Kyoo Hwa Kim studied economics and finance at university, and went on to work as a trader at a multinational bank for 15 years. She left banking to pursue a PhD at UCL, where she studies the role of social power and unethical behaviour. Her interest in this project stems from trying to understand how context and motivation leads us to unethical behaviour, especially when the decision is multi-layered. She is from South Korea, and a mother of two children, who are her inspiration.

Project description

This project investigates the prevalence of questionable research practices (QRPs) among undergraduate students around the world. We examine the role of individual differences in status motivation, and the competitive environment. Dispositions such as dominance, individualism, and narcissism could trigger performance motivation, and dishonesty. Investigations of research integrity in psychology is a matter of urgency given the current push for Open Science. However, insights on QRPs among undergraduate students, where students are first exposed to academic research, is limited. By understanding the pathways leading to students’ use of QRPs, this project aims to contribute to improving the quality of ethics education, and the standards of psychological science for the next generation.

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