Understanding of plagiarism amid North-African post-graduate dental students: A cross sectional pilot study

Background Plagiarism remains poorly understood among post-graduate dental students (PGDSs) in North Africa. Data on the level of understanding of plagiarism (UP) in this population is lacking. This study assessed UP of Tunisian PGDSs'. Methods A cross-sectional pilot study was conducted at the Faculty of Dental Medicine of Monastir, involving 147 PGDSs registered in 2022. Students were recruited via email invitations and convenience sampling at a medical congress. A French survey with 11 questions on UP, offering three-choice answers (yes/no/maybe) was administered. Each correct answer received one point, and a total UP score below six indicated a low-level of UP. Results The mean±SD UP score of the 106 students who accepted to participate in the study was 4.7±2.2, indicating a low-level of UP. The majority of PGDSs (81.13%) demonstrated a low-level of UP. A comparison between subjective and objective assessments of UP revealed that a significant percentage of PGDSs underestimated their understanding (81.13% vs. 62.26%, respectively). The two groups of PGDSs with low (n=86) and acceptable/excellent (n=20) UP showed comparable characteristics in terms of age, sex, discipline, post-graduate-level, experience-level, graduation-status, and survey-response modality. Conclusion This study highlights a lack of awareness of UP among North African PGDSs, emphasizing the need for further efforts to enhance awareness and promote better UP in this population.