Measuring AI-giarism: A validation study and dimensional exploration of the scale in Turkish

Abstract

The study's scope includes adapting the AI-Giarism scale, developed by Chan (2024), into Turkish and conducting analyses to assess its validity and reliability. The study examined the attitudes of 426 university students towards AI-assisted academic misconduct and revealed a three-factor structure: 'Plagiaristic AI use', 'AI-augmented writing' and 'no AI reliance'. Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) showed that the scale had a three-factor structure and explained 59.7% of the total variance. Confirmatory analyses showed that this three-factor structure fit the data well, with the scale items loading significantly onto the relevant factors. The model fit indices were adequate. Reliability analyses showed that Cronbach's alpha values ranged between .63 and .91, with discrimination between factors achieved. Additionally, no significant difference in AI-giarism level was obtained according to gender. This instrument provides a valid and reliable means of measuring university students' attitudes towards the ethical use of AI in academia. The scale is a valid and reliable assessment tool, particularly for distinguishing students' attitudes towards the unethical, ethical and limited use of AI.</p