Tue, Aug 25, 2026
| فارسی
1- University of Tehran
Abstract: (22 Views)
Introduction: Unethical behaviors have significant consequences across social, economic, and cultural domains. Organizations and businesses incur substantial financial losses due to fraud, corruption, and other unethical practices. At the societal level, non-adherence to ethical principles undermines social trust, increases injustice, and contributes to social deviance. Despite extensive research, the combined effects of situational temptation and honesty-related priming on dishonest behavior remain insufficiently understood.
Methods: This study examined the effect of tempting conditions on honesty and the role of self-control and honesty-related priming in reducing cheating behavior using a 2×3 factorial design. A total of 230 university students participated and were randomly assigned to three levels of temptation and two conditions of honesty priming. All participants completed a 25-item multiple-choice general knowledge test with a separate answer sheet, allowing opportunities for self-reporting and potential cheating. In the priming conditions, participants completed a MediaLab-based multiple-choice task prior to the main task, which involved selecting synonyms for words related to honesty, integrity, and trustworthiness. Cheating behavior was operationalized as the discrepancy between self-reported scores and actual performance. Data were analyzed using factorial ANOVA in SPSS version 27.
Results: Findings indicated a significant effect of tempting conditions on cheating behavior (F(6) = 7.747, p < .05). However, neither increased temptation nor honesty priming affected dishonest reporting (p > .05). No interaction effect was observed.
Conclusion: The findings indicate that individuals are more likely to engage in cheating when the probability of detecting dishonest behavior is low. However, such behavior does not escalate excessively and tends to remain within a constrained range. Furthermore, the results suggest that honesty-related priming prior to exposure to tempting situations is insufficient, on its own, to enhance self-control or reduce dishonest behavior
Methods: This study examined the effect of tempting conditions on honesty and the role of self-control and honesty-related priming in reducing cheating behavior using a 2×3 factorial design. A total of 230 university students participated and were randomly assigned to three levels of temptation and two conditions of honesty priming. All participants completed a 25-item multiple-choice general knowledge test with a separate answer sheet, allowing opportunities for self-reporting and potential cheating. In the priming conditions, participants completed a MediaLab-based multiple-choice task prior to the main task, which involved selecting synonyms for words related to honesty, integrity, and trustworthiness. Cheating behavior was operationalized as the discrepancy between self-reported scores and actual performance. Data were analyzed using factorial ANOVA in SPSS version 27.
Results: Findings indicated a significant effect of tempting conditions on cheating behavior (F(6) = 7.747, p < .05). However, neither increased temptation nor honesty priming affected dishonest reporting (p > .05). No interaction effect was observed.
Conclusion: The findings indicate that individuals are more likely to engage in cheating when the probability of detecting dishonest behavior is low. However, such behavior does not escalate excessively and tends to remain within a constrained range. Furthermore, the results suggest that honesty-related priming prior to exposure to tempting situations is insufficient, on its own, to enhance self-control or reduce dishonest behavior
Type of Study: Research |
Received: 2025/09/4 | Accepted: 2026/08/25
Received: 2025/09/4 | Accepted: 2026/08/25
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