By Adesina Wahab

A study by Francis Ayegbunam Ikenga, Lucas Oluka, and Patrick Nkemdilim Ijeh, all of Delta State University Abraka, has found that the use of digital media platforms among postgraduate students leads to the manifestation of unethical practices like falsification, plagiarism, and fabrication.

The researchers also reported that undergraduate students significantly rely on artificial intelligence to carry out tasks that they should do. 

The result of the study further revealed that both male and female students are guilty, as no significant interactive role of gender was detected. Consequently, they concluded that digital media platforms have seriously challenged enforcing research integrity.

To arrive at the conclusion, the researchers used a descriptive survey research design to examine 179 postgraduate students in Nigeria. They collected data using a structured questionnaire and presented the results in tables. 

The study was published in the special issue of Ianna Journal of Interdisciplinary Studies, a Scopus-indexed journal established by Dr Gever Verlumun, a Nigerian communication scholar from the Department of Mass Communication, University of Nigeria, Nsukka. A grant from the Centre for Advanced Internet Studies, Bochum, Germany, supported the special issue titled “Digital media and research in 21st-century society: Assessing the current trends and projecting the future.” The research article title is “Impact of Digital Media on the Manifestation of Unethical Practice in Research among Graduate Students.