对审计专业判断能力的思考

所谓审计判断,又称审计职业判断,是指审计人员在不确定的情况下,依据一定的职业规则和自身经验,对某一事项做出分析、判断、选择和决策的能力.审计专业判断是确定被审计事项是否具有某种属性的思维过程,简单说是运用审计及相关学科的知识与经验,从各种可能的工作方案中做出取舍的决策.由此看出审计专业判断存在于整个审计过程,审计专业判断在审计工作过程中具有重要性和普遍性.     

Cost of small business banking: a New Zealand study

The research reported in this article develops a model for assessing the cost of banking services faced by small businesses. The lack of price competition in the provision of small business banking services combined with limited transparency concerning actual fee levels prevents small businesses from readily estimating likely fee levels. Prior research and government reports note the difficulties faced by small business in relation to banking services and this research contributes to an understanding of the potential dead weight losses incurred resulting from poor signalling and information asymmetry and potentially a deficient public policy framework.

Excessive risk exposure: A question of ethical decision-making

This commentary essay reflects on the article titled “When an irresistible force meets an immovable object: The interplay of agency and structure in the UK financial crisis” (Ashby et al., this issue). Specifically, managers took on excessive risk that ultimately contributed to financial crisis. This essay discusses whether the decision to accept excessive risk falls under ethical decision-making, including the degree of moral intensity as possibly perceived by risk and financial managers. The components for determining moral intensity include (1) magnitude of consequences, (2) social consensus, (3) probability of effect, (4) temporal immediacy, (5) proximity, and (6) concentration of effect.     

Country of origin perception and industrial purchase decision-making in New Zealand

This paper focuses on the impact of country of origin (COO) factors on New Zealand purchasing managers’ perceptions of two categories of industrial products, namely machine tools and component parts. These products are from 17 countries which are categorised in three kinds, namely developed, newly industrialised and industrialising countries. In this study a distinction is also made between country of design and country of assembly. Despite the debate that COO effects may no longer be clearly delineated because of globalisation of markets and outsourcing, this study confirms the importance of COO in industrial purchase decision-making by managers in New Zealand.     

Corporate response to an ethical incident: the case of an energy company in New Zealand

The ethical behaviour and social responsibility of private companies, and in particular large corporations, is an important area of enquiry in contemporary social, economic and political thinking. In the past, a company's behaviour would be considered responsible as long as it stayed within the law of the society in which it operated or existed. Although this may be necessary, it is no longer sufficient. In this paper, we examine an energy company's response to an ethical incident in New Zealand which prompted different responses across the country about the role of business in society. Thus, we argue that when a corporation is accused of unethical behaviour, executives of the company are usually compelled to offer responses to defend their actions and corporate image. Further, we use communicative response model, social issue life cycle theory, and organisational learning, to analyse the incident and how the company responded. Using social issues life cycle theory and organisational learning theory, we demonstrate that sustained pressure can potentially trigger a change of strategy that may serve to improve the ethical posture of a corporation and thereby improve the corporate image long term. We conclude that, although corporations may understand the significance of social issues to the performance and success of their business, this same understanding does not always translate into meaningful social action.     

A model of decision-making incorporating ethical values

A model is presented which describes the process decision-makers follow when faced with problems containing ethical dimensions. The model, based upon the empirical literature, is designed to provide guidance to researchers studying ethical behavior in business. The model portrays the decision-maker with a set of personal values which are mediated by elements of the organization's culture. The combination of personal values and organizational influences yields decisions which may be significantly different from those made based upon personal values alone. Inclusion of the personal values of the decision-maker as the dominant individual input and an explicit discussion of the ethical decision process make this model more comprehensive than other recent ethics models. David J. Fritzsche is Visiting Professor in the Department of Managing and Organization at the University of Washington. His articles have appeared in numerous journals and books. He is also a co-author of the Business Policy Game, a strategic management simulation.     

Chinese relationship management: a qualitative study of banking in New Zealand

This study investigates the relational factors and motivations of Chinese migrant consumers towards financial service providers in New Zealand. Using convergent interviews, a deeper understanding is developed of immigrants’ relational behaviour with service providers. These relationships with service providers are significantly influenced by traditional Chinese values and guanxi and relational embeddedness plays an important role in how they are developed. The research contributes a better understanding of the interplay between Eastern and Western cultures in service relationships among immigrant groups. A general theory of the Chinese perspective of customer relationship management is developed. The implications for how marketing practitioners manage their relationships with migrant customers are explored.     

The influence of culture on ethical perception held by business students in a New Zealand university

The demand for principled and transparent corporate moral judgement and ethical decision making in the workplace makes it necessary for business students as future managers to understand the expectations of ethical workplace conduct. Corporate scandals mean that there is enhanced interest in ensuring that ethical content is included in curricula in universities. In this study, we re‐visit the question of whether culture has an influence on ethical perceptions of workplace scenarios, using students enrolled in a College of Business in a New Zealand (NZ) university as respondents. Consistent with current research, this study demonstrated mixed results. However, we also found evidence to suggest some identifiable patterns in the data across cultural groups. Overall, Chinese and Other respondents were more likely than NZ European to consider the scenarios as ethical. On the other hand, Chinese respondents were significantly less likely to report that their peers would carry out ethically questionable actions.     

An analysis of the ethical environment of the international accounting profession

This paper analyses the ethical cultures of the international accounting profession by using the concept of 'mainstreaming' to describe the commitment of an organisation to the ethical function in its operations. The objective of the research on which the paper is based was to rate the efforts of 62 respondent national associations of professional accountants worldwide to incorporate the ethics function into the core operations of their organisations. Sixteen environmental factors were used in the analysis. They were set up as a group of criteria to assess the ethics procedures and systems of the accounting associations, and were divided into two categories. The first group was code based and contained items on code of ethics development and functions which would indicate whether ethically-friendly management attitudes and systems were in place as a central focus of operations. Some of these elements were capable of fostering a 'proprietary interest' attitude on the part of members towards their codes of ethics, which in turn encourages code compliance. With the second group, other key operational aspects were examined to provide a balanced set of criteria. Interrelated elements among factors important to an ethical environment are included in the findings. The study concludes that on average the international accounting profession has attitudinal and systemic approaches that are 'mainstream'. In general addressees were involved in code authorship and the public had adequate access to codes. However, increased use could be made of ethics professionals in the development of codes, of professional development courses to further the ethics skills of members, and of communication channels to foster a unifying approach to ethics. The study provides criteria for individual associations to assess their mainstreaming status against the international findings.     

Beyond bean counting: Establishing high ethical standards in the public accounting profession

Business professions are increasingly faced with the question of how to best monitor the ethical behavior of their members. Conflicts could exist between a profession's desire to self-regulate and its accountability to the public at large. This study examines how members of one profession, public accounting, evaluate the relative effectiveness of various self-regulatory and externally imposed mechanisms for promoting a climate of high ethical behavior. Specifically, the roles of independent public accountants, regulatory and rule setting agencies, and undergraduate accounting education are investigated. Of 461 possible respondents, 230 questionnaires (a 49.6% response rate) indicated that the profession's own rule setting body (The American Institute of Certified Public Accountants) and the use of peer review were perceived as the most effective mechanisms, while government regulation was ranked least. Respondents also evaluated the extent to which ethics should be covered in the accounting curriculum. For every course, the CPAs believed a greater emphasis on ethics is appropriate than presently exists. Suggestions for more effectively integrating ethics into accounting courses are made. Finally, respondents were also asked whether in answering the questionnaire they used a definition of ethics as either the Professional Code of Conduct or a moral and philosphical framework for guiding beliefs. Those who viewed ethics as abiding by a professional code had more confidence in the mechanisms addressed in this study to aid the public accounting profession's ability to ensure high ethical standards of conduct. Methodological implications of this distinction for future studies in business ethics are discussed. Jeffrey R. Cohen is Assistant Professor of Accounting at Boston College. He received his Ph.D. from The University of Massachusetts at Amherst. He is a C.M.A. and a Peat Marwick Research Fellow. His articles have appeared in the Journal of Accounting Research, Decision Sciences and The Organizational Behavior Teaching Review. His work on Ethics has appeared in Issues in Accounting Education, Management Accounting, and The CPA Journal. Laurie W. Pant is Assistant Professor of Accounting at Boston College. She holds an M.B.A. and a D.B.A. from Boston University and an M.Ed. from Emory University. She serves on the editorial board of Issues in Accounting Education. Her articles on Ethics have appeared in Issues in Accounting Education, Management Accounting and The Organizational Behavior Teaching Review.An earlier version of this paper was presented at the 1989 American Accounting Association National Meeting.     

Unravelling the ethical decision-making process: Clues from an empirical study comparingFortune 1 000 executives and MBA students

Using a nationwide survey, this study compared the ethical values and decision processes ofFortune executives and MBA students. Statistically significant differences in ethical values were found by class of respondent, gender, and professed decision approach. MBAs were also found to process ethical decisions differently than business professionals.James R. Harris is Associate Professor of Marketing at Auburn University. He has published in theJournal of Business Ethics, Journal of Marketing Research, Journal of Retailing, Business and Professional Ethics Journal, and elsewhere. He has taught the Legal and Social Environment course at the graduate level for a number of years.Charlotte D. Sutton is Assistant Dean for Graduate Programs at the College of Business, Auburn University. Her research on such topics as women in management, stress and interpersonal communication has been cited in such places as ABC News, Good Morning America,Wall Street Journal, Newsweek, andBusiness Week.     

The ethical decision-making processes of information systems workers

An empirical investigation was conducted to determine whether management information systems (MIS) majors, on average, exhibit ethical decision-making processes that differ from students in other functional business areas. The research also examined whether the existence of a computer-based information system in an ethical dilemma influences ethical desision-making processes. Although student subjects were used, the research instrument has been highly correlated with educational levels attained by adult subjects in similar studies. Thus, we feel that our results have a high likelihood of generalization to the MIS professional community. The results indicate that MIS majors exhibit more socially-oriented ethical decision-making processes than non-MIS majors measured by the Defining Issues Test. The results also indicate that the existence of a computer-based information system in an ethical dilemma may influence ethical decision-making processes. The study makes no statement regarding MIS majors making more (or less) ethical decisions. The business ethics literature is reviewed, details of the study are presented, implications for management are considered, and directions for future research are suggested.David Paradice is Assistant Professor of Management Information Systems in the Department of Business Analysis and Research at Texas A&M University. His research interests focus on the utilization of artificial intelligence in managerial information systems and the influence of those systems on managerial decision-making behavior. His research has been presented at international conferences and has been published in several academic journals. He is co-editing a book of readings in the information systems/ethics area.Roy Dejoie is a doctoral student in the Department of Business Analysis and Research at Texas A&M University. His primary research activities investigate the influence of information systems on ethical decision-making behavior. He is also co-editing a book of readings in the information systems/ethics area.     

The effects of culture on ethical decision-making: An application of Hofstede's typology

This paper addresses a significant gap in the conceptualization of business ethics within different cultural influences. Though theoretical models of business ethics have recognized the importance of culture in ethical decision-making, few have examinedhow this influences ethical decision-making. Therefore, this paper develops propositions concerning the influence of various cultural dimensions on ethical decision-making using Hofstede's typology.Scott J. Vitell is Associate Professor of Marketing and holder of the Michael S. Starnes Lecturship in Marketing and Business Ethics at the University of Mississippi. His work has previously appeared in theJournal of Macromarketing, theJournal of Business Ethics, Research in Marketing, and theJournal of the Academy of Marketing Science as well as various other journals and proceedings.Saviour Nwachukwu is a Ph.D. candidate in Marketing. His research interests include international marketing, marketing and economic development, and marketing ethics.James H. Barnes is Associate Professor of Marketing and Pharmacy Administration and holder of the Morris Lewis, Jr. Lectureship in Marketing at the University of Mississippi. His research has previously appeared in theJournal of Marketing Research as well as other journals and proceedings.     

The legal and ethical components of executive decision-making: A course for business managers

The debate on whether and how to teach business ethics in graduate business programs continues. The authors of this article suggest specific content and processes for a course aimed at giving MBA candidates the awareness, tools, and mental processes necessary to recognize and address ethical issues in decision making. The inclusion of labor law, discrimination issues, consumer protection legislation, securities laws, and an overview of the U.S. Constitution and the Bill of Rights coupled with the development of utilitarian, deontological, and egalitarian analysis of ethical issues provides the tools and processes necessary for ethical decision making. These tools and processes are applied in several class experiences using cases, moral audits, and the development of a code of ethics to help students acquire the knowledge, skills, and values needed in ethical decision making.S. Andrew Ostapski is Associate Professor of Management and Information Systems at the College of Business Administration, Valdosta State University, Valdosta, Georgia. His teaching and research interests include the legal environment, business ethics, and international business.John E. Oliver, is presently Professor and Head of the Department of Management and Information Systems at Valdosta State University's College of Business Administration.Gaston T. Gonzalez is an Aggregate Professor at Universidad Simon Bolivar and Visiting Professor at IESA both at Caracas, Venezuela. His teaching and research interests focus on strategic management, business transformation through information technology, and the application of system thinking to the institutionalization of ethics in organizations.     

Leading by example: Testing a moderated mediation model of ethical leadership,value congruence,and followers' openness to ethical influence

In this study, we investigate a key question of ethical leadership theory: Are ethical leaders able to gain followers' openness to their ethical influence? When describing ethical leadership, we distinguish between leaders’ moral person behavior (i.e., behaviors that are normatively appropriate) and moral management (i.e., using position power to reinforce ethical standards). We then draw on mechanisms of social learning and social exchange and test a moderated mediation model. It is predicted that the effect of leaders' moral person behavior on followers’ openness to ethical influence is mediated by leader‐follower ethical value congruence. Moreover, we examine whether moral management amplifies the effects of moral person behavior. For hypothesis testing, existing measures from the literature are integrated to operationalize four underlying normative reference points of leaders' moral person behavior: humane, justice, responsibility/sustainability, and moderation orientation. After establishing the psychometric properties of this integrative measure, the main hypotheses are tested in two separate studies. While results showed a positive effect of leaders' moral person behavior on followers' openness to ethical influence through ethical value congruence, the moderating effect of moral management was, contrary to our expectation, negative. With this, our study contributes to a better understanding of the mechanisms of ethical leadership.     

The legitimacy of accountants' participation in social and ethical accounting, auditing and reporting

This paper discusses the legitimacy of accountants' recent involvement in social and ethical accounting, auditing and reporting (SEAAR). Support for accountants' legitimacy is proposed by highlighting some of the technical skills they offer to the SEAAR process as conceived in AA1000. It is argued that the relevance of these skills is strengthened within a conception of SEAAR which principally perceives it as a risk/stakeholder management process focused primarily on the concerns of corporate management as opposed to those of the wider society. However, the paper moves on to maintain that if we wish to promote a conception of SEAAR primarily focused on accountability to stakeholders (denoted as 'true accountability') as opposed to risk/stakeholder management, then, particularly in the domain of external social audit, the legitimacy of accountants' participation may be disputed. The paper therefore concludes by cautioning against facilitating the unquestioned entry of accountants into the realm of SEAAR.     

A cross cultural comparison of ethical perspectives and decision approaches of business students: United States of America versus New Zealand

While differences do exist, there are many ethical issues which transcend national barriers. In order to contribute to the development of understanding of global ethics, this study documents the existing ethical perspectives of collegiate business students from two countries and identifies the determinants of their ethical orientations.A survey instrument was administered to USA and New Zealand (NZ) students enrolled in undergraduate business programs. The research instrument measured students' ethical perspectives across multilayered ethical domains and their self-professed decision method used in evaluating ethical scenarios.The results indicate that USA students were less tolerant than the NZ students of situations involving the ethical constructs of fraud, coercion and self-interest. Additionally, females are less tolerant than males in all ethical domains in both countries. Within the group of students who reported experience in an ethics course there was no significant difference in the ethical values of the USA and NZ students. The implication is that educational experience in an ethics course produces homogeneity and is beneficial towards obtaining cross cultural understanding and agreement in ethical values.Marilyn Okleshen is an Associate Professor in the Accounting Department, College of Business Administration, Mankato State University.Richard Hoyt is an Associate Professor in the Finance Department, College of Business and Economics, University of Nevada, Las Vegas. He spent one year on sabbatical leave with the Property Group, Department of Accounting and Finance, Lincoln University, Canterbury, New Zealand. His dissertation topic was on the social responsibility of business. He has published in academic and professional journals.     

Making a little go further: Capital and the New Zealand entrepreneur

Using case analysis, this article examines the sources of start-up and development capital for 133 entrepreneurs who began commercial enterprises in New Zealand between 1880 and 1910. Though capital markets were immature, entrepreneurs overcame this limitation by employing capital economizing techniques to start firms, and then continued to exert managerial control by reinvesting profits rather than borrowing. The results of this investigation offer a comment on the prevailing firm structure in New Zealand, as well as providing a partial explanation for the capacity building noted by other economic historians during this recessionary period in New Zealand economic history.     

Perceived moral intensity,ethical perception,and ethical intention of American and Malaysian managers: a comparative study

In this study, differences in perceived moral intensity, ethical perception, and ethical intention of managers from the United States and Malaysia are investigated. Models are proposed with perceived moral intensity, ethical perception, and ethical intention as dependent variables, the country of residence of the managers as the independent variable, and gender and age of the managers as covariates. By using scenarios involving ethical situations, it is found that American managers perceive higher levels of moral intensity than Malaysian managers on the components that relate to the extent of harm done to the victim. However, there are no significant differences between the two groups on those components that relate to social pressure. Also, the ethical perception and ethical intention of American managers are higher than those of Malaysian managers. An explanation for the direction of the differences is offered based on the divergence of the United States and Malaysia with respect to the societal moral climate, organizational culture, cultural factors, and cognitive moral development. Implications and suggestions for future research are also offered.