Increase in AI-generated text in higher education dissertations from 2020 to 2025: Implications for academic integrity

David Ison
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David Ison: Distinguished Expert, Freelance, USA

Advances in Online Education: A Peer-Reviewed Journal, 2025, vol. 4, issue 1, 48-57

Abstract: The proliferation of generative artificial intelligence (AI) tools, such as GPT-3 and ChatGPT, has raised concerns about academic integrity in higher education, as uncited AI-generated text may constitute plagiarism. This quantitative trend analysis examined 40 open-access doctoral dissertations from 2020 to 2025 to quantify the increase in AI-generated text and its implications for academic integrity. Using Spearman correlation and linear regression, the study found a significant increase in AI use (ρ = 0.91, p

Keywords: generative AI; academic integrity; plagiarism detection; higher education; dissertation writing; AI citation policies; ethical AI use (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: A2 I2 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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