The Communication Skills of Accountants: What we Know and the Gaps in our Knowledge

Abstract

This paper critically reviews 19 studies published between 1972 and 2012 that investigated the written and/or oral communication skills of practicing accountants. The core aim of the review was to identify skills considered important and highlight gaps regarding what is known about existing and desired communication skills in the accounting profession. Key findings include that most studies did not detail the basis used to select the skills examined, used very broad skill-set categories and/or did not sufficiently incorporate information already established in the literature. Differing views on the importance of communication skills were found between educators and accountants. Knowledge gaps identified relate to the communication skills considered most important at varying career stages and different career paths, the specific types of oral and written communication skills needed and the role and importance of oral versus written and informal versus formal communication skills. A fundamental concern is that much of the existing communication skills research is crucially out of date. Of the 19 studies reviewed, only three have been published in the past decade. This suggests that further research is needed in the area.     

EFL写作中代词误用的认知分析

在EFL写作中出现人称代词视角转换混乱、指代不明、物主代词省略及忽略名词与代词的认知差异等现象,从认知语言学的相关理论来看,这是由于代词的使用受到认知方式的制约。教师应有的放矢地指导学生正确运用代词。     

影响失地农民再就业的原因分析与政府作为

失地农民再就业一直是党和政府着力解决的"三农"问题之一。从消除制度缺陷、提供培训资金支持、拓宽非农产业就业渠道、搞好就业培训等方面采取的措施尚未见到实效。失地农民再就业受到收入水平、生活成本、工作环境、技能要求、地区经济发展等因素的影响,政府应当在注重产业布局和调整的同时适度保留劳动密集型产业、加大公共财政保障力度,强化用人单位培训责任、系统设计失地农民权益保障制度等方面入手,破解失地农民"被城市化"后的再就业困境。     

产业升级进程中职业技术技能的发展趋势及学习提升分析——以制造业为例

分析了产业升级与技术技能升级关系,产业升级进程中企业一线员工职业技术技能的发展趋势,探讨了如何促进职业技术技能的学习提升。     

学生创新实践平台的构建与探索

近年来,高职学生的专业能力获得了很大的提高,但是高职学生的整体素质仍有不少弱点,集中表现在缺乏创新意识,以及缺乏主动学习的能力。本文构建了一个自动化专业学生创新实践平台,通过学生的培训、交流、参加技能竞赛、实验室设备维修等活动,实现学生创新能力的培养,取得了不错的成果。     

Do customer participation and cognitive ability influence satisfaction?

Under some circumstances, increased customer participation can enhance customer satisfaction. However, the precise mechanism by which participation might increase satisfaction has not been explored in the literature. This paper considers whether a customer’s cognitive ability might affect the relationship between participation and satisfaction. A causal model has been developed to examine the potential interactive effects of participation and cognitive ability on satisfaction, and a simple quantitative model has been proposed to simulate these effects. The results of both a numerical simulation analysis and a quantitative analysis of case study data indicate a significant main effect of cognitive ability on satisfaction. Additionally, an interactive effect has been observed, whereby higher cognitive ability results in higher satisfaction, given a minimum degree of customer participation in the service. Among this study’s implications is that customers with different cognitive abilities should have different degrees of participation that act to maximize their satisfaction.     

When do MNCs fail to learn from prior failure experience?

Do multinational corporations (MNCs) learn from their prior failures in international joint ventures (IJVs)? When does decision makers’ cognitive inability hinder MNCs from learning through their prior failure experiences? In the context of IJV survival in subsequent IJV entries, this study compares predictions made from two distinct theoretical perspectives, both of which belong to the behavioural school in strategy literature. According to the performance feedback perspective, MNCs may effectively learn from their prior failure experiences gained in familiar decision‐making contexts. On the other hand, according to the cognitive bias perspective, MNCs may not be able to effectively learn from their prior failure experiences if they inaccurately interpret the causes of their prior failures. The results provide partial support for the notion that MNC decision makers may not be able to effectively learn from their prior failures because of their cognitive biases. Copyright © 2015 ASAC. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Does hospitality diversity education make a difference in undergraduate students’ emotional intelligence

Soft skills are typically referred to as the attributes exhibited or contained by an individual that display his/her ability to interact with others. Two types of soft skills that are often discussed within the hospitality industry are diversity awareness and emotional intelligence. Diversity may be explained or defined as a state of unlikeness, the conditions of being different, and all things that make us different. Areas where differences may exist include race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, socio-economic status, age, physical abilities, religious beliefs, political affiliation and emotional reaction. Emotional intelligence (EI) has been defined as the ability to perceive, understand, regulate, and harness emotions in the self and others. How one deals with emotion is one characteristic that varies from culture to culture. Research has shown that EI may be a contributing factor in a moment of truth being considered a failure or success. The purpose of this study was to examine if undergraduate student EI scores change after completing a diversity issues course. Students completed the Assessing Emotions Scale on the first class day. At the conclusion of the 15-week course covering approximately 20 diversity issues concepts students completed the same EI assessment. Paired sampled t-testing was conducted to determine whether mean differences existed when comparing post and pre-course scores. Results of this study suggest that certain components of EI are significantly changed after taking the diversity issues course.     

年金计划对企业创新的影响:促进还是抑制?

基于企业年金的人力资本管理功能,本文分析了实施年金计划对企业创新的影响及其机理,并以2007―2017年A股上市公司为样本进行了实证检验。研究结果表明,企业年金具有显著的创新激励效果,实施年金计划能够显著提高企业的创新水平。影响机理检验表明,企业年金能够通过增强员工满意度、加大对员工创新技能培训投入来发挥创新激励作用。进一步研究显示,企业年金对创新的积极影响具有一定持续性,并且在不同环境和企业特征下具有异质性,即企业年金对创新的促进作用仅体现在国有企业、处于市场竞争程度较高的企业以及处于成长期的企业。本文研究结论拓展了企业年金政策实施效果与企业创新影响因素的研究,为建立并完善企业年金计划、优化薪酬福利制度以实现创新引领企业高质量发展提供了经验支持。     

浅谈科技英语翻译的特点

由于科学技术的发展,英语科技词汇不断增加,使得英语翻译显得越来越重要。着重探讨了科技英语翻译的专业性、精确性,科技英语的句法特征及其翻译技巧,常用标志用语的翻译,并对大量实例翻译进行分析与研究,从中归纳出科技对英语翻译的特点。