Changes in subjective risks of hurricanes as time passes: analysis of a sample of Katrina evacuees

Using a quasi‐field experiment, we report on subjects' perceptions of the risks of hurricanes. All experimental subjects were displaced by either Hurricane Katrina or Rita, in New Orleans and other Gulf Coast areas, except for a small control group consisting of people who live in central Texas. We examine their perceptions of risks just after the hurricanes occurred, and over one year later to evaluate the change in subjective risk perceptions over time. A latent risk model is estimated in which subjective probabilities of hurricane strike risk are represented as a function of respondents' demographic characteristics and experiences following the storms.     

The Status Of Women Academic Accountants in Australia

This paper reports the findings of a survey of the attributes, career satisfactions and aspirations of Australian Academic Women Accountants (AAWA). The survey sought information about personal characteristics, institutional role expectations and perceptions of gender-related issues involving recruitment, promotion and retention of AAWAs. The data provide not only an interesting insight into respondents' perceptions of a career in academic accounting, but also a comparative measure against which future progress of AAWAs can be evaluated. The paper makes suggestions for facilitating the career paths of AAWAs at both institutional and individual levels.     

The Australian Differential Reporting Debate: A Survey of Practitioners

This paper reports the findings of an investigation into issues surrounding the differential reporting debate. This debate was formalised in Australia by the promulgation of the Australian Accounting Research Foundation's Exposure Draft 48—Proposed Statement of Differential Reporting. However, the foundation has chosen not to provide guidance as to the standards considered applicable to non-reporting entities within its differential reporting proposal. A postal survey of practising accountants across Australia examined the respondents' perceptions as to the standards applicable to firms varied by size and legal structure. The paper provides initial empirical results indicating the way in which practitioners will apply standards under the differential reporting provisions proposed in the exposure draft and raises questions for future research.     

Computer Aided Learning (CAL) and its impact on the performance of non-specialist accounting undergraduates

This study examines the factors affecting students' performance on an introductory UK undergraduate financial accounting course and changes in students' attitudes and perceptions towards Computer Aided Learning (CAL) and accounting. It differs from previous research in that non-specialist accounting students taught using CAL are studied here. Questionnaire data was collected at the beginning and end of the module and is statistically analysed. Multiple regression analysis on student performance shows that age and attitude towards accounting are significant influences, but that attitude towards CAL and students' entry qualifications are not. Students' perceptions of CAL appear to be affected negatively by its use. The study shows that students are significantly more likely to perceive CAL as easy to use, but significantly less likely to view it as flexible, helpful or useful in improving computer literacy. Students' perceptions of accounting as a subject are also negatively affected. They are shown to be significantly less likely to choose to study accounting and significantly more likely to view accounting as a boring subject, following the completion of a CAL course. The negative impact on students' perceptions and attitudes towards CAL and accounting has implications for extending the use of CAL in order to efficiently redirect limited staff resources. However, given that there is no significant effect on performance this may warrant further consideration by higher education institutions.     

Attitudes of new appointees to accounting and finance departments in the higher education sector

Holland [Holland, K., 1991. Recruitment by accounting departments in the higher education sector: an analysis of recent employees. British Accounting Review 23, 49–66] and Weetman [Weetman, P., 1993. Recruitment by accounting departments in the higher education sector: a comment on the Scottish experience. The British Accounting Review 25, 287–300] reported studies of appointees to accounting and finance (A&F) departments in the UK and Scotland, respectively. This investigation uses a questionnaire survey, and an analysis of the British Accounting Review Research Register to examine five research questions: (i) the characteristics of recent appointees to UK A&F departments across three time periods, 1998—1999 (N=46), 2000–2001 (N=40), and 2002–2003 (N=55); (ii) subsequent job changes of the populations of appointees in 1998–1999 and 2000–2001; (iii) respondents' motivations for becoming A&F lecturers; (iv) their sources of current occupational discontent; and (v) their proposals for making A&F lecturing posts more attractive. Herzberg's [Herzberg, F., 1968. One more time: How do you motivate employees? Harvard Business Review (reprinted 2003)] motivation–hygiene dual-factor theory is used to conceptualise job satisfaction and dissatisfaction. In turn, issues relating to occupational discontent are described by Rousseau's [Rousseau, D., 1990. New hire perceptions of their own and their employer's obligations: a study of psychological contracts. Journal of Organisational Behaviour 16, 389–400] psychological contract.The findings identify differences in the characteristics of the appointees in both pre-1992 and post-1992 universities. Overall, staff joined with an expectation of flexible hours of working and a desire to carry out research. The most important source of job discontent was the widening salary gap between academe and industry and the profession. Improved salary levels, more time for scholarly activity and better promotion prospects were seen as the most important factors in making the job more attractive. The implications of our findings for new appointees and institutions are discussed, along with suggestions for future research.     

The Tax Knowledge of South African Trainee Accountants: A Survey of the Perceptions of Training Officers in Public Practice

This empirically-based, exploratory study outlines the framework of chartered accountants' tax education and training in South Africa and focuses on training officers' perceptions of the existing tax knowledge of trainee accountants when entering into a training contract after completing their university qualification. The study identified the respondents' satisfaction with the performance by ‘entry-level’ trainee accountants of their duties. The results indicated that, although the educational background of trainee accountants was for the most part adequate, these trainee accountants were not sufficiently able to perform their duties when entering into training. The implication of this study is that the syllabus setters and educators should review the practicality of the current tax syllabi's content for the education and training of aspirant chartered accountants in South Africa.     

Organizational and decision characteristics and personality as determinants of control actions: A laboratory experiment

This paper investigates how choice of control actions (or behaviours) is affected by the controller's personality and perceptions of organizational and decision characteristics. In a simulated work setting (n = 172) it was found that persons working in mechanistic organizations chose significantly different control tactics than those working in organic organizations. The present findings also suggest that controllers are more likely to choose extrinsically (rather than intrinsically) motivating controls when they are faced with important decision situations. The implications of the findings are discussed. Multivariate models of choice of control tactics in organizations are suggested as being more powerful.     

Desired attributes of public accounting firms in the job selection process: an empirical examination of accounting graduates' perceptions

The purpose of this study is to identify attributes of public accounting firms that accounting graduates find most desirable in their job selection decisions, and the impacts of individual differences on these perceptions. Factor analysis performed on the responses of 167 final-year accounting students in Hong Kong to a 30-item questionnaire identified seven factors. The results indicate that accounting graduates considered help in finishing their professional accounting examinations and good staff relationships as the most important criteria in their choice of employers. In addition, female accounting graduates were more concerned about the possibility of being required to travel or be transferred, but were less concerned about the reputation and profile (such as the client base and the size) of the firms than their male counterparts. Accounting graduates with a higher grade point average (GPA) were less concerned about the working environment, but more concerned about a firms' reputation and profile than those with a lower GPA. The implications of these results are discussed.     

Evaluation of psychosocial and organizational factors in offshore safety: a comparative study

This study compares UK and Norwegian offshore workers' evaluations of social and organizational factors that can have an impact upon safety on offshore installations. A total of 1138 Norwegian (87% response rate) and 622 UK workers (40% response rate) responded to a self-completion questionnaire, which was distributed to 18 installations in February/March 1994. The questionnaire contained six scales that were suitable and relevant for the purposes of comparison. These scales measured ‘risk perception’, ‘satisfaction with safety measures’, ‘perceptions of the job situation’, ‘attitudes to safety’, ‘perceptions of others' commitment to safety’ and ‘perceptions of social support’. The data show clear differences in how UK and Norwegian workers evaluate various social and organizational factors that can have an impact upon safety, however, eta² analysis indicated that for most of the scales ‘installation’ explained a greater percentage of the variance than sector. The exceptions to this were scales measuring ‘safety attitudes’ where both sector and installation contributed equally to the effects. Although the results from the ‘safety attitudes’ scales should be interpreted with caution (due to low internal reliability), it is possible that they are tapping into more deeply held beliefs about the nature of safety, e.g. ‘fatalism’ and the ‘causes of accidents’. In contrast, the other scales are measuring factors directly related to the working environment such as perceptions of risk and satisfaction with safety measures on the installation. These may reflect the prevailing ‘safety climate’ or ‘atmosphere’ on the installations surveyed, whereas constructs such as ‘fatalism’, etc. may be reflections of underlying ‘cultural’ values. Recognizing the existence of different ‘safety cultures’ and understanding the processes which lie behind them could have implications for safety management in an industry which is highly international in nature and in which workers' are often required to work in foreign countries for varying periods of time.     

Entry strategies for ‘planned giving’ donor products adopted by British charities: An empirical investigation

In April 2000 the British Government legislated to provide UK citizens with a wide range of tax concessions on charitable donations, enabling registered UK charities to develop and launch new donor products similar in form to the ‘planned giving’ instruments that for many years have been available to supporters of US nonprofit organisations. This paper presents the outcomes to a study of the progress so far achieved by a sample of 89 British charities in their attempts to introduce planned giving products. The investigation explored the roles of certain market and other situational factors in motivating charities to establish planned giving instruments, the antecedents and consequences of heavy investment in the marketing of these new donor products, the main marketing methods employed; and the respondents' perceptions of the major problems involved and barriers to successful introduction.     

Risk perception in Korea: a comparison with Japan and the United States

Using a psychometric paradigm, this study examines cross-cultural similarities and differences in the risk perceptions of three samples (Korea, Japan and the United States), through a comparison of 70 environmental risks. The results show that the three samples have a similar two-factor structure and two higher order factors ­ 'dread risk' and 'unknown risk' ­ structure risk perceptions of the 70 risks. The results also indicate that differences in the perceptions of specific risks are significant. Speculations for these differences are discussed.     

Management accounting information and the needs of managers: Perceptions of managers and accountants compared

The study builds on prior research on information user perceptions and the roles of management accountants. Perceptions of management accountants and managers in the same organisations regarding information supplied by the management accounting function were compared and differences highlighted. Perceptions of managers were also sought regarding desired changes in the information supplied and desired future roles of management accountants.Consistent with prior literature in MIS and accounting, the findings showed evidence of preparer–user perception gaps. Major contributors to those perception gaps were identified as an imbalance between technical and organisational validity, functional differentiation and an inherent tension between the simultaneous requirements of independence and involvement. Managers' views of desired future roles for management accountants provided consistent indicators as to how those gaps can be narrowed. The study also exposes inaccuracies in management accountants' perceptions and sets out implications for the design and reporting of future research.     

PERCEPTIONS OF EXTERNAL AUDITORS’ INDEPENDENCE: SOME CROSS-CULTURAL EVIDENCE

The objective of our paper is to contribute to the accounting education literature by demonstrating that there are significant differences among final year undergraduate accounting students in the United Kingdom, Australia, India, and Malaysia with respect to an important concept in auditing, namely, perceptions of external auditors’ independence. To attain this objective, we make an original contribution to accounting cross-cultural studies by operationalizing culture in terms ofindependent and interdependent construals of selfhood. These fundamental core cultural differences are important because they play a major role in regulating psychological processes including perceptions. Additionally, to gain insight into the evolving complexities associated with understanding culture in a global economy, the concept of acculturation is invoked in hypothesis formulation. We find support for the hypothesis that students from countries with greater political, economic and socio–cultural interactions (UK and Australia) are likely to have greater similarities (i.e., lesser variations) in their perceptions of external auditors’ independence, compared to students from countries that have less acculturation (other pairs of countries). The results have implications for improving learning and teaching of auditing in the four countries. Specifically, accounting educators may like to ensure that the meaning intended in the various national and international auditing pronouncements with respect to external auditors’ independence is effectively communicated to students within specific national cultural contexts. Our findings may also be useful to various international bodies whose objectives are to harmonize auditor education. The results also suggest that there is a need to critically question the assumptions made by professional accounting firms operating cross-nationally that it is possible to attain a single global set of audit procedures and codes of professional conduct.     

Auditors’ self-perceived abilities in conducting domain audits

This study investigates the extent to which auditors’ ratings of self-perceived abilities correspond with their actual performance, and whether these perceptions are influenced by audit experience and effectiveness when conducting audits within their domain of specialization. One hundred forty-four (144) industry-specialized audit seniors and managers reviewed two sets of audit working paper cases, one in banking and one in healthcare. At the end of the review, the auditors rated their ability to perform an audit in their domain. The analysis of these ratings shows that auditors significantly inflated their perceived abilities relative to actual performance. The results indicate that differences in auditor rank are insignificant in terms of this propensity to overestimate self-perceived abilities relative to actual performance; however, above median effective auditors are far less overconfident than below median effective auditors. These results have implications for the audit profession in terms of training, assignments, performance evaluation, and the use of decision aids to mitigate the propensity toward overconfidence.     

Is it Shameful to be an Accountant? GenMe Perception(s) of Accountants' Ethics

The function that accountants fulfil in the economic system is dependent on their ability to maintain the perception of high ethical standards. Building on the idea that birth cohorts, otherwise known as generations, are a useful proxy for the socio‐cultural environment of different time periods, we focus on the so‐called ‘GenMe’, that is, students and young workers born in the 1980s and 1990s. In particular, combining the accounting and business ethics literature, the purpose of our paper is to contribute to an increased awareness of the GenMe perceptions of accountants, with special attention given to ethical aspects. We believe that the perceptions of this age group are particularly crucial for the future of the accounting profession as it is these young people who will either become professional accountants or the accountants' future clients. Using an extensive database of 1,794 questionnaires, results show that the impression of the accountant as a corrupt professional is not dominant among GenMe and seem to suggest the existence of a multifaceted perception of accountants' ethics. Specifically, the factors that contribute to influencing GenMe perceptions of accountants' ethics are level of education, having attended an accounting course at high school level, gender, and belonging to the accounting profession. Finally, our study indicates that there is room for improving public perceptions of accountants' ethics through university courses in ethics, continuing education programs, and focused communication strategies by accounting firms and professional bodies.     

Software section

Abstract

In this study, first year commerce students in Australia were surveyed about their perceptions of their accounting studies and their perceptions of the attributes required of professional accountants. The paper specifically addresses the factors important in determining whether first year students intend to become accountants. The study uses a logistic regression model incorporating demographic and academic factors, as well as students' perceptions of the work of accountants, to predict intention to become an accountant. The results show that the perception of importance of generic skills, intrinsic interest in the discipline area, and course satisfaction were significant in determining intention to pursue a career as an accountant. As many students formed their judgments about the work of accountants from their accounting studies, the findings have implications for accounting educators in terms of the enthusiasm and motivation required in teaching accounting, as well as curriculum development that reflects the skill set required for an increasingly sophisticated business environment.     

Auditee Perceptions of External Evaluations of the Use of Resources by Local Authorities

The research reported in this paper takes up Michael Power's challenge that accounting researchers should pay more attention to the perceptions of auditees and how they respond to audit regimes. The setting of the study is the intense performance assessment regime imposed on local authorities in England from 2002 to 2009, one part of which – the Use of Resources (UoR) assessment – rated the financial management capability and performance of each English local authority. The perceptions of senior local authority finance officers within the Yorkshire and the Humber region are reported, using a written questionnaire and an interview to explore the reasoning behind the chosen responses. The results are more nuanced than suggested by either the official rhetoric justifying the UoR system or by those critics who view such systems as dysfunctional. Respondents portray themselves as intelligent actors, not as passive recipients. Most learned to use the UoR process to drive performance improvement, though there is some ambiguity as to whether the improvements were genuine or solely a product of the scoring system. Though adding to workload, UoR was regarded as one of the external pressures to be managed and its requirements largely represented professional views of best practice. Three of the types of control that characterise ‘regulation inside government’ (Hood et al., 1999) – oversight, competition and contrived randomness – are seen through the perceptions of the auditees. There is some evidence of the fourth style, mutuality – working through professional networks to help local authorities improve their actual and reported performance.     

Evidence that independent research projects improve accounting students' technology-related perceptions and skills

Advances in technology require that accountants possess skills to obtain information from various sources, complete computer-based projects, and use computers as a tool to achieve other business-related objectives. Students not only need to develop skills to access information but, more importantly, they also need to improve their perceived ability to utilize computers successfully. This paper describes a project in which accounting students were required to independently analyse a publicly-traded company using text- and Internet-based resources. The goals were to concurrently develop students' computer-based skills and improve perceptions toward technology. In addition, since research using nonaccounting students has shown that self-efficacy and confidence in the use of technology differs between the genders, this study also analysed gender-related differences in perceptions towards computers. The results show that the project enhanced students' Internet knowledge and skills to access information from multiple sources. Students also improved their perceived ability to use computers to analyse technical problems, their computer-based project completion skills, and their understanding of the Internet. Furthermore, while female students indicated lower perceived ability to work on technology-related projects before the assignment, participation in the project elevated their confidence levels. In general, this paper demonstrates the value of designing assignments to improve students' perceived computer-related abilities, and provides insight into gender differences in perceptions towards technology.     

Student career aspirations and perceptions: The case of Israeli accounting students

The study investigates changes in Israeli accounting students' career aspirations during their course of studies, and the relationship between these and their perceptions of professional accountancy firms. We employed a cross-sectional analysis of students across consecutive educational levels from the first year to the end of their formal education. We assumed that revealed differences between the accounting student cohorts, in terms of their perceptions of professional accountancy firms and their career aspirations, could be interpreted as reflecting changes over time in students' attitudes. Results from the sample show that accounting student' aspirations to pursue a career with a professional accountancy firm decline significantly between the first and postgraduate years, while their desire to work in the business sector increases. The results show the same trend with regard to the student's positive perceptions of the above firms as future workplaces. Non-parametric tests demonstrate significant relationships between students' career aspirations and their perceptions of professional accountancy firms. We suggest that the change in students' perceptions and aspirations is a symptom of something similar to a ‘reality shock’, and that it results from the students' exposure to the accounting profession. Professional accountancy firms need to implement innovative policies to meet the challenge.