the analytical essay writing tip

the analytical essay writing tip

The Ethics and Consequences of Paying for Analytical Essay Writing

1. Introduction to the Practice of Paying for Essay Writing

Paying for essay writing is a common and well-documented practice within the college or university setting. It goes without saying that plagiarism is still a major concern in academia and that its implications can impact institutions’ rankings and reputations. It is less often discussed, however, that essay writing for students is also a thriving industry. The presence and prevalence of these companies is so well known that this paper does not even seek to determine the frequency of their use or the portion of the student body that enlists their services. If it seems unusually brazen to treat commercial essay writing as a foregone conclusion in academia, that is likely due to the stigma and even shame placed upon students who attempt to relieve the pressures of university coursework through dishonest means.

While black-market essay writing is not necessarily a new phenomenon, the growth in this type of academic dishonesty is worth addressing and reflects a number of troubling trends. It is indicative of an educational atmosphere in which students feel that the expectations and standards placed upon them may exceed their own capacities or the time and resources they possess to fulfill these, an expectation exacerbated by the economic and employment pressures carried by university students. It is symptomatic of a conceptualization of university as job training and a degree as vocational certification, at which any means of obtaining a credential that grants access to the professional sphere is justified, even if that means devaluing the meaning and integrity of the credential itself.

2. Ethical Considerations in Paying for Analytical Essay Writing

Paying for essay writing has been around for thousands of years, but the industry of producing essays for a fee is quickly growing. This increase has sparked some controversy. In particular, the process of paying for an analytical essay results in both the writer and the buyer having three moral and ethical dilemmas. These are the ethical implications of the writing itself, of submitting the paper as their own, and in the potential implications for the writer and receiver. The majority of people involved in such a transaction are aware of these ethical and moral problems. The actual practice of paying for papers, in this case, raises several ethical problems for both the writer and the buyer, as well as the implications of the payment. Additionally, the writing process and plagiarism issues are specific to the academic practice.

First, anyone paid to write an analytical essay faces ethical implications. The author is participating in academic dishonesty by providing a service that allows others to cheat on work completed in a class. This action is ethically questionable, as it can hurt the reputation of the writer. Second, if the person hiring an author to write a paper passes off the work as their own, they, too, are violating ethical standards. This is called plagiarism, and it can lead to academic consequences. These include failing a class, requesting a retake of a class, being removed from academic merit lists, and potentially being expelled. In addition to these academic concerns, which are the result of breaking ethical guidelines, a student’s reputation can suffer. Plagiarism is generally frowned upon, and writers can be regarded as untrustworthy or deceitful. Finally, if word gets out that a person has done this, they can be ostracized. Therefore, in addition to being ethically questionable, such behavior can have social implications.

3. The Impact of Paid Essay Writing on Academic Integrity

Possibly, many students have had an opportunity to pay someone to write an analytical essay and could have resorted to such services or at least considered using them. The decision to resort to an online writing platform has to be considered carefully, since the circumstances and consequences of using this kind of services have engendered much debate and differences in opinion. From a moral point of view, it is unclear whether the act of paying for an online writing composition – a form of self-expression, skill demonstration, reasoning, etc. – is acceptable. Some students believe that, as long as they contribute to the generated content, it should be acceptable for them to engage in and use those services and the works they receive. Others view the act of paying for analytical essay creation and using the finished work to their advantage as unethical and deplorable, insofar as they believe that their own academic integrity and the very principles of education are at stake.

The wide availability of analytical essay writing services is argued to have numerous negative consequences insofar as the act of commissioning finished essays is replete with severe risks to both individuals and education itself, as well as to broader social values of fairness, honesty, and responsibility. While academic learning is expected to be built upon and represent ingrained values and norms, behaviors such as lying, cheating, stealing, and fraud are believed to be continuations and transformations of the act of resorting to an online analytical essay writing company. This argument highlights the view that, as forms of academic dishonesty, paying for written school assignments and committing an act of plagiarism share similar ethical concerns and should be universally condemned. In sum, many argue that the use of unoriginal analytical essays can overwhelmingly change the “function and norms of education,” as it puts “the entire educational system at risk.”

4. Strategies for Promoting Ethical Writing Practices in Education

The papers we have considered in this issue demonstrate the increasing prevalence of paying for others to write academic work and, indeed, of actively employing professional firms to promote this practice. The implications of this to the experience of any student sitting alongside any other quite unknown student in an assessment situation as to the authenticity, relevance and implications of what they are doing need to be seriously considered. Although most of the papers echoed what had been heard elsewhere, improved confession rates were reported. Thus, instead of accepting the challenge to put ourselves in the market place of selling essays, we can highlight that the ethic of these practices is of concern for us as educators, academics and researchers. Rather than trying after the event to catch these cheats, or trying to uncritically enforce authenticity, we might consider a completely different way of thinking about the issue of essay provision.

It is suggested in the following papers that we should take more active measures to help explain what we think are appropriate activities in relation to essay writing and research in higher education and how they relate to ethical professional behaviour and general research conduct. Some were in favour of using documentation to help promote understanding and action concerning academic conduct amongst the student body. Others suggested that the root causes of this problem are multifaceted and that curbing the trade in essays involves a coordinated mixture of teacher-led interventions and student-led education to prevent this unethical practice from escalating further. A variety of overlapping interventions and their subsequent effect are discussed in this section. It is evident from the data presented here that the roots of the problem of purchased essay services are not restricted to outcomes of the individual and aggressive commerce but emanate from complex causes. It is suggested that more empowering approaches are needed and provided.