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The purpose of this paper is to examine the extent to which workplace learning forms a building block in national lifelong learning policies by obtaining evidence, first-hand, from mental health practitioners about their perceptions of their individual country's national lifelong learning policy and, in particular, its application to adults with long-term mental illness.

Text analysis: review of relevant literature and European Union policy documents and survey questionnaire.

It is evident that the use of workplace learning as a linchpin in national strategies for lifelong learning in Denmark and France is clear and empirically supported.

Comparative evidence of evaluations of impact and effectiveness of workplace lifelong learning provision in the two countries examined is patchy at best raising further questions about the “value” of investments in both workplace learning and lifelong learning in these countries.

There is a risk that by focusing on jobs and workplace learning, the specific needs and desires of people with mental illness who, in the main, might want to engage in lifelong learning for reasons other than jobs and workplace learning, may end up being disadvantaged as their (non-economic) needs go unmet.

Until now there has been little or no attempt to examine Europe's conception of lifelong learning policy and its application to a multiple disadvantaged group such as mental health service users. This is a major attempt to remedy current dearth of research in the area.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the influence of personal and moral intensity variables on specific processes, namely, ethical recognition, ethical judgment and ethical intention, involved in the ethical decision making (EDM) of accounting professionals.

A structured questionnaire containing four vignettes of ethical dilemmas is used in the paper to obtain data from 329 accounting professionals. The data are analyzed using Pearson correlation matrix, independent sample t-test, one-way analyses of variance and multiple regression estimation techniques.

The findings of the paper suggest that age, economic status, upbringing, moral idealism and relativism, magnitude of consequence and social consensus are significant determinants of the EDM process of accounting professionals.

The paper provides evidence to guide accounting regulatory bodies on ways to strengthen extant measures that ensure strict compliance with ethics codes among accounting professionals in Nigeria.

The paper provides support for Kohlberg’s cognitive reasoning and moral development theory and Rest’s EDM theoretical model, which will aid the development of a structured curriculum for accounting ethics instruction in Nigeria, as hitherto, there is yet to be a provision for a stand-alone ethics course in the undergraduate accounting programs in Nigeria.

The purpose of this study is to examine the influence of ethical ideological orientation (moral idealism and moral relativism), work sector and types of professional membership on the ethical decision-making (EDM) process of professional accountants in Nigeria.

The study obtained primary data from 329 professional accountants with the aid of a structured questionnaire containing four scenarios of ethical dilemmas. The data were analysed using descriptive statistical analysis, independent sample t-test, Pearson correlation analysis and multiple regression techniques.

The results revealed both idealistic and relativistic moral orientation among the accountants surveyed with a higher mean score (>4.0) recorded for moral idealism. Moral idealism was found to have a positive influence, while moral relativism a negative influence on the three stages (ethical recognition, ethical judgement and ethical intention) of EDM examined. Professional accountants with idealistic orientation showed a higher disposition towards making ethical decisions in situations involving ethical dilemmas than those tending towards relativistic orientation. The results also revealed that work sector (private or public) and types of professional membership play significant roles in predicting the EDM process of professional accountants in Nigeria.

The study provides empirical evidence that could be used to support educational and legislative efforts in enhancing the moral ideological orientation of professional accountants, which will, in turn, enhance their EDM processes. The findings could be used to enhance ethics instructions and training of current and prospective professional accountants in educational settings, especially in countries such as Nigeria where there is yet to be a discrete ethics course in the curriculum for accounting undergraduate degree programmes. Professional accounting bodies in Nigeria and other developing countries could use the evidence in this study to strengthen the ethics code for professional accountants.

The study is unique in focussing on professional accountants in developing countries using Nigeria to represent developing countries with high corruption profile and weak institutions and governments and, as such, it contributes to the scarce research output on accounting ethics in developing countries.

Governments of many developed and developing countries have designed and implemented various financial reforms to enable the sector to play the role of efficient financial intermediation, thereby helping to bolster economic growth and development. The purpose of this paper is to survey past and present literature on the chronology of banking reforms in Nigeria and the implications of the last reform on the Nigerian economy.

The paper is analytical with mode of presentation based on content analysis.

The paper posits that the banking system in Nigeria has come a long way in term of regulations and reforms, number of institutions, structure of ownership, and depth and breadth of operations. However, the various reforms have not yet achieved the desired objectives, either due to poor implementation or improper institutional arrangement or sometimes due to abrupt termination of the reforms.

The paper suggests that henceforth, reforms should be designed according to the peculiarities of the Nigerian economy and institutional behaviour, and should be backed by adequate legislation.