Deans Bader, Weiss must broaden concept of honor code committee
Recently, Deans Bader and Weiss formed the "Honor Code Committee." An e-mail sent on Feb. 8, 2002 described this committee as "map[ing] out our approach to evaluating an honor code at Hopkins." While I applaud the deans' effort, it seems they are missing the overall purpose of an honor code. McCabe and Trevino (1996) found that, "The climate or culture of academic integrity found on a campus may be the most important determinant of the level of student cheating on that campus." Thus, honor codes are effective because they create a discussion where the topic of academic ethics is not taboo, but socially acceptable.