CAP Forum on Forensic Accounting in the Post‐Enron World: Education for Investigative and Forensic Accounting*/FORMATION ET JURICOMPTABILITÉ

Recent financial scandals have raised the awareness that accountants should be alert to potential fraud and other economic disputes and can provide significant assistance in preventing, investigating, and resolving such matters. Forensic accountants provide these services with knowledge of court requirements and proceedings so that effective legal action is possible, even though most actions are concluded without the involvement of the courts. Although forensic accounting was growing in importance even before Enron and the Sarbanes‐Oxley Act, the ensuing tightening of the securities regulations in both Canada and the United States triggered recognition that accounting students and professionals need a fuller understanding of fraud and other economic crimes, and how to find, prevent, and resolve them, as well as the career choices that could be involved. While some of this material is covered in auditing texts and courses, emerging expectations will require the enhancement and restructuring of forensic accounting education within university programs, and will encourage more interest in graduate specialist professional designations. This paper has two objectives: to offer insights into the design and delivery of forensic accounting programs, and into the availability of professional programs; and to provide some exploratory evidence on the type of services currently rendered by investigative and forensic accountants in Canada.     

Does the Holland model of occupational choice (HMOC) perpetuate the Beancounter-Bookkeeper (BB) stereotype of accountants?

This article investigates the Holland model of occupational choice's (HMOC) development, influence, and validity in relation to its classification of bookkeepers, accountants, and business professionals. Study 1 reanalyzes published data and provides evidence that the Beancounter-Bookkeeper (BB) stereotype, which is promoted in the HMOC, is partially predictive of the personality characteristics of individuals who choose to enter professional accountancy. Study 2 investigates the influence of HMOC training, and exposure to accounting education, on perceptions of the personality type needed for accounting work; results indicate that: (1) HMOC training is associated with perceptions that accounting work requires a BB personality, and (2) the importance of investigative skills to accounting work increase with accounting education. Following this, we review evidence that suggests low validity in the HMOC's claims of greater job success and satisfaction among BB accountants. Finally, we consider three possible processes that may explain Holland and colleagues’ conjoining of accountants with bookkeepers. Together, the analysis promotes skepticism regarding whether the HMOC's claim that professional accounting success demands a passive, compliant, subservient, i.e., BB, personality supports the public interest obligations of professional accountants.     

South African Career Guidance Counsellors' and Mathematics Teachers' Perception of the Accounting Profession

The shortage of accounting professionals is well-documented. To address this shortage, greater numbers of school students should be attracted and enrolled in undergraduate accounting programmes. Unfortunately, school students may have misperceptions of the accounting profession. These misperceptions may result in potential entrants to the profession being lost to other professions. Secondary school teachers play an influential role in students' perceptions of future careers. This survey assessed the perceptions of the secondary school career guidance counsellors and mathematics teachers' perceptions of the accounting profession in South Africa in comparison to the medical, engineering and legal professions. The findings suggest that the accounting profession is held in lower esteem than the engineering and medical professions, but in higher esteem than the legal profession. The findings confirm previous research conducted in the USA, Australasia and Japan. Marketing and recruitment programmes should educate secondary school teachers as to the true nature of the accounting profession.     

The reflective accountant: towards a new model for professional development

The accounting profession in recent times has been under intense scrutiny. Questions have been raised about, among other things, the right of the profession to regulate its activities, the behaviour of accounting firms and the usefulness of accounting information, a situation that would seem to indicate the existence of a crisis. This paper argues that the present crisis facing the accounting profession can be attributed to the inability of the tradional (technical rationality) model for professional development to cope with the new demands placed on the modern accounting profession which is characterized by professional pluralism. The paper proposes an alternative model for professional development based on the concept of the ‘reflective practitioner’. It is argued that the proposed model would equip accounting professionals with a degree of flexibility which is considered essential in carrying out their functions in a changing environment.     

Problem-centred research and knowledge-based theory in the professional accounting setting

The paper discussess the emerging need for theory development and much more extensive task and context analysis with respect to cognition in the professional accounting setting (“accounting” being taken to include the various accounting, auditing, tax and related subjects about which accounting professionals exercise judgment). The paper examines how such theory development and task and context analysis can improve the research and its contribution to understanding the professional settings that are the province of accounting research. Our analysis reflects our proposal that accounting judgment research contribute more strongly to the general body of accounting research, and deal better with practitioners' problems. From our analysis, we conclude that the lack of theory development is associated with several problems in the research, including an over-emphasis on transference of simplified models from psychology, inappropriate use of normative criteria for evaluating performance, and an over-emphasis on accountants and auditors rather than accounting and auditing. We offer a large number of constructive comments about task analysis, theory development and other steps to guide future accounting judgment research.     

市场经济条件下会计职业道德建设探究

会计职业道德是会计从业人员在会计工作时应遵循的职业行为准则和规范,是社会诚信体系的重要组成部分.随着经济社会的不断发展,会计职业道德将面临严峻的考验,一些会计人员职业道德观念淡薄甚至职业道德沦丧,加强会计职业道德建设就显得尤为重要.本文从当前会计职业道德建设的必要性、存在的问题人手,阐述在市场经济条件下会计职业道德建设的意义及提高会计职业道德建设的对策.     

The evolution of a graduate capstone accounting course

This paper discusses how the design of a graduate capstone accounting course evolved over 3 years, taking into consideration input from various stakeholders. The course has three, 5-week modules: accounting ethics, earnings management, and business strategy. The accounting ethics module emphasizes codified principles of ethics and professional behavior in accounting. The integrating theme of the last two modules is how accounting professionals can detect earnings management being used as a short-term solution to a longer-term strategic problem. Materials are included that may assist other schools contemplating a capstone accounting course in their 150-hour program.     

Changes in accounting curricula: discussion and design

This paper illustrates a model accounting curriculum developed to meet the needs of future accounting professionals. In addition, it offers a process for encouraging change in accounting curricula and discussion concerning teaching, pedagogy, and curriculum development. Calls for change in accounting education from academics and professional accountants are reviewed and the conclusion is reached that accounting education, as a whole, is still in need of reform.     

A Framework of Best Practice of Continuing Professional Development for the Accounting Profession

Abstract

The International Accounting Education Standards Board (IAESB) places a strong emphasis on individual professionals taking responsibility for their Continuing Professional Development (CPD). On the other hand, the roles performed by professional accountants have evolved out of practical necessity to ‘best’ suit the diverse needs of business in a global economy. This diversity has meant that professional accountants are seen in highly specialised roles requiring diverse skill sets. In order to enhance the contribution of the accountant as a knowledge professional for business, it follows that CPD that leverages off an individual's experience should be designed to meet the needs of professionals across the different specialised roles within the profession. In doing so the project identifies how CPD should differ across roles and levels of organisational responsibility for accounting professionals. The study also makes a number of policy recommendations to IAESB and IFAC.     

Bridging the education–profession gap: The Accounting Student–Practitioner Day (ASPD) program

This paper provides a detailed discussion of an annual (and cost-effective) professional-development event we call the Accounting Student–Practitioner Day (ASPD). This program brings together, for a single day, students, accounting faculty, and accounting professionals in a conference-like setting. The conference format provides a unique, and formal, link between the classroom environment and the professional world students will be entering. The program is attended by accounting and non-accounting students from our university, senior students from area high schools, and undergraduate students from other universities in the area. Specific objectives of the program are to help students learn what it takes to become an accounting professional, to provide students with information that facilitates their career-choice decision, and to encourage networking and community-building activities. Assessment data indicate that the ASPD program is successful in terms of its stated objectives. The relatively low cost of operating the program makes it attractive for other accounting programs. The paper includes a set of recommendations for those faculty interested in implementing an ASPD program at their own institution.     

论证券市场的会计监管

证券市场存在着会计市场失灵、会计造假案件频发、法律的不完备性等一系列问题，股权分置改革后，随着市场规模的进一步扩大，又会出现许多新的问题，因此证券市场的会计监管就显得十分必要。为了提高证券市场会计监管的效率，应该以政府监管为主导，会计师事务所的监管为辅助，同时发挥新闻媒体和学术界在监管中的积极作用。     

Who should teach what? Australian perceptions of the roles of universities and practice in the education of professional accountants

This paper addresses the respective roles and responsibilities of universities and practitioners in educating professional accountants. The issues are explored by a review of the literature in accounting and other professions regarding the respective roles of universities and employers in the development of both technical and non-technical knowledge and skills of professionals, particularly accounting practitioners. The literature review suggests that critics of university-based education fail to recognise (a) the changes that have occurred in the roles and responsibilities of accounting practitioners, and (b) the opportunity costs necessarily associated with providing generalist accounting degrees. Universities and employers have comparative advantages for the development of different types of professional skills and knowledge. These insights are extended by way of a series of interviews with Australian accounting practitioners, representatives from professional accounting bodies, recent accounting graduates, and accounting students about their perceptions of the respective responsibilities and roles of universities and employers. Although some interviewees recognised that universities cannot be ‘all things to all people’, there was a tendency to expect universities to have the major responsibility for the development in accounting graduates of both technical and non-technical knowledge and skills. Such perceptions tended to understate the responsibilities and comparative advantage of employers and result in unrealistic expectations about the outcomes of a university education. Employers need to be made more aware of the resource and other limitations associated with university programs and should develop meaningful opportunities for learning and reflection within workplace contexts.     

The impact of professional standards on accounting judgments: The role of availability and comparative information

Given scant research on the influence of the AICPA’s Code of Conduct, this study examines the effects of professional standards for advocacy and integrity on a financial reporting decision. Based on the availability and priming literature, we test whether the current wording of two AICPA professional standards influence financial reporting decisions. Prior accounting research has documented cases where professionals were inclined toward a conservative or skeptical bias (Francis & Krishnan, 1999; Jenkins & Lowe, 1999) while other studies have documented an inclination toward a client-confirming bias (Hackenbrack & Nelson, 1996; Roberts, 2010). Our study examines whether using AICPA ethical standards as primes results in a neutral, unbiased financial reporting decision in a context in which there is substantial, yet inconclusive, evidence. Roberts (2010) documents the tendency for professionals to view integrity and advocacy as segregated objectives: one for promoting unbiased reporting, associated frequently with accounting-related decisions, and the other condoning client advocacy, typically associated with tax-related judgments. Hence, we test for availability effects based on separately-stated standards. However, the literature on comparative analysis explains that a combined concept containing counterbalancing features allows the participant to form causal relationships between the distinguishing components. This type of mental process brings the causal knowledge into working memory. Hence, a joint presentation of countervailing standards should result in a more balanced judgment, reflecting neither a conservative nor pro-client tendency.The psychology literature suggests that heuristics, such as availability priming and comparative analysis, are more likely to affect novice decision makers (e.g., jurors, clients, new hires, students) than experts whose work experiences could drive the results. This study examines the responses of upper-level accounting majors, and the results show that the participants are inclined toward conservative decision making. Participants exposed to a separately-stated standard for integrity respond conservatively, just as they do in a control group without explicit access to the professional standard. Similarly, even when exposed to AICPA Rule 102-6 allowing client advocacy, they report conservatively. In contrast, when the prime is a joint presentation of the standards, participants respond with an unbiased decision, which differs significantly from the consistently conservative response by the control group as well as by the participants primed with an isolated standard. We conclude that two AICPA standards (as currently worded) are best understood when they are aggregated. Whether this finding holds for professionals is an empirical question for future research. The implication is that accountants’ decision making could be enhanced by a revised professional standard reminding them to jointly consider the goals of unbiased decision making and justifiable client advocacy.     

Relationship Between Controlling Shareholders’ Participation in Share Pledging and Accounting Conservatism in China

This study examines the relationship between controlling shareholders’ participation in share pledging and accounting conservatism in the Chinese stock market. Share pledging introduces risks to controlling shareholders and leads to severe information asymmetry between controlling shareholders and outside minority shareholders. This, in turn, results in competing incentives with regard to financial reporting. We find that controlling shareholders’ participation in share pledging negatively affects accounting conservatism, especially for firms located in regions with weak legal enforcement and poor investor protection. Our study shows that controlling shareholders’ share‐pledging behaviour negatively influences firms’ reporting quality, especially in areas with weak legal systems.     

Pastoral Accounting in Pre-Federation Victoria: A Case Study on the Jamieson Family

This Australian study of the surviving pre-Federation pastoral accounting records of the pioneering Jamieson family in the Western District of Victoria examines the structure and usage of accounting information prepared in an isolated setting in a time-specific context. The study endeavours to identify the key variables affecting the accounting practices observed for one particular case of pastoral industry management throughout the fifty years to 1900. Although further research of other sets of surviving Western District pastoral accounting records is necessary to provide more generalised results, tentative conclusions are drawn about the impact of cultural, educational, legal, political, professional skill and economic factors as key explanatory variables.     

The Role of Accounting Information in Valuing Unlisted Shares

Little research has been conducted on how professional accountants value unlisted shares. The study reported in this paper analyses the accounting and other data drawn from 185 actual unlisted share valuation reports within seven major Canadian accounting firms to estimate a model of and to explain variations in the values placed on unlisted shares.

The findings suggest that valuation of unlisted shares can be explained largely in terms of historic accounting data, the main sources being earnings, earnings stability and asset book value. A high degree of consensus on the importance of variables was found across accounting firms. The implications of these findings are discussed.     

(Re)figuring accounting and maternal bodies: The gendered embodiment of accounting professionals

This paper examines the relationship between the body and the self for women accounting professionals. It explores how they come to embody the identity of accountant and what happens when forms of organizational and professional embodiment coincide with other forms of gendered embodied self, such as that experienced during pregnancy and in early motherhood. These forms of embodiment can be seen simultaneously both as a mechanism of social control, and as a form of self-expression and empowerment for women.     

Insights from Accounting Practitioners on China's Convergence with IFRS

This study provides insights from accounting practitioners on China's convergence with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). Through a survey of 33 senior financial executives of Chinese listed companies in 2014, the study reports their perceptions on the following issues: first, the degree of convergence between IFRS and Chinese Accounting Standards (CAS); second, the choice between fair value and historical cost accounting, and the usefulness of fair value accounting for Chinese companies’ financial reporting; third, challenges in the process of China's harmonisation with IFRS; and finally, essential capabilities of Chinese accounting professionals in the process of China's harmonisation with IFRS. Multivariate regression was used for further analysis. The survey findings reveal that in general CAS have converged with IFRS, with a few exceptions that reflect the unique Chinese context. Historical cost accounting is the preferred measurement base to fair value accounting. Exercising professional judgement was identified as a challenge for China's full convergence with IFRS. Ownership structure and the expertise of accounting practitioners were found to affect respondents’ judgements on China's convergence with IFRS. This study has policy implications for international accounting standard setters and accounting educators to consider the contextual issues of implementing IFRS in an emerging economy.     

什么决定了利润差异:会计准则还是职业判断?——来自中国A、B股市场的初步证据

我国资本市场有少量的公司同时发行A股和B股,这部分公司需要提供两套财务报表,分别遵循了国内会计准则和国际会计准则。我们以我国会计制度改革的特定时期(1998-2000)为背景,以同时发行A、B 股的公司为样本,经过研究发现,那些同时发行A、B股公司所报告的净利润差异,主要不是来自会计准则,而是来自于会计职业判断;而会计职业判断背后的经济动机在于上市公司为了达到保牌的目的。我们的研究丰富了有关会计准则与会计信息质量之间关系的研究。