Search results

The purpose of this paper is to explore why audit assistants leave the audit profession. By including both the perceptions held by audit assistants that left the audit profession and the perceptions of audit assistants still working in the audit profession, this study aims to explore how determinants of job satisfaction are associated with decisions to leave the audit profession.

To explore the association between determinants of job satisfaction and decisions to leave, a survey was developed based on a literature review of determinants of job satisfaction. The survey was sent to both current and former Swedish audit assistants. The subsequent analysis was based on 231 complete surveys, of which 78 were from former audit assistants.

The main finding of this study is that there is a negative association between the choice to leave the profession and audit assistants’ perceptions of the profession and between the choice to leave and work-life balance. Another finding was that met expectations and Big 4 were found to be positively associated with career change.

By approaching both current and former audit assistants, this study contributes to the literature on audit employee turnover by exploring determinants of actual career change, rather than turnover intentions. It also contributes by identifying and testing a variable not previously used as a determinant of job satisfaction, namely, perceptions of the audit profession.

This study investigates university students’ perceptions of (i) an introductory accounting course and (ii) the profession of accountancy. The study examines the extent to which these perceptions change during the students’ first semester of accountancy studies, and whether these perceptions relate to the students’ interest in the field of accounting. To investigate these issues, we survey 231 undergraduate students in their first semester of accounting studies at a large Greek university. In general, the results show that the students’ initial perceptions of the accounting profession are rather traditional and stereotypical, but that these perceptions generally become more “positive” at the end of their first semester after completing an introductory accounting course. Moreover, at the end of the semester, the students perceive the introductory course as being more rewarding and enjoyable than they had originally expected. The study also finds that students who are interested in accounting hold more positive views of the course and the profession (both at the beginning of the semester and at the end) than those who are not interested in accounting. The findings underline the important role of educators in influencing the perceptions and intentions of their students with regard to accounting study and profession.

This study aims to explore undergraduate students’ stereotypes of auditing and the influence of knowledge of the profession and its sources on the stereotype.

This study is based on a questionnaire distributed among 360 undergraduate business students at 21 higher education institutions in Spain.

The study reveals that undergraduate business students consider auditors competent and ethical. Auditing is viewed as an interesting and rigorous activity, which requires high responsibility and contributes significantly to society. Students perceive that the auditing career is difficult but contributes to professional development. The knowledge acquired through business studies influences the creation of a positive image of the profession and of auditors.

The profession could benefit from the fact that having more information about the profession improves students’ perceptions of it. The provision of auditing courses through the degree and related activities to increase the visibility of the profession during the first years of the degree could improve the auditor stereotype and enhance students’ intentions to enter this profession.

Previous studies have analyzed the image of the accounting professional as a homogeneous professional status. This study specifically addresses the image of auditors, who are at the core of the traditional accounting domain. It analyzes the influence of sources of knowledge (academic training, having familiars and media) on auditors’ stereotypes. Moreover, it provides evidence concerning the perceptions of the new generations (Gen Z).

Prior accounting education literature documents that stereotypical images abound of the accountant as introverted, systematic, antisocial and boring. Although these stereotypes clash with the skills required of modern professional accountants to be problem solvers who regularly interact with people, the question is whether students wishing to become accountants still have these stereotyped perceptions. The purpose of this article is to investigate the preconceived notions of students in South Africa about accountants and whether these perceptions differ because of gender, home language or ethnical differences. A comparison is also made of the perceptions of school‐leavers and final‐year students to determine whether these perceptions change during students’ formal period of study at universities. This research, which is currently highly relevant, given the shortage of students pursuing careers as accountants, could contribute to the debate surrounding the concerns of the future of the accounting profession and the implications for contemporary accounting education. It was found that students perceive accountants as structured, precise and solitary individuals. However, students considered it to be an interesting profession. Significant differences were found between the perceptions of different ethnic groups. No significant differences were found between the perceptions of male and female students, or between Afrikaans‐ and English‐speaking students.

This study investigates perceptions of the work of accountants held by first‐year accounting students as part of a national survey of accounting students. First‐year commerce students from five tertiary institutions were surveyed about their perceptions of the accounting profession as well as their intention to complete a major study of accounting at tertiary level. Influences on the formation of their perceptions formed an important part of the study. The results reported in this paper serve to illustrate that the majority of students surveyed had negative perceptions of accounting. The source of influences on perceptions indicated that perceptions were mainly derived from tertiary education experiences. As perceptions influence choice of major and career choice, the findings have important implications for accounting educators and professional accounting bodies.

This purpose of this paper is to introduce a new theoretical framework in order to examine similarities and differences between accounting major Malaysian and English students. It concerns attributes and outcomes associated with the accounting profession, and the relationship between students' perceptions and intentions to pursue an accounting career.

A survey research approach has been adopted to investigate students' perceptions regarding the accounting profession. The data for this study are collected via questionnaires completed by Malaysian exchange students visiting a university in England and students of a major university in England. The results of the questionnaire are then quantitatively analyzed.

The results indicate that both groups hold positive perceptions of the accounting profession and there is a significant correlation between students' perceptions and their intention to pursue a career in the profession. The study also identifies that Malaysian and English students hold differing perceptions concerning the accounting profession's attributes and outcomes.

This is one of the first accounting education papers using the work value theory to investigate perceptions regarding the accounting profession by Malaysian students of Chinese ethnicity and compare these perceptions with the perceptions of students of a major university in England of English ethnicity.

We discuss an accounting fair designed to foster a more favorable perception of the accounting profession and to identify accounting career opportunities, thereby increasing students’ interest in the accounting major. The fair is a unique model that provides students with accurate information about the accounting profession, rather than to recruit firm employees. The model can be tailored to meet other objectives of accounting departments, such as, to increase diversity of students selecting the major, to increase the quality of students in the major, or other objectives a department might deem appropriate.

We studied the effects of the fair on students’ perceptions of the accounting profession and interest in the accounting major, using pre- and post-accounting fair surveys. Our statistical results indicate the accounting fair was successful in fostering a more favorable perception of the accounting profession. As a result, students’ interest in the accounting major increased, which is consistent with the actual increase in the number of accounting majors at our institution since implementing the fair. Similarly, by employing a fair similar to ours, the achievement of other departmental objectives should result from fostering a more favorable perception of the accounting profession.

This paper aims to examine undergraduate students' attitudes towards the accounting profession, including accounting as a career, as a discipline, as a profession and perceptions of the work activities of accountants.

The data set used in this paper was collected via questionnaires. The present study compares several aspects of a prior study of Marriott and Marriott using the Accounting Attitude Scale developed by Nelson.

Overall, the paper supports the view that exposure to accounting at university does not enhance positive attitudes about accounting as a discipline, but reinforces rule‐memorisation, and lack of involvement with conceptual skills or judgement.

The paper only examines students' attitudes at one point in time and does not attempt to identify whether students' attitudes change over the period of their study. The paper can only speculate as to why there is a difference between local and international students' attitude towards the accounting profession. Third, the questionnaire is only administered at one institution. There is a scope to extend this study across institutions as well as conduct a longitudinal study. In order to validate the findings, further research via in‐depth interviews with students may help determine the factors that influence students' attitudes.

The results from this paper are expected to contribute to the body of research by providing accounting educators with insights into how the curriculum may influence students' attitudes towards the profession, together with implications as to how the profession should be promoted to undergraduate students.

The stereotypical image of the profession is poor with accountants appearing in the popular media as either the object of satire or the criminally inclined expert who deceives the public for self-gain. Extant research on the portrayal of the stereotypic accountant is limited in two ways: (1) existing research assumes a unitary concept by inferring a dominant image when the accountant stereotype is multifaceted; and (2) it is unclear from existing research whether the dominant image results from perceived character traits or the duties undertaken by accountants. This paper relies on qualitative methods of data analysis to unpack the elements that underpin stereotypical images in accounting to develop a framework of external perceptions that distinguishes one image from another. The framework is constructed on two broad criteria that comprise accountants (personality traits and physical characteristics) and accounting (task functionality). The interplay of these two criteria creates four subtypes representing positive (Scorekeeper and Guardian) and negative (Beancounter and Entrepreneur) interpretations of the two basic categorizations: bookkeeper and business professional. Further analysis revealed four primary dimensions (Ethics and Sociable, Skill and Service) that underlie the construction of the subtypes. In general, the ‘Scorekeeper’ rates more highly than the ‘Beancounter’ on ‘Ethics and Sociable’ and the ‘Guardian’ rates more highly than the ‘Entrepreneur’ on ‘Ethics’. Accounting researchers and the profession could benefit from understanding how stereotypical perceptions are constructed and managed.