first lady  Melania Trump  made a speech to the 2016 Republican National Convention that sounded suspiciously like Michelle Obama’s speech eight years prior. Although Trump changed a few words in the speech, it was far too similar to Obama’s speech to go unnoticed.

During one of Joe Biden’s first presidential runs, he made an error that would haunt the former Vice President and current President for the rest of his career. In 1987, Joe Biden took some lines from Lord Kinnock, a British Labour party member. Although Kinnock quickly forgave Biden for his plagiarism, saying that he was sure it was unintentional, the gaffe remains one of the most significant cases of political plagiarism of all time.

Preventing Plagiarism

Since plagiarism can have such dramatic and devastating effects on your career and even lead to financial problems, it’s vital to understand how to prevent it. There are a few key ways to keep yourself and your career free and clear of plagiarism charges.

Self-Plagiarism is Plagiarism

One important key to keep in mind is that self-plagiarism  is plagiarism, even if you are unlikely to sue yourself in the future. Self-plagiarism can definitely ruin careers and may cause others to question your ethics and professionalism. Take these steps to avoid self-plagiarism:

• Express old ideas in fresh ways
• Carefully plan out your work
• If something sounds too familiar, it is

Expressing old ideas in fresh ways is one crucial way to avoid self-plagiarism. If you’re an expert in your field, there’s a good chance that you’ve written a lot of different papers or takes on the same subject. You need to ensure that each take has a fresh angle. If you’re writing about something that you’ve explored several times before, take some time to read your previous work. Even unintentional self-plagiarism can be a big problem.

Carefully planning out your work and looking out for red flags are other ways to avoid self-plagiarism. We all tend to fall back on familiar tropes and ways of saying things, so if something flows a little too well, you might have already written it that way. Create a new outline for each piece of work to make sure that you’re hitting all the critical points you want to in a new and unique way.

Use a Plagiarism Checker

Plagiarism checkers are total lifesavers, and it’s a good idea to run your work through one before submitting it. As we’ve seen in the case of George Harrison, it’s possible to plagiarize without even knowing it. Your subconscious might pick up on something and store it for later use. Whether your plagiarism is intentional or simply an unfortunate accident, it’s still illegal and unethical.

Quetext’s  citation generator and  plagiarism checker are nifty tools that allow you to have total peace of mind. You can rest assured that not only are you properly citing your sources but that all of your information is totally plagiarism-free. It just takes minutes to run your work through a plagiarism checker, and it’s completely worth it.

Wrapping Up

If you’re an artist, creative, or intellectual, charges of plagiarism can seriously damage your career and reputation. Everyone knows that plagiarism is wrong, but repackaging others’ ideas into your own words can be easy and tempting. Moreover, even the most sincere artists are susceptible to the unintentional burglary of creative ideas.

Regardless, the career-crushing ramifications of plagiarism are very severe—some people recover from them, but most of them don’t.

These famous cases of plagiarism can give us some context. Whether or not Haley thought he was simply getting inspiration from The African or knowingly took parts of the work is certainly up for debate, but the charge of plagiarism still stands. The takeaway is always to cite your sources and be upfront about your inspiration.

And, in Melania Trump’s case, even if you change a few key things about a personal story, you could still encounter some trouble if your version is too close to the original source. Always use your own, fresh material and be very careful if your work sounds too similar to someone else’s.

Ultimately, if you do your due diligence, pay close attention to your work, and understand plagiarism, you should be able to avoid it.

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Plagiarism in Research — The Complete Guide [eBook]

Table of Contents

Plagiarism can be described as the not-so-subtle art of stealing an already existing work, violating the principles of academic integrity and fairness. Well, there's no denying that we see further by standing on the shoulders of giants, and when it comes to constructing a research prose, we often need to look at the world through their lens. However, in this process, many students and researchers, knowingly or otherwise, resort to plagiarism.

In many instances, plagiarism is intentional, whether through direct copying or paraphrasing. Unfortunately, there are also times when it happens unintentionally. Regardless of the intent, plagiarism goes against the ethos of the scientific world and is considered a severe moral and disciplinary offense.

The good news is that you can avoid plagiarism and even work around it. So, if you're keen on publishing unplagiarized papers and maintaining academic integrity, you've come to the right place.

With this comprehensive ebook on plagiarism, we intend to help you understand what constitutes plagiarism in research, why it happens, plagiarism concepts and types, how you can prevent it, and much more.

What is plagiarism?

Plagiarism is defined as representing a part of or the entirety of someone else's work as your own. Whether published or unpublished, this could be ideas, text verbatim, infographics, etc. It is no different in the academic writing, either. However, it is not considered plagiarism if most of your work is original and the referred part is diligently cited.

The degree of plagiarism can vary from discipline to discipline. Like in mathematics or engineering, there are times when you have to copy and paste entire equations or proofs, which can take a significant chunk of your paper. Again, that is not constituted plagiarism, provided there's an analysis or rebuttal to it.

That said, there are some objective parameters defining plagiarism. Get to know them, and your life as a researcher will be much smoother.

Common types of plagiarism

Plagiarism often creeps into academic works in various forms, from complete plagiarism to accidental plagiarism.

The types of plagiarism varies depending on the two critical aspects — the writer's intention and the degree to which the prose is plagiarized. These aspects help institutions and publishers define plagiarism types more accurately.

The agreed-upon forms of plagiarism that occur in research writing include:

1. Global or Complete Plagiarism

Global or Complete plagiarism is inarguably the most severe form of plagiarism  — It is as good as stealing. It happens when an author blatantly copies somebody else's work in its entirety and passes it on as their own.

Since complete plagiarism is always committed deliberately and disguises the ownership of the work, it is directly recognized under copyright violation and can lead to intellectual property abuse and legal battles. That, along with irredeemable repercussions like a damaged reputation, getting expelled, or losing your job.

2. Verbatim or Direct Plagiarism

Verbatim or direct plagiarism happens when you copy a part of someone else's work, word-to-word, without providing adequate credits or attributions. The ideas, structure, and diction in your work would match the original author's work. Even if you were to change a few words or the position of sentences here and there, the final result remains the same.

The best way to avoid this is to minimize copy-pasting entire paragraphs and use it only when the situation calls for it. And when you do so, use quotation marks and in-text citations, crediting the original source.

3. Source-based Plagiarism

Source-based plagiarism results from an author trying to mislead or disguise the natural source of their work. Say you write a paper, giving enough citations, but when the editor or peer reviewers try to cross-check your references, they find a dead end or incorrect information. Another instance is when you use both primary and secondary data to support your argument but only cite the former with no reference for the latter.

In both cases, the information provided is either irrelevant or misleading. You may have cited it, but it does not support the text completely.

Similarly, another type of plagiarism is called data manipulation and counterfeiting . Data Manipulation is creating your own data and results. In contrast, data counterfeiting is skipping or adultering the key findings to suit your expected outcomes.

Using misinformed sources in a research study constitutes grave violations and offenses. Particularly in the medical field, it can lead to legal issues such as wrong data presentation. Its interpretation can lead to false clinical trials, which can have grave consequences.

4. Paraphrasing Plagiarism

Paraphrasing plagiarism is one of the more common types of plagiarism. It refers to when an author copies ideas, thoughts, and inferences, rephrases sentences, and then claims ownership.

Compared to verbatim, paraphrasing plagiarism involves changing words, sentences, semantics or translating texts. The general idea or the topic of the thesis, however, remains the same and as clever as it may seem, it is straightforward to detect.

More often authors commit paraphrasing by reading a few sources and writing them in their own words without due citation. This can lead the reader to believe that the idea was the author's own when it wasn’t.

5. Mosaic or Patchwork Plagiarism

One of the more mischievous ways to abstain from writing original work is mosaic plagiarism. Patchwork or mosaic plagiarism occurs when an author stitches together a research paper by lending pieces from multiple sources and weaving them as their creation. Sure, the author can add a few new words and phrases, but the meat of the paper is stolen.

It’s common for authors to refer to various sources during the research. But to patch them together and form a new paper from them is wrong.

Mosaic plagiarism can be difficult to detect, so authors, too confident in themselves, often resort to it. However, these days, there are plenty of online tools like Turnitin, Enago, and EasyBib that identify patchwork and correctly point to the sources from which you have borrowed.

6. Ghostwriting

Outside of the academic world, ghostwriting is entirely acceptable. Leaders do it, politicians do it, and artists do it. In academia, however, ghostwriting is a breach of conduct that tarnishes the integrity of a student or a researcher.

Ghostwriting is the act of using an unacknowledged person’s assistance to complete a paper. This happens in two ways — when an author has their paper’s foundation laid out but pays someone else to write, edit, and proofread. The other is when they pay someone to write the whole article from scratch.

In either case, it’s utterly unacceptable since the whole point of a paper is to exhibit an author's original thoughts presented by them. Ghostwriting, thus, raises a serious question about the academic capabilities of an author.

7. Self-plagiarism

This may surprise many, but rehashing previous works, even if they are your own, is also considered plagiarism. The biggest reason why self-plagiarism is a fallacy is because you’re trying to claim credit for something that you have already received credit for.

Authors often borrow their past data or experiment results, use them in their current work, and present them as brand new. Some may even plagiarize old published works' ideas, cues, or phrases.

The degree to which self-plagiarism is still under debate depends on the volume of work that has been copied. Additionally, many academic and non-academic journals have devised a fixed ratio on what percentage of self-plagiarism is acceptable. Unless you have made a proper declaration through citations and quotation marks about old data usage, it will fall under the scope of self-plagiarism.

8. Accidental Plagiarism

Apart from the intentional forms of plagiarism, there’s also accidental plagiarism. As the name suggests, it happens inadvertently. Unwitting paraphrasing, missing in-text or end-of-text citations, or not using quotation blocks falls under the same criteria.

While writing your academic papers, you have to stay cautious to avoid accidental plagiarism. The best way to do this is by going through your article thoroughly. Proofread as if your life depended on it, and check whether you’ve given citations where required.

Why is it important to avoid research plagiarism?

As a scholar, you must be aware that the sole purpose of any article or academic writing is to present an original idea to its readers. When the prose is plagiarized, it removes any credibility from the author, discredits the source, and leaves the reader misinformed which goes against the ethos of academic institutions.

Here are the few reasons why you should avoid research plagiarism:

Critical analysis is important

While writing research papers, an author must dive deep into finding various sources, like scholarly articles, especially peer-reviewed ones. You are expected to examine the sources keenly to understand the gaps in the chosen topic and formulate your research questions.

Crafting critical questions related to the field of study is essential as it displays your understanding and the analysis you employed to decipher the problems in the chosen topic. When you do this, your chances of being published improve, and it’s also good for your long-term career growth.

Streamlined scholarly communication

An extended form of scholarly communication is established when you respond and craft your academic work based on what others have previously done in a particular domain. By appropriately using others' work, i.e., through citations, you acknowledge the tasks done before you and how they helped shape your work. Moreover, citations expand the doorway for readers to learn more about a topic from the beginning to the current state. Plagiarism prevents this.

Credibility in originality

Originality is invaluable in the research community. From your thesis topic and fresh methodology to new data, conclusion, and tone of writing, the more original your paper is, the more people are intrigued by it. And as long as your paper is backed by credible sources, it further solidifies your academic integrity. Plagiarism can hinder these.

How does plagiarism happen?

Even though plagiarism is a cardinal sin and plagiarized academic writing is consistently rejected, it still happens. So the question is, what makes people resort to plagiarism?

Some of the reasons why authors choose the plagiarism include:

• Lack of knowledge about plagiarism
• Accidentally copying a work
• Forgetting to cite a source
• Desire to excel among peers
• A false belief that no one will catch them
• No interest in academic work and just taking that as an assignment
• Using shortcuts in the form of self-plagiarism
• Fear of failing

Whatever the reason an author may have, plagiarism can never be justified. It is seen as an unfair advantage and disrespect to those who have put in the blood, sweat, and tears into doing their due diligence. Additionally, remember that readers, universities, or publishers are only interested in your genuine ideas, and your evaluation, as an author, is done based on that.

Related Article: Citation Machine Alternatives — Top citation tools 2023

Consequences of plagiarism

We have reiterated enough that plagiarism is objectionable and has consequences. But what exactly are the consequences? Well, that depends on who the author is and the type of plagiarism.

For minor offenses like accidental plagiarism or missing citations, a slap on the wrist in the form of feedback from the editor or peers is the norm. For major cases, let’s take a look:

For students

• Poor grades

Even if you are a first-timer, your professor may choose to fail you, which can have a detrimental effect on your scores.

• Failing a course

It is not rare for professors to fail Ph.D. and graduate students when caught plagiarizing. Not only does this hurt your academics, but it also extends the duration of your study by a year.

• Disciplinary action

Every university or academic institution has strict policies and regulations regarding plagiarism. If caught, an author may have to face the academic review committee to decide their future. The results seen in general cases range from poor grades, failure for a year, or being banished from any academic or research-related work.

• Expulsion from the university

A university may resort to expulsion only in the worst of cases, like copyright violation or Intellectual Property theft.

• Tarnished academic reputation

This just might be the most consequential of all scenarios. It takes a lifetime to build a great impression but a few seconds to tarnish it. Many academics lose their peers' trust and find it hard to recover.  Moreover, background checks for future jobs or fellowships become a nightmare.

For universities

A university is built on reputation. Letting plagiarism slide is the quickest way to tarnish its reputation. This leads to lesser interest from top talent and publishers and trouble finding grant money.

Prospective students turning away from a university means losing out on tuition money. This further drives experienced faculty away. And the cycle continues.

For researchers

• Legal battles

Since it falls under copyright infringement, researchers may face legal battles if their academic work is believed to be plagiarized. There is no shortage of case studies, like those of Doris Kearns Goodwin or Mark Chabedi, where authors, without permission, used another person's work and claimed it to be their own. In all these instances, they faced legal issues that led to fines, barred from writing and research, and sometimes, imprisonment even.

• Professional reputation

Publishers and journals will not engage authors with a past of plagiarism to produce content under their brand name. Also, if the author is a professor or a fellow, it can lead to contract termination.

How to avoid plagiarism in research?

The simplest way to avoid plagiarism would be to put in the work. Do original research, collect new data, and derive new conclusions. If you use references, keep track of each and every single one and cite them in your paper.

To ensure that your academic writing or research paper is unique and free from any type of plagiarism, incorporate the following tips:

• Pay adequate attention to your references

Writing a paper requires extraordinary research. So, it’s understandable when researchers sometimes lose track of their references. This often leads to accidental plagiarism.

So, instead of falling into this trap, maintain lists or take notes of your reference while doing your research. This will help you when you’re writing your citations.

• Find credible sources

Always refer to credible sources, whether a paper, a conference proceeding or an infographic.  These will present unbiased evidence and accurate experimentation results with facts backing the evidence presented by your paper.

• Proper use of paraphrasing, quotations, and citations

It’s borderline impossible to avoid using direct references in your paper, especially if you’re providing a critical analysis or a rebuttal to an already existing article. So, to avoid getting prosecuted, use quotation marks when using a text verbatim.

In case you’re paraphrasing, use citations so that everyone knows that it’s not your idea. Credit the original author and a secondary source, if any. Publishers usually have guidelines about how to cite. There are many different styles like APA, MLA, Chicago, etc. Be on top of what your publisher demands.

Usually, it is observed that readers or the audience have a greater inclination towards paraphrasing than the quotes, especially if it is bulky sections. The reason is obvious: paraphrasing displays your understanding of the original work's meaning and interpretation, uniquely suiting the current state of affairs.

• Review and recheck your work multiple times

Before submitting the final, you must subject your work to scrutiny. Multiple times at that. The more you do it, the less your chances of falling under accidental plagiarism.  To ensure that your final work does not constitute any types of plagiarism, ensure that:

• There are no misplaced or missed citations
• The paraphrased text does not closely resemble the original text
• You don’t have any wrongful references
• You’re not missing quotation marks or failing to provide the author's credentials after quotation marks
• You use a plagiarism checker

More on how to avoid plagiarism .

On top of these, read your university or your publisher’s policies. All of them have their sets of rules about what’s acceptable and what’s not. They also define the punishment for any offense, factoring in its degree.

• Use Online Tools

After receiving your article, most universities, publishers, and other institutions will run it through plagiarism checkers, including AI detectors , to detect all types of plagiarism. These plagiarism checkers function based on drawing similarities between your article and previously published works present in their database. If found similar, your paper is deemed plagiarized.

You can always save yourself from embarrassment by staying a step ahead. Use a plagiarism checker before you submit your paper. Using plagiarism checker tools, you can quickly identify if you have committed plagiarism. Then, no one except you will know about it, and you will have a chance to correct yourself.

Best Plagiarism Checkers in 2023

Plagiarism checkers are an incredibly convenient tool for improving academic writing. Therefore, here are some of the best plagiarism checkers for academic writing.

Turnitin's iThenticate

This is one of the best plagiarism checker for your academic paper and a good fit for academic writers, researchers, and scholars.

Turnitin’s iThenticare claims to cross-check your paper against 99 billion+ current and archived web pages, 1.8 billion student papers, and best-in-class scholarly content from top publishers in every major discipline and dozens of languages.

The iThenticate plagiarism checker is now available on SciSpace. ( Instructions on how to use it .)

Grammarly serves as a one-stop solution for better writing. Through Grammarly, you can make your paper have fewer grammatical errors, better clarity, and, yes, be plagiarism-free.

Grammarly's plagiarism checker compares your paper to billions of web pages and existing papers online. It points out all the sentences which need a citation, giving you the original source as well. On top of this, Grammarly also rates your document for an originality score.

ProWritingAid

ProWritingAid is another AI writing assistant that offers a plethora of tools to better your document. One of its paid services include a ProWritingAid Plagiarism Checker that helps authors find out how much of their work is plagiarized.

Once you scan your document, the plagiarism checker gives you details like the percentage of non-original text, how much of that is quoted, and how much is not. It will also give you links so you can cite them as required.

EasyBib Plagiarism Checker

EasyBib Plagiarism Checker compares your writing sample with billions of available sources online to detect plagiarism at every level. You'll be notified which phrases are too similar to current research and literature, prompting a possible rewrite or additional citation.

Moreover, you'll get feedback on your paper's inconsistencies, such as changes in text, formatting, or style. These small details could suggest possible plagiarism within your assignment.

Plagiarism CheckerX

Working on the same principle of scanning and matching against various sources, the critical aspect of Plagiarism CheckerX is that you can download and use it whenever you wish. It is slightly faster than others and never stores your data, so you can stay assured of any data loss.

Compilatio Magister

Compilatio Magister is a plagiarism checker designed explicitly for teaching professionals. It lets you access turnkey educational resources, check for plagiarism against thousands of documents, and seek reliable and accurate analysis reports.

Quick Wrap Up

In the world of academia, the spectre of plagiarism lurks but fear not, for armed with awareness and right plagiarism checkers, you have the power to conquer this foe.

Even though plenty of students or researchers believe they can get away with it, it’s never the case. You owe it to yourself and everyone who has invested time and resources in you to publish original, plagiarism-free research work every time.

Throughout this eBook, we have explored the depths of plagiarism, unraveling its consequences and the importance of originality. Many universities have specific classes and workshops discussing plagiarism to create ample awareness of the subject. Thus, you should continue to be honourable in this regard and write papers from the heart.

Hey there! We encourage you to visit our SciSpace discover page to explore how our suite of products can make research workflows easier and allow you to spend more time advancing science.

With the best-in-class solution, you can manage everything from literature search and discovery to profile management, research writing, and much more.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

1. how to paraphrase without plagiarizing.

• Understand the original text completely.
• Write the idea in your own words without looking at the original text.
• Change the structure of sentences, not just individual words.
• Use synonyms wisely and ensure the context remains the same.
• Lastly, always cite the original source.

Even when paraphrasing, it's important to attribute ideas to the original author.

2. How to avoid plagiarism in research?

• Understand what constitutes plagiarism.
• Always give proper credit to the original authors when quoting or paraphrasing their work.
• Use plagiarism checker tools to ensure your work is original.
• Keep track of your sources throughout your research.
• Quote and paraphrase accurately.

3. Examples of plagiarism?

• Copying and pasting text directly from a source without quotation or citation.
• Paraphrasing someone else's work without correct citation.
• Presenting someone else's work or ideas as your own.
• Recycling or self-plagiarism, where you mention your previous work without citing it.

4. How much plagiarism is allowed in a research paper?

In the academic world, the goal is always to strive for 0% plagiarism. However, sometimes, minor plagiarism can occur unintentionally, such as when common phrases are matched in plagiarism software. Most institutions and publishers will allow a small percentage, typically under 10%, for such instances. Remember, this doesn't mean you can deliberately plagiarize 10% of your work.

5. What are the four types of plagiarism?

• Direct Plagiarism definition: This occurs when one directly copies someone else's work word-for-word without giving credit.
• Mosaic Plagiarism definition: This happens when someone borrows phrases from a source without using quotation marks, or finds synonyms for the author's language while keeping the same general structure and meaning.
• Accidental Plagiarism definition: This happens when a person neglects to cite their sources, or misquotes their sources, or unintentionally paraphrases a source by using similar words, groupings, or phrases without attribution.
• Self-Plagiarism definition: This happens when someone recycles their own work from a previous paper or study and presents it as new content without citing the original.

6. How much copying is considered plagiarism?

Any amount of copying can be considered plagiarism if you're presenting someone else's work as your own without attribution. Even a single sentence copied without proper citation can be seen as plagiarism. The key is to always give credit where it's due.

7. How to check plagiarism in a research paper?

There are numerous online tools and software that you can use to check plagiarism in a research paper. Some popular ones include Grammarly, and Copyscape. These tools compare your paper with millions of other documents on the web and databases to identify any matches. You can also use SciSpace paraphraser to rephrase the content and keep it unique.

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Plagiarism FAQs: 10 Most Commonly Asked Questions on Plagiarism in Research Answered

3 Common Mistakes in Research Publication, and How to Avoid Them

Plagiarism in research

• Scientific Contribution
• Published: 04 July 2014
• Volume 18 , pages 91–101, ( 2015 )

Cite this article

• Gert Helgesson 1 &
• Stefan Eriksson 2  

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Plagiarism is a major problem for research. There are, however, divergent views on how to define plagiarism and on what makes plagiarism reprehensible. In this paper we explicate the concept of “plagiarism” and discuss plagiarism normatively in relation to research. We suggest that plagiarism should be understood as “someone using someone else’s intellectual product (such as texts, ideas, or results), thereby implying that it is their own” and argue that this is an adequate and fruitful definition. We discuss a number of circumstances that make plagiarism more or less grave and the plagiariser more or less blameworthy. As a result of our normative analysis, we suggest that what makes plagiarism reprehensible as such is that it distorts scientific credit. In addition, intentional plagiarism involves dishonesty. There are, furthermore, a number of potentially negative consequences of plagiarism.

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Plagiarism in Philosophy Research

Only if the result of intellectual work is a novel idea about a way to process a certain task (a method) will it be possible to plagiarise by repeating the processes and not disclosing where the idea of doing it like that originated. Which is to say that (the idea of) a method may be plagiarised by using it and not disclosing that someone else came up with it, thereby implying that you invented it yourself.

It is, of course, not the writing that constitutes plagiarism in the context of ghost-writing, but the claim to have written or co-authored a text completely written by others.

It should be noted that it does not have to be the authors’ fault that a paper is misleading about who deserves credit. Leonard Fleck has brought to our attention instances of journals, unbeknown to the authors, having mistakenly removed references or quotation marks in the text, causing the text to give the impression that some phrases quoted from others are the authors’ own.

Our claims here regarding practices are based on anecdotic evidence only. However, based on our teaching about 500 doctoral students per year, and having heard this frequently in class, we believe this to be fairly common, or at least far from unique.

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Acknowledgments

We would like to thank the participants at seminars at Stockholm Centre for Healthcare Ethics, Centre for Research Ethics and Bioethics at Uppsala University, and at the International Bioethics retreat in Paris 2013 for valuable suggestions and constructive criticism of earlier versions of this paper.

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Helgesson, G., Eriksson, S. Plagiarism in research. Med Health Care and Philos 18 , 91–101 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11019-014-9583-8

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• 11 January 2024

What counts as plagiarism? Harvard president’s resignation sparks debate

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Plagiarism is one of academia’s oldest crimes, but Claudine Gay’s resignation as Harvard University’s president following plagiarism allegations has sparked a fresh online debate: about when copying text should be a punishable offence. Some academics are even advocating for a more streamlined publishing model in which researchers can copy more and write less — as long as the source of the information is clear.

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10 Most Famous Plagiarism Cases in History

Discovering that someone has plagiarised your work is a very unpleasant experience, but being accused of plagiarism is not better. And yet, many well-known people have been involved in cases of plagiarism throughout the years, whether it is a trademark infringement , a breach of copyright, or any other violation of intellectual property law.

Here are 10 famous plagiarism cases you might have heard of.

1. A speech made by Melania Trump vs. Michelle Obama

In 2016, Melania Trump has been accused of plagiarism for a speech she made at the Republican National Convention.

July 2016: Melania Trump plagiarized Michelle Obama’s speech! May 2018: Melania Trump publishes an online booklet that’s identical to the one published by the Obama admin. in 2014! My university would expel me immediately if I pulled a stunt like this once… she did it twice! pic.twitter.com/xQY4Ri3bqp — Brenna Simon (@BrennaSimonSays) May 8, 2018

In that speech, she mentioned the values of hard work and respect that her parents tried to instill in her when she was younger. Former First Lady Michelle Obama described the same values, in a very similar way, in a speech she made in 2008, and the internet was quick to notice this after Melania Trump’s speech.

2. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J.K. Rowling vs. Adrian Jacobs

J.K. Rowling, the author of the Harry Potter series, has also been accused of plagiarism. The estate of British author Adrian Jacobs claims that she stole many of her ideas for Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire from a book named The Adventures of Willy the Wizard.

Joanne Rowling is being taken to court for "stealing" the idea of Goblet of Fire from Adrian Jacobs. Xx — harry potter (@accio_sav) July 23, 2011

Fortunately for J.K. Rowling and for Harry Potter fans, the famous author and her publisher won the case.

3. The Lord of the Rings series by J.R.R. Tolkien vs. Richard Wagner

J.K. Rowling is not the only author of a successful and popular book series to have been accused of plagiarism. J.R.R. Tolkien, author of The Lord of the Rings, has been accused of copying many ideas from Ring of the Nibelung, an opera composed by Richard Wagner.

#TolkienMonth #TolkienReadingDay2018 A debt owed? Pt 1 Despite the similarities of Tolkien's work to the Volsunga saga & the Nibelungenlied, which were the basis for Richard Wagner's opera cycle Der Ring des Nibelungen, Tolkien dismissed critics' direct comparisons to Wagner. pic.twitter.com/jWUcvdqaf6 — Chico Comics Page (@ChicoComicsPage) March 25, 2018

Tolkien has denied this claim, and many people are saying that the Wagner opera was simply used as an inspiration for his book series.

4. The game Pong created by Atari vs. Magnavox

During the 1970s, the founders of Atari have been accused of plagiarism by Magnavox , the game makers responsible for the Odyssey gaming system. According to them, Atari had seen their own tennis game, and copied it to create their game Pong.

Apparently, it was a lawsuit against videogame piracy – Nolan Bushnell was accused of cloning Atari's PONG from Odyssey Magnavox' Ping-Pong. — Videogame Fact Daily (@vgf365) October 2, 2014

The case went on for a long time, before finally reaching an out of court settlement between the two parties involved.

5. The Da Vinci Code written by Dan Brown

Dan Brown, author of The Da Vinci Code, has been accused of plagiarism on two different occasions. Authors Michael Baigent and Richard Lee have accused him of copying their book The Holy Blood and the Holy Grail, but lost the case.

Dan Brown referred to late author, Michael Baigent's inspiration in Da Vinci Code's character, Sir Leigh Teabing as an anagram of Baigent. — Robert Currey (@RobertCurrey) June 21, 2013

Author Lewis Perdue has also accused Brown of plagiarising his book Daughter of God. The court eventually refused to hear his case.

6. Art pieces created by Andy Warhol

Andy Warhol, a leading figure of the pop art movement, has been involved in many lawsuits for his use of photographs in his silk-screened art pieces, which was considered plagiarism since he did not have the permission to use them.

The Velvet Underground have settled their lawsuit with the Andy Warhol foundation over the iconic banana image http://t.co/RMoYSuNqVT — Pitchfork (@pitchfork) May 30, 2013

Whether those cases were settled in or out of court, Warhol had to pay a royalty to the photographers who created the images he had been using.

7. A story written by Helen Keller when she was just 11 years old

Helen Keller is mostly known for being an influential activist, as a deaf and blind woman who overcame many challenges related to her disabilities. But she has also been accused of plagiarism for a story that she wrote when she was 11 years old.

some suspected that deaf mute Helen Keller, who inadvertently plagiarized “The Snow Queen,” was a victim of unethical psychic study. — Kamille Coffaro (@CoffaroReel) December 6, 2012

Her story, The Frost King, was found to be very similar to The Frost Fairies, a story written by Margaret Canby.

8. The song My Sweet Lord released by George Harrison

My Sweet Lord was the first single released by George Harrison as a solo artist. He was almost immediately taken to court for copying the melody of He’s So Fine, a song by The Chiffons.

Sometimes copyright matters are taken too far. Just Like George Harrison back in 1970 with his "My Sweet Lord" that led to a plagiarism lawsuit all the way in 1976 — LadyLotte (@RedheadLotte) March 26, 2019

He was found guilty of unintentional plagiarism, and he bought the publishing company that owned the song. The Chiffons eventually recorded their own version of My Sweet Lord.

9. Seeds of Hope written by Jane Goodall

Primatologist and anthropologist Jane Goodall, mostly known for her work with chimpanzees, has also been involved in a case of plagiarism involving Seeds of Hope, a book she wrote with co-author Gail Hudson.

Jane Goodall addresses accusations of plagiarism in her new book http://t.co/hmEJmoEAyN pic.twitter.com/51LdY8eowj — The Daily Beast (@thedailybeast) April 9, 2014

The book was found to contain text taken from different online sources, including Wikipedia. Goodall apologized for what she called a careless mistake, and her book was revised before finally being published.

10. A dissertation written by Martin Luther King Jr.

Martin Luther King Jr., a well-known leader of the civil rights movement, has been accused of plagiarism many years after his death for a dissertation he had written.

Even Martin Luther King Jr was accused of plagiarism. #Blogcamp13 pic.twitter.com/XeBPVe4FTZ — BloggingGhana (@BloggingGhana) March 23, 2013

When his widow donated the document to the King’s Paper Project, it was found that parts of it had been copied from other authors. It was however believed that he had acted unintentionally.

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4 Famous Cases of Plagiarism

Some of history’s most vaunted writers have been caught stealing material without attribution.

Norway’s minister for research and higher education resigned in January 2024 after a student discovered that parts of her master’s thesis had been taken from another author’s work without attribution—and she’s far from the only public figure who has faced accusations of plagiarism. Let’s revisit a few famous cases of word borrowing.

1. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” Speech

In 1955, Martin Luther King, Jr. received a doctorate in systematic theology from Boston University on the strength of his dissertation comparing the theologians Paul Tillich and Henry Nelson Weiman. In a review long after King’s assassination, though, the university discovered that King had plagiarized about a third of his thesis from another student’s dissertation.

King’s iconic “ I Have a Dream ” speech, delivered at the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, also echoed the work of a colleague. A leading Chicago minister and lawmaker named Archibald Carey, Jr. had given a speech at the 1952 Republican National Convention that ended on an inspiring note :

“From every mountain side, let freedom ring. Not only from the Green Mountains and the White Mountains of Vermont and New Hampshire; not only from the Catskills of New York; but from the Ozarks in Arkansas, from the Stone Mountain in Georgia, from the Great Smokies of Tennessee and from the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia.”

King’s rousing finale in Washington—which was partly improvised on the spot—was noticeably similar, leading some to believe that he was inspired by Carey’s speech:

“And so let freedom ring from the prodigious hilltops of New Hampshire. Let freedom ring from the mighty mountains of New York. Let freedom ring from the heightening Alleghenies of Pennsylvania. Let freedom ring from the snowcapped Rockies of Colorado. Let freedom ring from the curvaceous slopes of California. But not only that, let freedom ring from Stone Mountain of Georgia. Let freedom ring from Lookout Mountain of Tennessee. Let freedom ring from every hill and molehill of Mississippi. From every mountainside, let freedom ring.

“And when this happens, and when we allow freedom ring, when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God’s children, Black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual: Free at last. Free at last. Thank God almighty, we are free at last.”

2. John Milton’s Paradise Lost (by way of William Lauder)

Was the poet behind Paradise Lost a plagiarist? Well, no, but William Lauder, a Scottish scholar and noted forger, sure wanted you to think so. In 1747, embittered by his professional failures, Lauder published several essays in the Gentlemen’s Magazine claiming to prove that Milton had stolen almost all of his 1667 epic poem from other authors. Lauder accused Milton—who was by then deceased—of lifting text from now-obscure works like Hugo Grotius’s Adamus Exul (1601) and Andrew Ramsay’s Poemata Sacra (1633).

There was just one problem: Lauder had forged the “evidence” by inserting lines from Paradise Lost into the other authors’ works. For a while, many scholars (including the great Samuel Johnson ) supported Lauder. But skeptics studied extant copies of the older poems and it soon became obvious that Lauder, not Milton, was the cheat. And cheating, at least in this case, didn’t pay. Lauder fled to Barbados and died in obscurity.

3. Alex Haley’s Roots: The Saga of an American Family

Journalist Alex Haley initially gained prominence for being the “as told to” co-author behind The Autobiography of Malcolm X , published less than a year after the civil rights leader’s assassination in 1965. Haley then went on to publish the epic Roots : The Saga of an American Family in 1976, supposedly a true story in which he traced his own ancestry back to an African man, Kunta Kinte, who was enslaved and forcibly bought to the U.S. in the 18th century. Haley won a Pulitzer Prize the next year, and the book was made into a wildly popular miniseries.

After the book’s publication, however, several historians and authors challenged the truthfulness of the story. In one case, an author named Harold Courlander sued Haley for plagiarizing his 1967 novel, The African . Haley eventually admitted that three paragraphs in the earlier novel had found their way into Roots .

Courlander’s lawyer mentioned an example in court. In The African , enslaved people called to each other in the fields by saying: “well, yooo‐hooo‐ahhooo, don’t you hear me calling you?”

In Roots , the lawyer alleged, the phrase appears almost exactly: “the field hands heard a rising, lingering singsong. Yooo‐hooo‐ah‐hooo, don’t you hear me calling you?”

Haley and Courlander settled the dispute out of court.

4. Stendhal’s The Lives of Haydn, Mozart, and Metastasio

During his life, French writer Stendhal (whose real name was Marie-Henri Beyle) was most famous not for his novels, but for his books about art and travel. Yet, in his published debut, The Lives of Haydn, Mozart , and Metastasio (1814), he plagiarized extensively from at least one previous biography. In a review of a reissued edition in the journal Modern Language Review , a critic described Stendhal’s literary lift:

“[Stendhal] made up his mind to write ... a life of Haydn , about whose music and life he himself knew virtually nothing. This perilous, even ludicrous problem he solved by downright plagiarism ... in a tearing hurry he concocted (or rather brazenly translated) his amazing work, borrowing practically all of it (without a single word of acknowledgment) from a well-known if not remarkably discerning Italian biography of Haydn by Giuseppe Carpani, then a relatively prominent musicologist.”

When Stendhal was confronted with overwhelming evidence of the theft, he took it even further by manufacturing evidence to exonerate himself, the critic continued:

“The author had no qualms at all; he proceeded to invent a facetious brother with a similarly provocative pseudonym, merely to cock snooks at poor old Carpani, beside himself with righteous anger ... [Stendhal] was uncommonly lucky to live in a very easy-going century; otherwise; he might speedily have found himself in some court of bankruptcy.”

At the very least, he could have added forgery to his list of literary crimes.

This article was excerpted from the Mental Floss book Forbidden Knowledge . A version of this story was published in 2012; it has been updated for 2024.

I work on plagiarism — the Harvard case has made my work much harder

Proving plagiarism requires line-by-line examination; there are no easy shortcuts..

Watching the plagiarism allegations unfold against Harvard University president Claudine Gay, who resigned Jan. 2, has filled me with unease: The Harvard case is not a good example of how allegations of research misconduct are typically handled. I fear the aberrations will make my work, and that of my colleagues, much harder going forward.

An accusation of plagiarism, dropped into the ever-churning X stream, threatens due process for the accused. You can’t un-ring the plagiarism bell once it has been struck. The practice of whistleblowing about academic misconduct seems to be changing before our eyes, and not for the better.

Over the years, my research colleagues and I have meticulously documented over 100 cases of serious academic plagiarism. We have submitted the evidence to journal editors and book publishers, requesting published statements of retractions for each of the plagiarizing items. (Sometimes we seek support for retractions from research integrity committees at the home institutions of the suspected plagiarists.) I’ve authored two books on academic plagiarism. But at no point have I ever contacted the plagiarists directly or posted damning accusations on social media. Rather, I engage those who can issue retractions.

Scholars who research plagiarism often get labeled as “ plagiarism hunters ,” which suggests a vendetta. However, I never see myself as going after plagiarists. Rather, I am going after defective publications. My goal is to correct the scholarly record by securing published retractions, not to target people or directly intend their professional demise. Those with institutional roles — not academic whistleblowers — have the responsibility for determining whether those who commit research misconduct can have any academic future. In the Harvard case, the normally separate processes of alleging misconduct and theorizing about punishment have been hopelessly intertwined. Like all types of human failure, plagiarism admits of degrees of gravity, and not all offenses need to be treated equally.

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Plagiarism work is slow, plagiarism investigations are slower, and the processes do not typically play out in public. In my experience, journalists get involved only after much work has been completed: a first retraction has appeared; an institution’s investigation has concluded; or a peer-reviewed article about a failure in research integrity has been published. In the Harvard case, journalists played a key role early on. Social media and traditional media invited scrutiny from many directions, and the motivations of whistleblowers — which are irrelevant for weighing the evidence of suspected research misconduct — were suddenly treated as important.

In recent discussions, the confidence ascribed to text-matching software has been surprising. A slight change in verb tense can generate false negatives from so-called “anti-plagiarism software.” Even when such programs flag certain texts as suspect, a human judgment is required for a determination of plagiarism. The idea that a huge body of texts could be examined accurately for plagiarism with very little effort strikes me as implausible. Proving plagiarism requires line-by-line examination; there are no easy shortcuts.

There are some instances when an attempt is made to reframe a plagiarism investigation away from the integrity of the work in question and toward a public relations campaign intended to protect the reputation of the person being investigated. The first clue is the employment of euphemisms for plagiarism (e.g., “unacknowledged borrowing”). The failure to use precise language strikes me as obfuscation. The second is the focus on the intention of the suspected plagiarist (e.g., “there was no intent to deceive”). An investigation into the mind of the suspected plagiarist is irrelevant for a determination of plagiarism and the need for a retraction. The focus should always be on whether an academic text reliably credits the true author of the words.

Some have suggested that debates over plagiarism are essentially intractable, that no clear standards exist, or that standards have changed in recent years. Those who tout such views would do well to read research integrity scholarship. Determining whether an academic text is plagiarizing is simply asking whether a typical reader can know, on the basis of indicators in the text, whose voice is speaking in the text. If the answer is no, then a failure to credit the real author has occurred. In academic writing, there are a host of conventions — quotation marks, precise footnote placement — for indicating to readers whose voice is speaking in the text. In plagiarizing academic texts, these fundamental conventions have been omitted to the detriment of readers.

All of this brings us to the central question: Why does this matter? Not only are the real authors denied credit for their work but plagiarists gain an unwarranted illusion of productivity. That facade moves worthy candidates to the back of the line when it comes to academic jobs, promotions, grants, speaking invitations, and a host of academic accolades. Academic misconduct creates inefficiencies across the larger academic system.

Academic researchers who publish on plagiarism issues typically did not start out in that area. They usually encountered defective scholarship while pursuing their own research that could not be ignored. We may now have to accept that political motivations, beyond simply correcting the scholarly record, may bring people into the research integrity arena. Plagiarism investigations may become a new tool for securing institutional change, continuing culture wars, and toppling university presidencies.

Michael V. Dougherty holds the Sr. Ruth Caspar Chair in philosophy at Ohio Dominican University.

Globe Opinion

Plagiarism and Academic Honesty

• 1. Introduction
• 2. Plagiarism @ Jefferson College
• 3. Examples of Plagiarism
• Citing Sources Guide This link opens in a new window
• Academic Success Center- OWL This link opens in a new window

Why Students Plagiarize

• Why Do Students Plagiarize? This infographic covers five of the most common reasons that students commit plagiarism.

Test Yourself!

Introduction to plagiarism.

At Jefferson College, academic dishonesty encompasses two things: cheating and plagiarism.  

This guide is to introduce you to the concept of plagiarism : what it is and why it’s something worth caring about. The resources and information provided here are meant to help you avoid plagiarizing (and, therefore, the potentially severe consequences), or if you’ve intentionally or accidentally plagiarized, help give you knowledge and tools to avoid plagiarizing again in the future. 

If you’ve been referred to this course due to intentionally or accidentally plagiarizing, please follow the guide based on the numbered pages on the left. Be sure to read each page thoroughly.

As you work your way through this course, test your understanding by taking the poll on each page. At the end of the guide, you will find the link to take your formal quiz and answers to the polls. 

What is Plagiarism?

Plagiarism is taking the words or ideas of someone else and passing them off as if they are your own. This can include:

• Turning in someone else's work with your name on it
• Copying large pieces of text from a source without proper, or any, citation
• Piecing together text from multiple sources and turning it in as your own
• Copying from a source but changing some words or phrases
• Paraphrasing (rewriting something in your own words) from a number of different sources without citing them
• Buying a paper and turning it in as your own work
• Turning in some of your previous work that you did for another course -- this is self-plagiarism! 

Plagiarism can happen even if you've attempted to cite things properly, too. This can happen if you:

• Mentioned an author or source but didn't provide a bibliographic citation
• Cited a source incorrectly so it's impossible for others to find or verify
• Used a direct quote and cited it, but didn't put quotation marks around the text
• Paraphrased from multiple cited sources, but didn't include any of your own work

Basically, if you’re incorporating anyone else’s words into your own work, you must give them credit and offer your audience a way of finding the original source of the information . The source should be indicated within the content of your work (in-text citations) and also at the end (bibliography, references, notes, etc.)

Why You Want to Avoid Plagiarizing

Getting caught plagiarizing is actually a pretty serious problem. The consequences of plagiarism can be personal, professional, ethical, and even legal. 

Students that commit plagiarism may face:  

• Failure of an assignment or class
• Disciplinary actions like suspension or expulsion
• Being barred from attending other colleges or universities

Professionals that commit plagiarism may face:

• Ruined reputations
• Loss of a job/career
• Legal action
• Financial losses

No one is above getting caught plagiarizing -- not students, academics, journalists, or other successful creators. Consider these famous examples of people whose reputations suffered as a result of being caught plagiarizing:

• Marks Chabedi -- Former academic who plagiarized an entire dissertation by Dr. Kim Lanegran ( read her side of the story here ). He was fired from his professorship at a university in South Africa and his Ph.D. was revoked.
• Alex Haley, author of  Roots: The Saga of an American Family  -- Acclaimed author accused of copying passages from Harold Courlander's book,  The African.  He was sued, settled out of court for $650,000, and released a statement acknowledging that he plagiarized. Read more about that here . 
• Jonah Lehrer -- A (now disgraced) journalist forced to resign from the New Yorker after he was found to have fabricated quotes for a book and self-plagiarized multiple times. Read more here . 

More Resources

• Plagiarism FAQ - University of Oxford
• Plagiarism in One Page - Purdue OWL
• Plagiarism Overview - Purdue OWL
• Next: 2. Plagiarism @ Jefferson College >>
• Last Updated: Sep 12, 2024 8:44 AM
• URL: https://libguides.jeffco.edu/plagiarismguide

The Plagiarism War Has Begun

Claudine Gay was taken down by a politically motivated investigation. Would the same approach work for any academic?

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Updated at 4:10 p.m. ET on January 4, 2024.

When the conservative authors Christopher Rufo and Christopher Brunet accused Harvard’s Claudine Gay last month of having committed plagiarism in her dissertation, they were clearly motivated by a culture-war opportunity . Gay, the school’s first Black president—and, for some critics , an avatar of the identity-politics bureaucracy on college campuses—had just flubbed testimony before Congress about anti-Semitism on campus. She was already under pressure to resign. Evidence of scholarly misconduct was just the parsley decorating an anti-wokeness blue-plate special.

But soon enough, the integrity of Gay’s research became the central issue in a scandal that appears to have led to her resignation on Tuesday. It turned out that the New York Post had gone to Harvard in October with separate allegations of plagiarism in her published articles; and then, earlier this week, still more examples were produced. “My critics found instances in my academic writings where some material duplicated other scholars’ language, without proper attribution,” Gay wrote in a New York Times op-ed shortly after she’d stepped down. She acknowledged having made “citation errors,” and has in recent weeks requested a handful of formal corrections to published works. Still, she avowed in her op-ed, “I have never misrepresented my research findings, nor have I ever claimed credit for the research of others.”

I haven’t either—at least as far as I know. For the past couple of decades, I’ve been a professor at elite research universities; I’ve published 150 or so scholarly articles and conference papers, and 10 books. Might any of these contain the sort of improprieties that led to a university president’s downfall? I felt sure the answer was no, but the question lingered in my mind and was echoed in the claims of the other academics who have lately rushed to Gay’s defense. Some people argued that her citation practices were not egregious or even that they represent business as usual . “If that’s going to count as plagiarism,” one professor wrote , “all writers are vulnerable to it, and anyone who writes anything controversial can expect to suffer for it.” If all writers were vulnerable, was I?

A version of this question lies at the core of many disagreements over Gay’s departure. Does her now-acknowledged sloppiness really stand out among her peers? What would happen if the same degree of scrutiny were applied to the work of any other scholar? In short: Is the baseline rate of these transgressions in academia high or low?

I had no idea. So, as a simple experiment, I decided to launch a targeted plagiarism investigation of myself to see if similar scrutiny of my dissertation, performed for no good reason, could deliver similar results. Perhaps I, too, am guilty of some carelessness that might be taken—maybe out of context, perhaps in bad faith—as a sign of scholarly malfeasance. I promised my editor ahead of time that I’d come clean about whatever I found, reporting any misdeeds to my university’s research-integrity office and facing applicable consequences.

I’ve had a comfortable, 20-year career in academia; perhaps this would be the end of it.

How to do it? The instances of copying in Claudine Gay’s dissertation that I’ve seen are not the kind that jump right out at you, but they are near-direct quotations of other scholars’ work, presented in the form of paraphrases. Brunet and Rufo appear to have reviewed her roughly 200-page text systematically, and I wanted to hew as close to their methods as possible. When I reached out to ask how they’d performed their analysis, Brunet said “No comment” and Rufo didn’t answer. (Isabel Vincent, the Post reporter who had received separate plagiarism allegations from an anonymous source in October, also declined to offer any details.)

I suspected that the probe had been carried out using one of the several plagiarism-detection software packages that are now available for private use. Jonathan Bailey, a copyright and plagiarism consultant who also runs the plagiarism-news website Plagiarism Today , told me that the analysis of Gay’s dissertation is likely to have been carried out with iThenticate, an online service run by the same company that operates the popular student-oriented plagiarism detector Turnitin. “When dealing with cases of research integrity, the best tool is iThenticate,” he said. Turnitin has cooperative agreements with academic publishers, which allows the software to check a document for text shared with sources that would otherwise be hidden behind paywalls or in library archives. “It’s a pricey tool, but in this space, it’s easily the best one out there,” Bailey added. (Turnitin didn’t respond when I asked whether iThenticate might have been used to investigate Gay’s work.)

Tyler Austin Harper : The real Harvard scandal

On December 29, I downloaded my thesis from the institutional repository at UCLA, where I had earned my doctorate, signed up for an iThenticate account, and arranged for The Atlantic to pay the standard rate of $300 to analyze my dissertation’s 68,038 words.

Then I started to wonder what the hell I was doing. I had fairly strong confidence in the integrity of my work. My dissertation is about how to do cultural criticism of computational works such as software, simulations, and video games—a topic that was novel enough in 2004, when I filed it, that there wasn’t a ton of material for me to copy even if I’d wanted to. But other factors worked against me. Like Gay, who submitted her dissertation in 1997, I wrote mine during a period when computers were commonplace but the scholarly literature wasn’t yet easily searchable. That made it easier for acts of plagiarism, whether intended or not, to go unnoticed. Was it really worth risking my career to overturn those rocks?

On the principle that only a coward hides from the truth, I pressed the “Upload” button on the iThenticate website, waited for the progress bar to fill, then closed my laptop. When I came back for my report the next day, it felt a little like calling up my doctor’s office for the news, possibly bad, about whatever test they had run on my aging, mortal body. I took a breath and clicked to see my result.

It was 74. Was I a plagiarist? This, apparently, was my answer. Plagiarism isn’t normally summed up as a number, so I didn’t know quite how to respond. It seemed plausible that 74 might be a good score. Turns out it wasn’t: The number describes what percentage of a document’s material is similar to text from its database of reference works. My result—my 74—suggested that three-quarters of my dissertation had been copied from other sources. “What the heck?” I said aloud, except I didn’t say “heck . ”

This seemed wrong to me. I was there when I wrote the thing, and I’d have remembered copying seven out of every 10 words from other sources, even 20 years later. Turns out it was wrong. I wrote the dissertation from 2002 to 2004, and the plagiarism software checks a work against whatever it finds—even if the compared text was published later. As Bailey told me, “iThenticate doesn’t detect plagiarism. It detects copied or similar text.” From there, Bailey said, “You have to do a lot of manual work.”

So I started doing the manual work.

The first, most obvious source of my plagiarism score was the fact that I’d subsequently published a book based on my dissertation (a common practice in academia), which itself appeared in many forms throughout the iThenticate database. In other words, the software suggested that I’d plagiarized my dissertation from a future version of myself. But to confirm each of these false-positives, a plagiarism sleuth like myself has to go through the report and click on each allegedly copied source individually.

Once I’d excluded the literal copies of (and commentaries upon) my own work from the analysis, my similarity index dropped to 26 percent. Phew! But iThenticate still listed 288 possible sources of copying. Exonerating myself was going to take a while.

I noticed that a lot of the matches were citations of other books, articles, or materials. iThenticate has a checkbox to “Exclude bibliography,” so I ticked it. Now my score was down to 23. Other matches were literal quotes, which I had quoted with footnotes to their sources. Ticking another checkbox, “Exclude quotes,” brought my similarity index to 9.

Most of the remaining matches were boilerplate chaff. The institutional-archive copy of my dissertation had added a line to the footer of each page, “Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission.” iThenticate had matched a dozen or more other dissertations with the same notice, including “Pathogenesis of Bartonella Henselae in the Domestic Cat” and “Hyperdeprivation and Race-Specific Homicide, 1980–1990.” Laboriously excluding those and similar materials left me with 87 potential instances of plagiarism, and a similarity index of 3.

I carefully reviewed the matches that remained. Some were just citations of my work. Others were appropriately footnoted quotations that I’d used, but that iThenticate hadn’t construed as such because they were indented in the text. I also had to click through titles or other proper names that were showing up as copied phrases. Bibliographic citations that the filter hadn’t caught came up too. So did a lot of textual noise—phrases such as to preserve the , which appeared in similar patterns across unrelated materials.

After a couple of hours of work, I still had 60 individual entries to review, each requiring precision mousing to assess and exclude. Determined to see if I’d copied any original work according to the software, I persisted—after all, some of the instances of plagiarism that had sunk Claudine Gay were measured in the tens of words. But not one single match that iThenticate had found amounted to illegitimate copying. In the end, my dissertation’s fraud factor had dropped from 74 percent to zero.

The story I’ve told above has been fact-checked by The Atlantic , although the checking did not replicate the several hours of manual verification. And I realize that on some level I’m just asking you to trust me when I report that the work I analyzed does not include uncited text from other authors. I can only hope the same is true of all my other published research.

Does this imply that Gay’s record is unusual among professors? Not in and of itself. Her field of quantitative social science may have different standards for textual reference. The sciences are more concerned with the originality of research findings than the descriptions of experiments. But it does at least refute the case that this was nothing more than academic jaywalking, or, in its purest straw-man form, that everybody does it .

But even if there’s substance to this Harvard scandal, I’m more afraid of what it may portend. The result of my experiment brought me no relief, only a new anxiety. The very ease of the self-investigation, conducted at a relatively modest cost with the help of powerful technology, hints at how a full-bore plagiarism war could end up playing out. In her New York Times op-ed, Gay admitted that she’d been wrong to copy text without attribution. She also characterized the campaign against her as part of a coordinated attempt to undermine educational institutions and their leaders. On both counts, she was right.

Similar probes are sure to follow. Business Insider has already published allegations that Neri Oxman, a former professor at MIT and the wife of the Harvard donor and vociferous Gay critic Bill Ackman, plagiarized in her dissertation, too. (In a post on X, former Twitter, Oxman acknowledged some improper citations and wrote, “I regret and apologize for these errors.”) And after Gay resigned, Rufo announced that he would contribute $10,000 to a “‘plagiarism hunting’ fund” meant to “expose rot” and “restore truth.” That’s enough dough to test a few dozen dissertations or a few hundred articles with iThenticate, and their authors wouldn’t be able to dismiss the findings solely as the product of “bad faith.” I suppose that’s good news for companies such as Turnitin. (Academics may be getting their just deserts for subjecting students to constant surveillance with the company’s student-focused plagiarism-detection software.)

Read: The first year of AI college ends in ruin

If a plagiarism war does break out, I suspect that universities and their leaders will end up fighting it defensively, with bureaucratic weapons directed inward. “If I were a school looking to appoint a new president,” Bailey told me, “I’d consider doing this kind of analysis before doing so.” To run standard plagiarism checks on top brass may end up seeming reasonable, but with that policy in place, what’s to stop beleaguered and embattled administrators from insisting on the same—best practices!—before any faculty hire or award of tenure? Academic publishers could demand iThenticate-style checks on all submissions. Legislatures could demand plagiarism-assessment reports from state colleges, with a special focus on fields that are purportedly “woke.”

Plagiarism assessment, with automated accusations and manual rebuttals, could become a way of life, a necessary evil brought about by, yes, the bad actors who seek to undermine educational institutions and their leaders. That isn’t likely to improve academic work, but it would certainly make higher education worse.

This story previously stated that Neri Oxman is a professor at MIT. Business Insider reports that, according to the university, Oxman left in 2021.

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Knowing and Avoiding Plagiarism During Scientific Writing

P mohan kumar.

Department of Periodontics, St. Joseph Dental College, Duggirala, Eluru, Andhra Pradesh, India

N Swapna Priya

1 Department of Dental Surgery, S.V Medical College, Tirupati, Andhra Pradesh, India

SVVS Musalaiah

Plagiarism has become more common in both dental and medical communities. Most of the writers do not know that plagiarism is a serious problem. Plagiarism can range from simple dishonesty (minor copy paste/any discrepancy) to a more serious problem (major discrepancy/duplication of manuscript) when the authors do cut-copy-paste from the original source without giving adequate credit to the main source. When we search databases like PubMed/MedLine there is a lot of information regarding plagiarism. However, it is still a current topic of interest to all the researchers to know how to avoid plagiarism. It's time to every young researcher to know ethical guidelines while writing any scientific publications. By using one's own ideas, we can write the paper completely without looking at the original source. Specific words from the source can be added by using quotations and citing them which can help in not only supporting your work and amplifying ideas but also avoids plagiarism. It is compulsory to all the authors, reviewers and editors of all the scientific journals to know about the plagiarism and how to avoid it by following ethical guidelines and use of plagiarism detection software while scientific writing.

Introduction

Medical and dental writing includes presentation of different scientific documents that consists research related topics, case presentations, and review articles, which help in educating and promoting health related information to the general public. Hence, all the medical and dental writers along with language skills and the ability to interpret the data, they should also be familiar in searching literature, understanding and presenting ones ideas or thoughts in the form of articles submitted to the number of available scientific journals.[ 1 , 2 ]

Due to the lack of education on plagiarism among the educational institutions and the members of journal holders we are allowing some types of plagiarized articles to publish.

In simple words, plagiarism is the use of others ideas or work without any credit to the original authors. In other words, taking credit for others work whether intentionally or unintentionally.[ 3 ]

Main route cause of plagiarism among dental and medical writers is the competitive stress among them and the availability of any information of others in the electronic media.[ 4 , 5 , 6 ] As the plagiarism is an unethical publication practice, it has to be avoided at the first stage itself.[ 7 ]

When the dental/medical writers want to publish a scientific paper, they have to be very specific, accurate and honest about the concept of the research. First, the author has to take sufficient time to read and understand thoroughly the main source of the article, and then he can organize into his own ideas or thoughts. Before submitting their ideas or manuscript to the journal office, the author has to rewrite the article in his own words without seeing from the original source and in doubt, takes help of the guide/instructor.[ 4 , 7 , 8 ]

This article reviews plagiarism at different levels, consequences, guidelines to avoid plagiarism and benefits from avoiding plagiarism.

Plagiarism Definition

The word plagiarism is derived from Latin. “Plagiare means to kidnap.”[ 3 ]

Office of research integrity definition

The Office of Research Integrity describes plagiarism as “theft or misappropriation of intellectual property and the substantial unattributed textual copying of another's work. It does not include authorship or credit disputes. The theft or misappropriation of intellectual property includes the unauthorized use of ideas or unique methods obtained by a privileged communication, such as a grant or manuscript review. Substantial unattributed textual copying of another's work means the unattributed verbatim or nearly verbatim copying of sentences and paragraphs which materially mislead the ordinary reader regarding the contributions of the author.”

Committee on publication ethics definition

In 1999, the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) defined plagiarism as, “plagiarism ranges from the unreferenced use of others’ published and unpublished ideas, including research grant applications to submission under “new” authorship of a complete paper, sometimes in a different language. It may occur at any stage of planning, research, writing, or publication: It applies to print and electronic versions.”

According to the Oxford English Dictionary, Plagiarism is defined as - “the action or practice of taking someone else's work, idea, etc., and passing it off as one's own; literary theft.”

The World Association of Medical Editors defines plagiarism as - “the use of others published and unpublished ideas or words (or other intellectual property) without attribution or permission, and presenting them as new and original rather than derived from and existing source.”[ 3 , 4 ]

Plagiarism is defined as the appropriation or imitation of the language, ideas and thoughts of another author and representation of them as one's original work. (The Random House Dictionary of the English Language - unabridged).

Academic dishonesty has reached from students in the classroom to the presenters in the scientific sessions and even to the reviewers and editors of unauthorized journal offices.[ 9 , 10 ]

The following are some of the common possible causes for the increase in plagiarism. For example: Due to the increased competition or laziness among students while writing dissertation and professional over ambition, competition or publish or perish attitude for promotion among young authors could be the result of plagiarism. Reviewers and editors of different scientific journals are also responsible to avoid plagiarism by using plagiarism detecting software before publishing the research.[ 2 , 11 , 12 , 13 ]

Source and Method of Data Collection

Availability of internet facilities and free online journals are the main sources of today's plagiarism among the students, faculty and researchers of any profession.[ 5 , 6 , 14 , 15 , 16 ]

Advancement in technology in conversion of text format into the electronic version, rise in competition levels and “publish or perish” attitude are the some important factors prone to plagiarism among the students/staff/researchers of educational institutions.[ 15 , 16 , 17 ]

Data collection

An online search on “plagiarism” was performed using PubMed/MedLine databases. In the MedLine each reference to the medical literature is indexed under a controlled vocabulary called medical subject headings (MeSH). These MeSH terms acts as a key to search the medical and dental literature. Thus MedLine/PubMed databases are used to search for literature which is available online throughout the world. Initially, 1121 references are obtained in PubMed/MedLine databases on the term “plagiarism” until date. A total of 893 articles are published on plagiarism under MeSH.

After filtering and based on the selection criteria, 35 articles were included in this review. The articles which are related to the dental and medical scientific writing were included in this review. It has taken 6 months for searching, filtering and selecting all the articles to include in this review. The sequence of data collection is demonstrated in Chart 1 .

A flow chart diagram showing the steps used for selecting the articles included in this review

As there is no sufficient literature on this subject (topic), it is the time to educate all the professions on how to avoid plagiarism through the journals and educational institutions in order to prevent publishing diluted researches.

Common Types of Plagiarism

Plagiarism can be of various types. Plagiarism may be intentional or unintentional.

Intentional plagiarism

“Buying or borrowing or cut-copy-paste” or using some others work partly or completely without giving adequate credit to the original author results in intentional plagiarism.[ 7 , 8 , 9 ]

Unintentional plagiarism

Using some others work with wrong paraphrasing or improper citation refers to unintentional plagiarism.[ 1 , 7 , 8 , 9 ]

According to the COPE various types of plagiarism can be distinguished based on factors like: Extent (minor or major plagiarism), originality of copied material, type of material plagiarized, sources referenced or not, authors intention. The following are the most common forms of plagiarism seen in medical and dental publications:

• Plagiarism of ideas: When the author “uses the ideas or thoughts of some others and presents as his own”[ 3 ] without giving adequate credit to the original authors results in plagiarism of ideas. For example, using the ideas from the previously published articles by postgraduate students while doing their dissertation work.
• Plagiarism of text/direct plagiarism/word-for-word plagiarism: According to Roig this kind of plagiarism is defined as “copying a portion of text from another source without giving credit to its author and without enclosing the borrowed text in quotation marks.”[ 1 , 3 , 9 ] For example, most of the young authors do not know how to write and give a credit to the original work from where they have chosen. They just cut and paste from the original source and create an article without giving sufficient credit to the authors who has done the original work.
• Mosaic plagiarism (patchwork plagiarism): When the author fails to write in his own words and “uses the same words or phrases or paragraphs of the original source” without giving adequate credit results in mosaic plagiarism.[ 3 , 7 ] For example, when the authors borrow words/sentences from the original source and do patchwork to his article results in patchwork or mosaic plagiarism.
• Self-plagiarism: “Stealing or borrowing some amount of work” from his or her previously published articles refers to self-plagiarism.[ 1 , 3 , 7 , 8 ] For example, using one's own work partly and publishes the article in different journals results in self-plagiarism.

Penalties for Plagiarism

Since plagiarism can range from simple dishonesty to a serious problem, penalty depends on the severity of plagiarism. It ranges from formal disciplinary action (apology letters, retraction of the published article) to criminal charges (suspension and prosecution of authors).[ 1 , 17 , 18 , 19 , 20 , 21 ]

Example: “A practicing psychiatrist and radio and television broadcaster in London had to step down as director of the Center for Public Engagement in Mental Sciences in the institute where he was employed and was suspended from practice for 3 months by the General Medical Council.”[ 22 , 23 ]

Detection of Plagiarism

All the medical and dental ethical writers must check for the text duplication unintentionally by using plagiarism detection software before submitting to any journal office. Reviewers also should use plagiarism detection tools in order to avoid false publication practice by both intentional and unintentional authors. When the manuscript passes from the reviewers to the editors without identifying the copied text or ideas, the editor of the journal should finalize the fate of the article based on the extent of plagiarism by using powerful plagiarism detection software. The following are few plagiarism detection software which helps in screening for matching text in the article submitted by the authors.[ 24 , 25 , 26 , 27 , 28 , 29 ]

• Cross Check™
• http://www.ithenticate.com
• https://turnitin.com/static/index
• Viper ( http://www.scanmyessay.com/plagiarism - free software)
• Software like eTBLAST
• SafeAssign™
• WCopyFind™
• http://www.checkforplagiarism.net
• http://www.grammarly.com
• Sometimes simple Google Search also helps in detecting plagiarism.

Guidelines to Publish a Quality Paper without Plagiarism

Many of the students and authors still do not know the proper way of citing the sources. In order to produce a quality paper every author should follow the following guidelines.[ 3 , 22 , 30 , 31 , 32 , 33 ]

Few good rules to avoid a charge of plagiarism are:

• Take sufficient time to complete your work
• Understand the whole concept and write the new ideas in your own words
• Avoid “copy-paste”
• Always use few appropriate and accurate sources as possible
• Learn how and when to quote and also avoid patchwork
• Always cite new and in doubt, not common language
• Follow the author's guidelines according to the biomedical journals
• Cite references accurately
• Always acknowledge and give sufficient credit to the original sources
• Avoid writing several articles of the same type and submitting to different journals at the same time
• Consult with a translator or native speaker before sending the final proof of the manuscript to the scientific journals
• Use anti-plagiarism tools to detect any accidental plagiarism. For example, plagiarism detection software like Cross Check
• Enclose the covering letter to the editor regarding for any overlap unintentionally.

Benefits of Avoiding Plagiarism

When writing a good scientific paper one should diagnose for any plagiarized material which helps in avoiding misrepresentation of any hypothesis or scientific misconduct. Table 1 enumerates the key messages given by the authors on knowing and avoiding plagiarism during scientific writing. Thus, every young author tries to learn how to write or present an article or research work in his own words by following the rules of good scientific writing. With the help of anti-plagiarism tools one can avoid duplicate manuscripts at journal office. Thus, it gives immense respect and truthfulness toward science and gives the way for quality papers to publish. Lastly, by rejecting plagiarized articles at journal office by the editor, it also helps every author to think for newer concepts.[ 23 , 26 , 33 , 34 , 35 ]

Summarize the key message given by all the authors on plagiarism in different articles which are included in this review

Summary and Conclusion

In order to publish a good scientific paper, one has to make an honest effort to read the original sources thoroughly and then put down one's own ideas or thoughts in his own words with proper paraphrasing, citation and by using quotation marks where ever necessary to avoid plagiarism.

With the advancement of technological field, even the dental and medical writers need to think new for ideas, concepts, techniques or for any hypothesis which further helps in the advancement of dental and medical field.

Source of Support: Nil.

Conflict of Interest: None declared.

Prevent plagiarism, run a free plagiarism check.

• Knowledge Base
• Consequences of Mild, Moderate & Severe Plagiarism

Consequences of Mild, Moderate & Severe Plagiarism

Published on October 18, 2021 by Tegan George . Revised on May 30, 2024.

If you use someone else’s words or ideas without properly crediting them, you could be committing plagiarism . The consequences of plagiarism vary based on the severity of the offense.

Plagiarism can also have serious consequences in high school and during the college application process . Many high schools use plagiarism checkers and treat plagiarism the same way colleges do, and admissions officers will typically disregard your application if they find you’ve plagiarized any part of it.

Table of contents

What colleges say about the consequences of plagiarism, why is plagiarism so serious, frequently asked questions about plagiarism.

Plagiarism in college has serious consequences, even when committed by accident. You can usually find the details of your institution’s plagiarism policy and examples of plagiarism in your code of conduct. If you’re unsure about the specifics, ask your instructor.

Some examples from different institutions are shown below.

• American University
• Cerro Coso Community College

“Academic Integrity Code violations are treated very seriously. The misperceived short-term gain from these acts is not worth the long-term consequences of the penalty.

“Sanctions for code violations include loss of credit for the assignment, a failing grade for the course, a permanent notation on the transcript, and dismissal from the university. Second offenses will result in suspension or dismissal from the university.”

Source: American University

“While it is recognized that scholarly work often involves reference to the ideas, data and conclusions of other scholars, intellectual honesty requires that such references be explicitly and clearly noted. Plagiarism is a serious academic offence.”

Source: University of Calgary

“If you are found responsible for academic misconduct, appropriate grade penalties for the infraction will be at the discretion of the instructor in accordance to the syllabus or the course/department policy, if applicable. Grade penalties can range from a grade reduction on the assessment to failure of the course.

In addition, you may also be assigned college sanctions by the Office of Student Academic Affairs.   Most first-time offenses of academic misconduct result in a college-level sanction of disciplinary probation.  

Source: University of Michigan

“An instructor who determines that a student has cheated or plagiarized has a range of many options, which may be as severe as giving the student a failing grade for the course. Furthermore, the student may face other penalties as stated in the college’s Student Conduct Policy. Finally, it must be understood that a student who knowingly aids in another student’s cheating e.g., permitting the other student to copy a paper or examination question, is as guilty as the other of the offense.”

Source: Cerro Coso Community College

Prevent plagiarism. Run a free check.

You might wonder why universities and other organizations impose such serious consequences for plagiarism, even when it’s accidental.

Plagiarism amounts to theft, and there are good reasons for institutions (and for you!) to take it seriously. Plagiarism:

• Is dishonest : When done deliberately, plagiarism indicates that the person responsible is not honest about their work, which is a problem in any context.
• Harms the person you’re plagiarizing: It’s easy to see why you wouldn’t want your writing stolen and passed off as someone else’s—especially in publishing.
• Hinders the learning process: If you’re stealing words and ideas from others, your own creativity is not being tested, and you’re not learning.
• Obscures the sources of ideas: All academic writing builds on the ideas of others, and it’s important that the reader can clearly trace where those ideas came from.
• Results in bad writing: Whatever the quality of the text(s) you’re plagiarizing, a paper made up of a patchwork of different unacknowledged sources is usually a mess.

The consequences of plagiarism vary depending on the type of plagiarism and the context in which it occurs. For example, submitting a whole paper by someone else will have the most severe consequences, while accidental citation errors are considered less serious.

If you’re a student, then you might fail the course, be suspended or expelled, or be obligated to attend a workshop on plagiarism. It depends on whether it’s your first offense or you’ve done it before.

As an academic or professional, plagiarizing seriously damages your reputation. You might also lose your research funding or your job, and you could even face legal consequences for copyright infringement.

Plagiarism has serious consequences , and can indeed be illegal in certain scenarios.

While most of the time plagiarism in an undergraduate setting is not illegal, plagiarism or self-plagiarism in a professional academic setting can lead to legal action, including copyright infringement and fraud. Many scholarly journals do not allow you to submit the same work to more than one journal, and if you do not credit a co-author, you could be legally defrauding them.

Even if you aren’t breaking the law, plagiarism can seriously impact your academic career. While the exact consequences of plagiarism vary by institution and severity, common consequences include: a lower grade, automatically failing a course, academic suspension or probation, or even expulsion.

Plagiarism is a form of theft, since it involves taking the words and ideas of others and passing them off as your own. As such, it’s academically dishonest and can have serious consequences .

Plagiarism also hinders the learning process, obscuring the sources of your ideas and usually resulting in bad writing. Even if you could get away with it, plagiarism harms your own learning.

Accidental plagiarism is one of the most common examples of plagiarism . Perhaps you forgot to cite a source, or paraphrased something a bit too closely. Maybe you can’t remember where you got an idea from, and aren’t totally sure if it’s original or not.

These all count as plagiarism, even though you didn’t do it on purpose. When in doubt, make sure you’re citing your sources . Also consider running your work through a plagiarism checker tool prior to submission, which work by using advanced database software to scan for matches between your text and existing texts.

Scribbr’s Plagiarism Checker takes less than 10 minutes and can help you turn in your paper with confidence.

Self-plagiarism means recycling work that you’ve previously published or submitted as an assignment. It’s considered academic dishonesty to present something as brand new when you’ve already gotten credit and perhaps feedback for it in the past.

If you want to refer to ideas or data from previous work, be sure to cite yourself.

If you’re concerned that you may have self-plagiarized, Scribbr’s Self-Plagiarism Checker can help you turn in your paper with confidence. It compares your work to unpublished or private documents that you upload, so you can rest assured that you haven’t unintentionally plagiarized.

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George, T. (2024, May 30). Consequences of Mild, Moderate & Severe Plagiarism. Scribbr. Retrieved September 13, 2024, from https://www.scribbr.com/plagiarism/consequences-of-plagiarism/

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