Ethics and the Auditing Culture: Rethinking the Foundation of Accounting and Auditing

Although the foundation of financial accounting and auditing has traditionally been based upon a rule-based framework, the concept of a principle-based approach has been periodically advocated since being incorporated into the AICPA Code of Conduct in 1989. Recent high profile events indicate that the accountants and auditors involved have followed rule-based ethical perspectives and have failed to protect investors and stakeholders – resulting in a wave of scandals and charges of unethical conduct. In this paper we describe how the rule-based traditions of auditing became a convenient vehicle that perpetuated the unethical conduct of firms such as Enron and Arthur Andersen. We present a model of ten ethical perspectives and briefly describe how these ten ethical perspectives impact rule-based and principle-based ethical conduct for accountants and auditors. We conclude by identifying six specific suggestions that the accounting and auditing profession should consider to restore public trust and to improve the ethical conduct of accountants and auditors.     

对我国注册会计师承担舞弊审计责任的思考

近年来,我国经济领域内舞弊案件及审计失败案例频频发生,致使投资者遭受重大损失,严重动摇了社会公众对审计报告的信任,也引起了社会公众对我国注册会计师承担的舞弊审计责任的质疑。回顾注册会计师承担舞弊审计责任的历史演进过程,并结合我国目前的社会经济环境,我国注册会计师应当以更加主动地态度承担起审计舞弊的责任,以满足社会公众的合理需求。     

从台湾政府审计职能的发展谈大陆政府审计制度的完善

从历史脉络来观察,台湾地区政府审计制度与政治、社会、经济的发展有着密不可分的关系。政府审计职权在台湾"五权宪法"架构下,监察院设审计长,综理监督政府预算的执行及考核财务效能等职权。研究分析台湾地区政府审计职能发展的原因和背景,对完善大陆政府审计制度具有重要的借鉴意义。     

Policy Issues Raised by For-Profit Spinoffs from Professional Associations: An Evaluation of a Recent AICPA Initiative

This paper provides an evaluation of the spinoff of a for-profit company from the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA), a nonprofit professional association. The evaluation is based on a review of the literature on public policy issues surrounding organizational conversions from nonprofit to for-profit legal status. Many criticisms of this for-profit spinoff were voiced by professional leaders and accounting regulators, and we demonstrate that these criticisms are grounded in widely recognized policy principles relating to nonprofit conversions. The public policy issues raised by this study have implications for the governance of professional associations in all disciplines.     

Due Process and Standard-setting: An Analysis of Due Process in Three Canadian Accounting and Auditing Standard-setting Bodies

Due process is the means by which ethical constraints are placed on administrative decision-making. I have developed a model of variation in due process and use this model to explore the implementation of “due process” norms by three standard-setting bodies that are created, funded, and overseen by the Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants – the Accounting Standards Board, the Auditing and Assurance Standards Board, and the Public Sector Accounting Standards Board. I conducted two analyses: a comparative analysis of the implementation of due process norms based on differences among the three cases; and, a critique of the due process norms followed by these boards based on their internal logic and a set of best practices identified in other contexts for due process by standard setters. I have presented evidence that due process norms are more fully developed, where standards are enforced by the state and the heterogeneity of users is greatest.     

浅谈绩效审计在我国国有企业实施存在的问题与对策

我国国有企业在实施绩效审计过程中存在着观念薄弱、缺乏绩效审计指导评价体系与规范、审计人员的整体素质不够等问题。促使绩效审计更好的在国有企业实施的对策是：加强效益审计观念的传播;建立一套完善的绩效审计评价体系,统一实施标准;注重对项目绩效情况的考察,强化指导性作用;完善队伍结构,提升审计业务水平,使绩效审计在国有企业发展和竞争中发挥特定的积极作用。     

美国审计合谋治理分析及其借鉴

近几年来中外频频爆发审计丑闻案件,许多会计师事务所被撤销,大量注册会计师受到惩罚。美国在2002年颁发了《萨班斯奥克斯利法案》对审计合谋进行了严厉的制裁并初显成效。通过系统分析美国审计合谋的形成原因和治理过程,发现其中的若干做法对我国审计合谋的治理也具有一定的借鉴意义。     

E时代审计业务新亮点——网誉认证

计算机和网络固有的局限造成的信息风险和信用风险已经成为制约电子商务发展的瓶颈。网络经济急需引入网誉认证机制,通过独立第三方对电子商务网站的鉴证来增强用户对电子商务的信心。注册会计师由于具有独立、公正的形象,成熟合理的工作规范以及丰富的鉴证经验,成为从事网誉认证的最佳人选。随着网络经济的发展,网誉认证将成为e时代审计业务最耀眼的新亮点。     

Ethical Exemplification and the AICPA Code of Professional Conduct: An Empirical Investigation of Auditor and Public Perceptions

This research applies the impression management theory of exemplification in an accounting study by identifying and measuring differences in both auditor and public perceptions of exemplary behaviors. The auditors were divided into two groups, one of which reported self-perceptions (A-S) while the other group reported their perceptions of a typical auditor (A-O). There were two separate public groups, which gave their perceptions of a typical auditor and were divided based on their levels of accounting sophistication. The more sophisticated public group was comprised of bank loan officers (LO) while the less sophisticated public group consisted of investment club members (IC). Comparisons were made on 30 behaviors contained in the AICPA Code of Professional Conduct, which served as the basis for the research instrument. Profile analysis, a special form of MANOVA technique, was used to analyze the results. A-S perceptions were the highest of the four treatment levels and were significantly higher (i.e., more exemplary) than the perceptions of both the A-O and LO groups. The more sophisticated user group (LO) provided the lowest perceptions of the four treatment levels. For at least four of the six measures, the LO treatment group perceived the typical auditor to be less exemplary than both the IC and A-O treatments. There were no differences in perceptions between the A-O group and IC. Additional analysis revealed that auditors overrated the degree to which the public relied on financial statements. However, both public groups reported a reasonably high level of reliance on financial statements when making decisions. Philip A. Brown is an Associate Professor and Directtor of the Accounting Program at Harding University in Searcy, Arkansas. He has a bachelor's degree from Harding University, an MBA from West Virginia University and a Ph.D. from the University of Mississippi. His research interests are in accounting ethics and in accounting education. He has published in Advances in Accounting, The Journal of Accounting and Finance Research, and others. He is a CPA in the State of Arkansas. Morris H. Stocks serves as the Dean of the Patterson School of Accountancy at the Universtiy of Mississippi. He received his undergraduate degree in accounting from Trevecca Nazarene University, his Masters degree from Middle Tennessee State University and his Ph.D. from the University of South Carolina. He is a Certified Public Accountant in the State of Mississippi. He is a behavioral accounting researcher and has published in Accounting, Organizations and Society, Accounting Horizons, Behavioural Research in Accounting, Decision Sciences Journal, Advances in Accounting, Advances in Accounting Information Systems, Advances in Behavioral Accounting Research, Accounting, Auditing and Accountability Journal, Advances in Taxation and others. W. Mark Wilder is KPMG Lecturer and Associate Professor of Accountancy at The University of Mississippi. His educational background includes a bachelor's degree in mathematics from The University of Alabama, an MBA from the University of South Alabama, and a Ph.D. in Accounting from Florida State University. He is a CPA in the State of Mississippi. Mark has published in Accounting Horizons, Advances in Taxation, the Journal of Applied Corporate Finance, the Journal of Computer and Information Systems, the CPA Journal, and others. In the past 2 years he has received several awards, including the top two campus-wide faculty awards at Ole Miss and also the MSCPA Outstanding Educator Award. In 2004 he was inducted into the Alabama Tennis Hall of Fame.     

内部审计服务外包的国际化与创新——基于交易成本理论与中国实践的解释

基于交易成本理论,文章考察了内部审计服务外包业务发展背后的经济学机理,然后结合国际四大和国内会计师事务所在中国的业务发展历程,指出通过创新在激烈的国际竞争中降低交易成本是内部审计服务外包呈现国际化与创新相结合趋势的主要成因。文章进一步分析了内部审计服务外包创新所需要经历的三个阶段,并通过案例分析说明了:中国内部审计服务外包仍处于第一与第二阶段;业务国际化是引致中国内部审计外包创新的重要因素,同时内部审计外包创新反过来又促进了中国内部审计外包业的国际化进程。     

网络环境下的企业内部控制问题研究

内部控制是企业经营管理的重要内容之一,网络的普及对企业传统内部控制的方式方法形成巨大冲击,在控制环境、控制范围、信息存储等方面带来显著的影响。提高企业内部控制的措施主要有:做好不相容职务的分离和授权审批;会计信息的安全控制;风险检测及预警;企业文化建设。     

Professional Ethics in a Virtual World: The Impact of the Internet on Traditional Notions of Professionalism

Numerous articles in the popular press together with an examination of websites associated with the medical, legal, engineering, financial, and other professions leave no doubt that the role of professions has been impacted by the Internet. While offering the promise of the democratization of expertise – expertise made available to the public at convenient times and locations and at an affordable cost – the Internet is also driving a reexamination of the concept of professional identity and related claims of expertise and standards of integrity.This paper begins with a presentation of case studies illustrating the ease by which impostors infiltrate the ranks of professionals. Reports of individuals masquerading as professionals via the Internet often reveal that these imposters cause harm to the unwary victims who rely on assertions of professional expertise. Such reports motivated the authors to examine the origins and evolution of the traditional roles of professions and professionals in today’s society, as well as question how, or whether, the standards for professional practice have been adapted to the challenges posed by technology, i.e., do statements of professional ethics provide a ‘guiding light’ for practitioners and their clients in the cyber age? The authors challenge the professions to consider the notion that technology forces a confrontation between the guild-like aspects of a profession that have served, on the one hand, to protect a profession from encroachment and, on the other hand, have purportedly protected the public.The authors conclude by presenting an examination of websites that show recognition of the challenges that the Internet poses to professionalism, as we have known it. Detailed discussion of the websites of two professions illustrates different approaches to responding to these challenges.     

Accountability in Crisis: The Sponsorship Scandal and the Office of the Comptroller General in Canada

For much of the last 50 years, a key platform animating public sector reform in Canada and elsewhere has been that efficiency and effectiveness can be achieved by adapting private sector financial management methods and practices. We argue that the recent re-establishment of the Office of the Comptroller General (OCG) of Canada represents a key element of a program of strengthening financial accountability that has emerged within the Canadian Federal Government. Although this program is longstanding and is associated Canada’s implementation of new public management initiatives, it has recently drawn particular sustenance from the sponsorship scandal in Canada. We demonstrate that the reincarnated OCG, re-established amid a rhetoric of “modernization” and of “strengthening” accountability, has a wide-ranging mandate to enhance financial and audit controls, create financial standards, nurture professional development, and oversee government spending. We explore some of the consequences of this development and of the broader financial accountability mechanisms introduced in response to the Sponsorship scandal within the Canadian public sector.     

道是非法却有情:小产权房开发的经济学分析

小产权房在中国虽已成为城镇住宅开发的一种主要形式,但却是不合法的矛盾怪胎。表面上看是一个房产开发是否合法的问题,而实质上却是一个关系农地保护的根本性问题。无论是民间的简单认可,还是政府的简单叫停,都不利于对这一问题的有效解决和根治。小产权房的开发是集体农民与地方政府利益抗争的结果,虽是自身产权保护的一种努力,但却造成了租金耗散和土地的低效利用,并未产生帕累托改进的理想效果。要从根本上解决小产权房问题,需要在土地利用相关者之间进行产权的缔约,从财产权益、利益结构和制度设计上给予全面考虑。     

企业实施战略管理会计的绩效评价体系探析

对传统财务指标评价进行了分析与探讨,提出实施战略管理会计的绩效评价体系应在财务评价的基础上,以价值增值指标衡量长期绩效,并增加非财务指标以全面衡量企业业绩。企业应借鉴其经验,完善自身的绩效评价体系。     

浅析作业成本法及其在我国的应用

新经济环境下,高科技加速发展、企业电算化、自动化程度迅速提高,管理观念与方式不断更新,传统的成本核算和成本管理受到冲击。我国正处在经济改革的大好时期,经济结构逐步转型,作为一种新兴成本核算模式的作业成本法,以其特有的优越性日益得到人们的瞩目和认可,在我国有着广泛的应用前景,但现阶段仍不具备适用作业成本法的成熟条件。     

英国政府会计改革:政府统一账户的最新发展及评价

建立政府统一账户是英国政府近年来推进公共部门会计改革的重要举措,其任务在于编制覆盖英国所有公共部门的、基于通用会计准则的合并财务报表,更好地支持财政政策的发展和提供公共服务。文章介绍了WGA的起源和发展历程、WGA的合并范围与发展目标、建立WGA的重要举措,分析了政府对WGA效用的预期,以及WGA发展的现实困境,例如：WGA信息价值的局限性、合并会计技术的问题、政府债务合并的困境等等。     

公允价值计量模式下会计准则与所得税法差异分析

新会计准则体系引入的公允价值计量模式(投资性房地产、非货币性资产交换、债务重组、企业合并、金融工具确认和计量).与所得税法之间产生两方面差异,其表现:一是在金融工具、投资性房地产、非共同控制下的企业合并的业务核算的引入,使会计准则与所得税法产生新的差异;二是在债务重组和非货币性交易业务恢复使用公允价值计量模式,使原会计准则与所得税法差异消失.这两方面的差异有待于理论界、学术界和实务工作者进行深入研讨.     

企业合并会计方法选择的经济后果分析

根据我国现行《企业会计准则》的规定,企业合并的会计处理方法原则上分别采用权益结合法和购买法进行会计处理。企业合并对会计方法的选择差异将会带来不同的会计后果,如果产生盈余管理的动机,则会利用会计方法的差异进行利润操纵。为了防止企业的这种行为,相关部门有必要出台相关政策予以完善,即以政策性规定或条文的形式,严格维护购买法和权益结合法的互斥关系;提高公允价值评估机构的获准入行的标准,确保公允价值评估的准确性和可信度;强化从业人员的专业胜任能力;对相关政策或准则规定有冲突的地方进行适当的修订。     

Strategic and Functional Orientation of Small and Medium Sized Enterprises in Professional Services: An Analysis of Public Accountancy

This study examines how SMEs in public accountancy remain competitive, promote and deliver their services. The association among strategic planning, functional diversification (services and markets), methods of promotion and delivery is also examined. These SMEs face considerable difficulty in overcoming both in-house and external barriers in accessing clients requiring non-traditional services (e.g. management consulting), and clients involved in international business (broadly defined). The results show that the proactive, functionally diversified, and/or internationally oriented firms outperform the reactive, functionally concentrated, and local market oriented firms. The competitive advantage for the former categories is based on flexible specialisation such as customisation of services for specific groups of clients, speed of delivery collaboration with other producer service firms, and specialised skills. These firms utilise informal networks to promote their services with minimal investments in sponsorships or media selling. Face-to-face interaction with clients continues to be the preferred mode of service delivery despite the increased adaptation of local area networks and other modes of internationally technology by the proactive, functionally diversified or internationally oriented firms.