Search results

This study examines the impact of ethics education interventions (EEI) on attaining ethical education goals in higher institutions.

The study utilizes a survey method, with questionnaires distributed to accounting instructors from universities and professional accountants in Ghana. The empirical analysis is based on 417 valid responses, and the hypothesized relationships are tested using ordinary least square (OLS) regression.

The results indicate that ethics-related courses (ERC), methods of teaching ethics (MTE) and methods of ethics interventions (MEI) have a positive and significant impact on achieving the objective set for EEI in accounting programs.

This study provides valuable insights for accounting educators and professional body managers in developing accounting ethics curricula in universities and professional accounting institutions.

This study involves accounting educators and professionals and applies ethical theories of egoism, deontology and utilitarianism to demonstrate the role of ethical interventions in accounting programs in achieving set objectives from a developing country context.

This study aims to examine the determinants of ethical decision-making (EDM) of professional accountants in Sri Lanka, drawing on Rest’s (1986) four-component EDM model. The level of corporate collapses and fraud, coupled with the high level of corruption in Sri Lanka, has highlighted the importance and the timely nature of this research in the EDM processes of Sri Lankan accountants.

Data was collected from a sample of 315 accountants through a questionnaire survey that included four written ethical vignettes and was analysed using partial least square-structural equation modelling techniques.

The findings revealed a significant relationship between ethical awareness and ethical judgement, providing support for Rest’s model. However, the study does not support Rest’s model on the direct relationship between ethical judgement and ethical intention. Intrinsic religiosity and moral intensity significantly influenced the ethical awareness of accountants. Several determinants including accountants’ age, education, intrinsic religiosity, organisational ethical culture, familiarity with the professional ethical code and moral intensity influenced ethical judgement. However, the findings did not report any significant relationships between the study’s variables and ethical intention.

The study adds to the existing literature by providing a bigger picture of how various determinants work together in one EDM model and demonstrating that the EDM of accountants is multifaceted. The new finding on an insignificant relationship between ethical judgement and ethical intention implies that the Rest’s EDM process may be mediated and moderated by other constraints blocking accountants’ intention to act due to various pressures in a corrupt society, Sri Lanka, where accountants operate.

Ethical concerns in the field of trade and business and research efforts in the area of management and implementation of ethical standards in the organizational chain in the current situation, mainly due to the impact on the performance and procedures of organizations, and, finally, the effect on the views and attitudes of stakeholders and users of corporate information have become critical. Therefore, this study aims to investigate the impact of business ethics on stress, anxiety and depression and the success of auditors in Iran and Iraq.

The study’s statistical population includes all partners, managers and auditors working in auditing firms. Three hundred sixty-five questionnaires were completed by Iranian respondents and 250 questionnaires by Iraqi respondents in 2021. Also, the analysis of variance and regression of ordinary least squares have been used for data analysis and testing of hypotheses.

The research results show a negative and significant relationship between the results of business ethics and stress, anxiety and depression of auditors in Iran and Iraq and a positive relationship between business ethics and auditors’ success in Iran and Iraq.

As the current research was conducted in emerging financial markets such as Iran and Iraq, which are highly competitive, along with special economic conditions, and as the occupation of the ISIS terrorist group, the civil wars in Iraq, the world’s severe economic sanctions against Iran and following the global crisis of COVID-19, both countries have had special conditions. Therefore, the current research can bring helpful information to the readers and help everyone develop science and knowledge in this field.

To the best of the authors' knowledge, this is the first study that aims to present a comprehensive view of the auditing ethics literature by unboxing 40 years of efforts in the field.

This study combined bibliometric, social network and content analysis by analyzing 114 articles published in accounting and top business ethics journals on the Web of Science database from 1980 to 2021.

The results show a rising interest in this topic and reveal auditors’ ethical decision-making and moral reasoning as the most discussed topics in the literature. The work also clusters the literature according to keywords and scopes, identifying literature gaps and suggesting new avenues for future research.

The research results assist provide an overarching image of the auditing ethics field. In addition, these results draw possible future avenues to bridge the void in the current auditing ethics literature by presenting indispensable directions for potential research. For example, future research could pay more attention to whistleblowing, fraud, personal auditor characteristics, auditor ethical sensitivity, auditor ethical conflict, ethical climate and underreporting of time. Moreover, the rapidly changing business environment necessitates the auditing ethics research to move to more practical implications to mitigate previous mistakes and avoid any future risks.

All crises are an ideal breeding ground to motivate fraud and audit failures. In fact, auditing ethics research has been subordinated to the different economic crises. However, despite increasing awareness of the topic’s relevance, no comprehensive study focuses on auditing ethics literature. Now, the devastating effects of the COVID-19 crisis are producing a new wave of financial distresses and avoiding former mistakes is timelier than ever. With this novel and integrated approach, this work goes one step forward, developing a comprehensive picture of the auditing ethics literature.

To build public trust in the accounting profession, previous research studies have stressed the need for ethics education. This present research aims to investigate the effects of teaching ethics using the ethics education toolkit (EET) developed by the International Accounting Education Standards Board on accounting students’ moral judgment.

An experimental design was used to determine the effects of teaching ethics using the EET on moral judgment. Data were obtained using the multidimensional ethics scale questionnaire and analysed with multiple linear regression. Factor analysis was performed to obtain the four moral philosophies defined in the literature.

The results confirm that use of the EET improves the moral judgment of accounting students. The influence of utilitarianism and relativism on moral judgment was reduced, while the students’ ability to recognise violating an unwritten contract as an unethical act was improved. Contrary to expectations, the influence of justice on moral judgment decreased.

The study may benefit academics by showing positive outcomes of EET use. The EET is a well-developed teaching tool, also suitable for educators insufficiently qualified to develop their own ethics courses or facing time constraints.

The EET was developed to support implementation of ethics education in programmes for professional accountants. By investigating the applicability and effects of the tool in higher education, this study aims to develop moral judgment in accounting students before they enter the accounting profession.

This paper aims to describe the development of the ethical values disclosure index (EVDi) for Malaysian companies using the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 16 and isomorphism perspectives.

This paper reports an inclusive examination of international and national guidelines in relation to the code of ethics and ethical values in making the disclosure.

The final 10 categories and 40 items under review have been developed in an instrument, the proposed EVDi, for measuring the commitment undertaken by companies in communicating ethical values information to stakeholders.

The EVDi may fulfil the function of good governance to inculcate ethical work culture throughout companies.

Effective ethical values in communication may reduce the likelihood of illegal activities and cost of acting unethically in organisations.

The value of this paper is its approach of using the isomorphism concept from the institutional theory to address the SDG 16 by developing the EVDi. The new index incorporates core elements of moral values adapted mainly from the professional bodies that regulate the accounting profession and other related organisations. The index is an initiative used to measure companies' commitment to promoting ethical values through disclosure. The efforts to measure the level of commitment supporting the SDG 16 promote effective, accountable and transparent institutions at all levels.

Wisdom is considered as crucial in decision-making in both management and auditing practice. This research aims to investigate the concept of wisdom in auditing, thereby empirically exploring the determinants of wisdom in audit decision-making and explaining inter-relations among these determinants.

This study employs grounded theory methodology that is based on in-depth interviews with twenty-seven practicing auditors who are audit partners, managers, seniors and assistants of auditing firms. Guided by the grounded theory, data collection and data analyses were conducted simultaneously to look into the new insights of the research phenomenon. The coding process was constantly compared until the research's theoretical saturation is reached after four rounds. At the end of the research process, the study conducted a survey to confirm the proposed framework as well as examine the inter-relationships between the defined determinants.

Results suggest developing a conceptual framework to interpret wisdom-based decision-making process in auditing. A wise process of audit decision-making is defined as an integrated exercise of multiple determinants including knowledge assimilation, judgmental ability and ethical orientation. The research also explains and examines the potential interrelationships among these determinants in the audit decision-making process.

Wisdom is a valuable tacit ability for all external auditors. The development of wise decision-making abilities of auditors should be considered an integral part of multiple virtues including knowledge and judgmental and ethical aspects.

The contributions of this study are original and significant because it proposes a new approach to explain for the audit decision-making process and enhances better understandings of the concept of wisdom in auditing practices and its roles in audit decision-making.

This research aims to conceptualize online shaming discourse in virtual communities and to serve as a practical guide for online community managers and members.

This conceptual study explores the construction of meanings in human interaction in online communities by presenting a conceptual model, “The Triple-Responsibility Model in Online Communities,” that is based on Kantian ethics.

The model includes characterizing the roles of core participants in online communities: writer, reader and group manager; and delineating four ethical principles – truth, necessity, proportionality and caution – that can help society find the golden mean between social change and respecting human dignity and concern for an individual’s public image and provide a theoretical contribution and practical guidelines.

It addresses shaming in virtual communities by suggesting a balance of several key principles, including truth, necessity, proportionality and caution. This is a new conceptualization of online shaming relevant to today's digital arena.

The guidelines can contribute to the ongoing political debate over what constitutes appropriate and justified regulation. Moreover, Facebook community leaders are responsible for formatting the group’s identity, the technical facets of group management and for setting group boundaries and determining the rules of participation. The posited rules may affect social media group managers, as they are called upon to leverage their privileged position and channel their media power into influencing online discourse.

The current study provides insights into how shaming can be used as a legitimate tool in society by implementing an ethical approach, resulting in guidelines that restrict online discourse for participants in virtual communities and affect the work of social media group managers and policymakers.

By presenting a new conceptual model, the authors suggest that ethics are a helpful tool and offer insights into how online communities' participants and managers should use their voice and balance between shaming and maintaining the dignity of the individual.

This study aims to investigates the influence of proactive personality on employee radical creativity through transformational leadership, professional ethical standards and creative self-efficacy.

The data were collected from 343 superior–subordinate dyads in China. A confirmatory factor analysis was performed to measure the validity of the variables. A regression analysis was performed to assess the relationship between model assumptions.

The results showed that: (1) Proactive personality was positively related to employee radical creativity. (2) Transformational leadership and professional ethical standards moderated the relationship between proactive personality and radical creativity. Specifically, the relationship between proactive personality and employee radical creativity was strong, as expected. It was the strongest in the presence of high transformational leadership and high professional ethical standards. (3) Creative self-efficacy acted as a mediator in this interaction.

This study is a pioneering investigation in the Chinese context. It empirically examines the interactive relationship between proactive personality and radical creativity through transformational leadership and professional ethical standards. Additionally, it substantiates creative self-efficacy as the psychological mechanism behind this interaction. Consequently, this study offers a comprehensive framework with potential implications for personality assessments in the workplace, leadership training, criteria formulation and enhancement of radical creativity.

The purpose of this article’s research was threefold. Firstly, it aimed to investigate how social services professionals coped during the pandemic period by comparing their involvement in five different national contexts. Secondly, it analysed how these professionals have performed their duties according to the street-level bureaucracy theory. Finally, the third question examines social workers' strategies to guide their professional role when they may have had more discretion in their actions. The research also examined whether discretion has increased during this phase and, if so, how it has been exercised.

This article is based on the findings of the project called “Theory and Practice of Social Work in the World in Times of Pandemic”, which was funded by the International Association of Schools of Social Work (IASSW). The project involved 11 universities across five countries in Europe and Latin America, including Argentina, Brazil, Italy, Spain and Sweden. The research was conducted over 24 months to analyse the practices and measures taken to protect vulnerable people by adapting social services during the extraordinary period of the pandemic. In addition, the research explored how the awareness of emergency arose among social workers and how it influenced the services delivered from the perspective of the street-level bureaucracy theory. In different countries, the level of resourcefulness of services has varied based on their recognition of the severity of the pandemic and the impact of the government’s narratives. In some cases, these narratives have been conspiratorial or even anti-scientific. Additionally, there has been a reduction in the distance between professionals and clients, increased inequalities in access to services and a positive reassessment of the potential of new professional tools, such as digital social work, in establishing a trusting relationship.

As revealed in the interviews, the elements shaping this high degree of discretion among social workers can be classified into three levels: macro- and micro- (Saruis, 2015) plus a meso-level. Each level has four significant aspects. At the macro-level, these are legislation, public information, large associationism and integration of the social services-health system. At the meso-level, these are interpretations of role performance by managers technical equipment, self-organization and community action. The micro-level pertains to personal and family situations, emotions, ethics and social workers' direct relationships with those in charge.

This study investigated how social workers responded to the Covid-19 pandemic. The data gathered sheds light on their understanding of the situation, as well as the differences in experiences across the five countries studied. However, it is essential to note that the findings may not apply to all situations or countries. Nevertheless, this research serves as a stepping stone for future studies to delve deeper into the results and explore them in greater detail .

The study highlights the crucial role of social workers as street-level workers in managing, negotiating and creating meaning in the interaction between professionals and the people they serve. This is especially relevant in Latin America. Additionally, the study emphasizes the significance of social workers as policy actors and the political nature of social work practice. The findings also underscore the importance of effective communication and collaboration between social workers, their teams and the organizations they work for. The sources cited in the study are Barberis and Boccagni (2014) and Cuadra and Staaf (2014). The research has also underscored the potential of social service workers to build networks and cooperate. Such networking can play a vital role in implementing their acquired knowledge. The study has, therefore, emphasized the importance of social workers being an integral part of the societies they serve. They need to continuously enhance their communication skills, using all the necessary tools to gain a comprehensive and updated understanding of the evolving needs of their clients. Integrating digital social work as a mode of service provision has emerged as a crucial aspect, especially in the three European countries observed. This approach has demonstrated its potential and is expected to continue being a part of services to some extent, even after the return to normalcy. However, it is essential to ensure that the accessibility and proximity of services are not compromised in any way.

An unexpected result was observed during the research: the pandemic circumstances have led to valuable reflections. These reflections can help in rethinking and recreating social services. Social workers have been given a unique opportunity to return to the essence of their profession and develop less bureaucratic and more humane ways of working. This experience has also enabled them to recover a closer relationship with the people they serve. To sum up, this study emphasizes that social workers, when given more leeway in their work, rely on cultivating and upholding relationships with other professionals, organizations and stakeholders to stay connected with the community they serve. This is crucial for ensuring the delivery of effective and sustainable social services.

The research employed a thematic analysis approach (Bazeley, 2007) to identify themes related to the concept of consciousness as derived from the field experiences of social workers. Additionally, an in-case and cross-case analysis method (Fereday and Muir-Cochrane, 2006) was used to connect themes related to individual experiences with those gathered from the overall experiences.