The visual-oral conditional reasoning test : predicting scholastic misconduct and deception

A student misconduct study and a deception experiment were conducted to establish the validity of the Visual-Oral Conditional Reasoning Test (VCRT). In the misconduct study, students' VCRT scores (n = 225) were compared to university records of scholastic misconduct. Results indicate that VCRT scores were significantly correlated with misconduct (r = .55, p < .05). In the deception experiment, students' VCRT scores (n = 60) were compared to whether or not they engaged in deceptive behavior to get a higher grade on an extra credit project. Results indicate that VCRT scores were significantly correlated with engaging in deceptive behavior (r = .49, p < .05). Implications for future research are discussed.