The major finding of this study was that the
majority of students in the online environ-
ment were able to define cheating. Acro
ss all the definitions was recognition of the
unique characteristics of online learning and that there are differences between the expec-
tations in an online and classroom based course
. A clear majority of these students
identified breaking the rules, dishonesty a
nd not doing the work as behaviors emblematic
of cheating. While these behaviors are intern
ally motivated, the students noted they are
influenced by the boundaries of
the learning behavi
ors established in
each course by the
faculty. These students did not view ch
eating as a means of succeeding. However,
slightly more than one-third of respondents
did perceive cheating as
a way of achieving
success. These participants defined cheating in
terms of external motivators or the tangi-
ble outcome, most frequently better grades. Th
ese findings shed consid
erable light on the
students’ perspective of chea
ting in online courses and have
implications for faculty
teaching in the online environment.