Plagiarism

A word that, in my experience, is not completely understood. Plagiarism is something that doesn’t have its boundaries clearly defined, or to be more precise, has its boundaries defined differently by different cultures and sub-cultures. In midst of such variety, I find the standard definition given by the Merriam Webster’s Collegiate dictionary, a good starting point. Here’s what the dictionary offers:

"Plagiarize (1716): to steal and pass off (the ideas or words of another) as one’s own: use (another’s production) as without crediting the source. ~vi: to commit literary theft: present as new and original an idea of product derived from an existing source."(Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, 10th Edition)

Strong words indeed, but if presenting someone else’s jewels, cash, or any other material possessions as one’s own, can brand a person a thief, why shouldn’t it be the same with ideas, which are infinitely more powerful and precious than any material possession?

Whenever we’ve talked about plagiarism in my trainings, I’ve always found that different opinions exist on what may or may not be termed as plagiarism. Often people who had a perfectly valid understanding of what would qualify as plagiarism in one situation were baffled when presented with another. This happens because we try to understand plagiarism as a technical issue instead of an ethical one.

If we asked ourselves whether it is ethical to take someone’s Rolex while he is not looking, wear it to a party, and enjoy the admiration that the watch invoked…we will answer with a categorical “NO.” Taking ideas from people when they aren’t looking, passing them as our own, and deceiving the admiring readers into believing that those ideas that won their approval were ours; falls into the same category of unethical actions.

Technical guidelines along with lists of possible penalties abound. I don’t, for a moment, underestimate or deny their importance. They are there to help us test our work for pitfalls, but what I am trying to underline here is the importance of realizing that abhorrence of plagiarism needs to be woven into our social and moral fabric. In this area we, authors and teachers, have a responsibility higher than any other segment of our society. We ought to tread very carefully, so that our writing and our ideas stay free of the stain of plagiarism.

The moment plagiarism transforms into an ethical issue from a mere technical one, we’ve won half the battle. I say this because the definitions of moral and immoral, by and large remain the same all over the world. Following will be considered immoral in almost the whole world.

• Taking away someone’s property without his or her knowledge
• Gaining commercially by selling someone else’s property
• Gaining publicity by claiming someone else’s property as your own

Just replace the word property by intellectual property and there is a good chance that you will never go wrong.

Does this end the discussion on plagiarism?

• All that is fine, but then what should I do when I have to take someone else’s idea forward. Am I plagiarizing?
• What if I am writing a thesis? I have to synthesize ideas from many authors. How can I do it without plagiarizing?
• What if I am an artist and I want to learn from great masters? Is it a crime to copy for learning?
• There is so much information on the web. We use it for reference all the time. Are we plagiarizing?
• Is there a sure-fire way of avoiding plagiarism?
  

This list is not exhaustive, at best it’s indicative of the questions that we would like answered. Here are a few simple guidelines (in addition to the mother guideline mentioned earlier:)

• If you are using other people’s ideas as a basis for your work, acknowledge them. There are different ways to do this. At the end of this article you will find a list of links, which can be of immense help.
• If you are an artist and you want to copy to learn, you can do it. The point is that you can’t sell the copy. Then again, you have copyright guidelines, which place works from old masters in the “public domain.” These works can be referred to without seeking copyright permission. And the great news is that some of these works are so recognizable that it’s impossible to pass them as one’s work. If you don’t believe me, imagine someone saying that he painted Monalisa, or that he wrote the four lines from Macbeth.
• If you want to let your readers have the benefit of some golden bit of information that exists on the web, simply link it. Your readers feel happy, you’ve acknowledged the author in the best possible manner, and your work is much richer than before.
• I think there isn’t a sure-fire way to ensure that you are 100% free from plagiarism. After all, for all the randomness that exists in this world, there is always a chance that someone, somewhere thought of the same idea before you did.
  But then what I’ve discovered is that if you write what’s in your mind, you are very nearly free from plagiarism. For those whose work makes it compulsory for them to write by referring, I suggest an “assimilation break.” After reading what others have to say, get away from the references for at least 3-4 hours, form your own idea, then begin writing. Once you are done, review your work, and add the references with acknowledgements.

I know that this is just the tip of the iceberg. Lurking beneath the surface is the fear of the unknown. To end this discussion, I would like to implore everyone to fight this fear of unknown by acknowledging its existence. Once you’ve acknowledged it, begin discussing it with your colleagues. Help each other through reviews and sharing information. If something’s been stopping you so far, break away the shackles; use the hammer of this article.

One Last Word: Ignorance of plagiarism laws can lead a company into lawsuits and careers into oblivion. If we try to seek shelter under the cultural umbrella by saying that when we did it in school or college, it wasn’t considered wrong, why should it be considered a crime now; we now have to realize that our horizons are expanding fast and the umbrella is shrinking away.

Check out the following links for some guidelines on quoting, paraphrasing, referencing, and avoiding plagiarism.

• http://www.indiana.edu/~wts/pamphlets/plagiarism.shtml
• http://www.georgetown.edu/honor/plagiarism.html
• http://owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/research/r_plagiar.html
• http://sja.ucdavis.edu/avoid.htm

Also check this link. This will give us an idea on how severely plagiarism is dealt with in some US universities.

• http://www.aaps.ed.ac.uk/regulations/Plagiarism/Guidance2004/CAMOTariff.doc
  

I wait for the day when such tariffs become a norm in our universities.

Author: Shafali R. Anand