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Copyright Education and Information: Plagiarism and Infringement

Copyright is determined by the country in which the product was produced. Since we are located with the United States information provided here reflects U.S. laws. The information presented here is intended for informational or educational purposes only

This page contains guidance on what constitutes plagiarism or copyright infringement under current US Copyright Law.

Plagiarism is an ethical issue and usually a violation of your institutions policy, which outlines definitions of plagiarism and how to avoid it. These policies are usually located within your handbook or codes of conduct.  Committing plagiarism can lead to failure of a course or expulsion from the institution (in extreme cases). The Honor and Integrity office at your institution may provide tips, strategies, and resources for avoiding plagiarism. A common type of plagiarism is unauthorized collaboration, which means that two or more students complete an assignment together when they were supposed to complete the work on their own. The course syllabus or instructor should be consulted about collaborations on an assignment or project.

According to the Council of Writing Program Administrators, these are some of the reasons why students plagiarize:

  • Fear of failure, or lack of confidence in their own writing.
  • Poor time management or procrastination.
  • Course, assignment, conventions of academic documentation not considered important.
  • Wanting to get a better grade
  • Not serious about consequences of cheating.
  • Lack of research, writing, and documentation skills
  • Ready access to full-text articles and books through the Internet.
  • Don't know when and how to cite sources.
  • Don't know how to integrate other's ideas or words in their own work and cite those sources properly.
  • Not understanding the western concept that ideas and written expressions of ideas can be owned (intellectual property).
  • Don't know how to take careful and fully documented notes during their research.

Resources

Examples of Plagiarism from TurnItIn.com
This guide gives examples of the 10 most common types of plagiarism.

Plagiarism.org Student Materials
Excellent resource for understanding the basics of avoiding plagiarism and using proper citations and references. 

TurnItIn.com - Preventing Plagiarism
This resource helps students to understand how plagiarism happens and why it is an ethical issue. 

Self-plagiarism
Yes, you can plagiarize yourself! Be sure to cite yourself when referencing another source you wrote/created.

Copyright Infringement is a legal concept in which an individual either does not seek permission to use a work or the use does not fall under an exception in U.S. Copyright Law (such as Fair Use). For example, someone may use an image on the front cover of their book, and if they cannot rely on fair use or they did not receive permission to use the work, they would likely be committing copyright infringement. However, the same individual could cite/attribute the artist of the image and would not be committing plagiarism.

Public domain works (e.g. most works published before 1923) do not have copyright protections any longer and are free to use in your own work. Although it is not legally required to give attribution to public domain works, you should always cite another's work in your academic work. 

Florida Post-Secondary Higher Education Policy on the Use of Copyrighted Works in Education and Research

Florida Institutions of Higher Education require compliance with copyright law and, when appropriate, supports the exercise in good faith of full copyright exemption rights by faculty, staff, and students. Specifically, Florida Institutions of Higher Education:

  • inform and educate faculty, staff, and students about copyright law, including the limited exclusive rights of copyright holders as set forth in 17 U.S.C. § 106, the application of the four fair use factors in 17 U.S.C. § 107, and the other copyright exceptions;
  • make available tools and resources to faculty, staff, and students for their use in determining copyright status and ownership and whether use of a work in a specific situation would be a fair use and, therefore, not an infringement under copyright law;
  • facilitate use of materials currently licensed by Florida Institutions of Higher Education and provides information on licensing of third-party materials; and
  • identifiy individuals who can counsel faculty, staff, and students regarding application of copyright law. Contact help@flvc.org for more information.