Business Commons^™

Ethics-Related Cheap Talk In 10-Ks, Sedat Erdogan

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

In this study, I investigate the existence of direct ethics-related cheap talk in 10-Ks. Firms can utilize ethics-related language in 10-Ks to emphasize the importance of ethics or ethical behaviors. Direct ethics-related language in corporate financial disclosures may increase the stakeholdersâ?? expectation that firms act ethically. However, ethics-related language in 10-Ks shows cheap talk characteristics since it is qualitative, unaudited, not binding, and not costly to generate. As a result, firms may increase the extent of direct ethics-related language in 10-Ks to obfuscate corporate financial disclosures to confuse stakeholders. I focus on regulatory and financial pressure sources to understand ethics-related …

Public Budgeting As Moral Dilemma, Ben Wroblewski

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Government budget managers are responsible for the proper stewardship of public funds and facilitating the business transactions necessary to meet the public’s needs. Sometimes, during these decisions, managers can experience pressure to make an unethical decision. A better understanding of this issue can help organizations prevent misallocation of funds and adverse effects within the community. The problem is that the general pressure model lacks a framework to explain the decision-making process. Moral utility theory can provide insight into how people weigh or score choices with ethical considerations. This study found that government budget managers included their self-interests when experiencing tension …

Budget Gaming: Politics, Ethics, And Compensation, Gretchen Decker

Dissertations

Practitioners are frustrated with the budgeting process, frequently complaining that budgets cause undesirable and political behaviors in the organization (Jensen, 2001). One of the most frequent problems is budget gaming, which critics consider non-value added and frustrating. In a 2010 survey, over 95% of respondents acknowledged that budget gaming exists at least “occasionally” (Libby & Lindsay, 2010). Previous studies indicate budget gaming is frustrating, prevalent, and wasteful (Hansen et al., 2003; Libby & Lindsay, 2007; Neely et al., 2003).

I conducted an experiment to investigate organizational influences (organizational politics, compensation condition, ethics attestation) and their impact on budget gaming. The …

An Exploration Of Financial Accounting Methodologies And Ethical Decision Making Through Independent Case Studies, Courtney Craven

Honors Theses

The following thesis consists of 12 individual case studies that explore various financial accounting methodologies and common ethical challenges. When applicable, each case agrees with the Generally Accepted Accounting Principles as created by the Financial Accounting Standards Board. No topic is explored twice as each case presents different issues than the others. Each case begins with an executive summary that states broadly its purpose and what the key takeaways were. Then, the cases explore solutions to common issues within the accounting profession. These cases were completed during the 2018-2019 academic year during honors accounting independent study class (ACCY 420) under …

Analyzing Small Business To Determine The Best Internal Controls To Implement Within Student Organizations In Order To Prevent Fraud, Madison J. Brinkman

Senior Theses

After serving as a treasurer for a student organization it was clear that it would not be difficult to commit fraud and the largest obstacle was likely the guilt that would be associated with being unethical. However, students frequently cheat in an academic setting which is similar to the setting which a student organization operates within, making it possible that leaders in student organizations are committing fraud. Therefore, students were surveyed about both cheating in an academic setting and personal experience with a leader in their student organization committing fraud. The survey results along research regarding past publicized cases of …

Successful Ethical Decision-Making Practices From The Professional Accountants' Perspective, Tammy Tanner Webster

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Unethical behavior includes all decisions and actions counterproductive to an organization's mission and can cause irrevocable damage to the organization's professional reputation. The Securities and Exchange Commission reported 807 ethical violations in 2015. This study was underpinned by the ethical leadership theory, which emphasizes leadership decision making based on fair and just practices, for all involved parties. The purpose of this qualitative multiple-case study was to explore the ethical decision-making best practices that not-for-profit accounting managers in the Washington, DC, metropolitan area needed to strengthen the ethical decision-making process in their organizations. Data were collected through semistructured interviews from 5 …

Seeking Peace Of Mind: A Case Study Combining Ethics And Accounting, Lauren Ghahremani

Accounting Undergraduate Honors Theses

The purpose of this research has been to create original work in the form of a case study that educators and accounting students can benefit from during daily exercises in accounting ethics courses.

Accounting Information Systems: Ethics, Fraudulent Behavior, And Preventative Measures, Jasmine S. Smith

Honors College Theses

Most business organizations have implemented Accounting Information Systems to improve efficiency and to help optimize use of company resources. The evolution of Information Technology within financial and accounting processes has brought new ethical issues, forms of fraudulent behavior, and mechanisms to prevent compromising confidential, sensitive, and personal information. This investigation focuses on the evolution of Accounting Information Systems and their controls for limiting fraud and misconduct in financial and accounting processes.

A Study Of Ethics For Accounting Students At East Tennessee State University, Jordan Warhurst

Undergraduate Honors Theses

What is being done to stop the increase of accounting scandals and frauds? This study focuses on ethics teaching for accounting students at the undergraduate level. This study asks the question, "have students increased in their use of professional judgement as defined by the AICPA code of Professional Conduct?"

The Influence Of Leadership Style And Personal Costs On Fraud Whistleblowing Intent, Tonya D.W. Smalls

Doctor of Business Administration Dissertations

Using an experimental approach, this study examines employees’ intention to report occupational fraud through various channels based on the leadership style (transformational or transactional) of the manager and the expected personal costs (either high or low) of reporting. The study also focuses on the influence of value congruence between the manager and the employee, as well as trust factors that motivate employees to report occupational fraud. In examining these issues, I consider two types of occupational fraud schemes (misappropriation of assets and financial statement fraud). Unexpectedly, the results indicate leadership style and/or personal costs do not have a significant influence …

Taxation On Morals, Alex J. Fulop

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

This paper discusses five (5) tax topics and their relationship to the government attempting to influence taxpayer behavior. These topics include the charitable contribution deduction, excise taxes, §179 deductions, the first-time homebuyer credit, and soil, water, and endangered species conservation expense deductions. The above aspects of tax law are the government’s way of encouraging some behaviors and discouraging others. I believe that doing so is well within the government’s rights to do. However, I also think that encouraging moral actions is different from requiring them, and they certainly should not be required.

Tax Compliance: Ethical Orientation, Risk Perception And The Role Of The Tax Preparer, Ashley Beckett Soliz

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In a voluntary tax system, taxpayers have an opportunity to avoid or evade paying taxes. The reasons for and the causes of noncompliance are expansive. One way to increase revenue to the government without increasing taxes is to focus on deterring tax evasion and tax underreporting. The purpose of this study was to examine the effects on tax compliance of the taxpayer’s ethical orientation and perceived financial risk, as well as the role of the tax preparer in the compliance decision. This research adds to the current tax compliance literature by investigating (in an experimental setting) the role of the …

Identifying The Effects Of Narcissistic Leadership On Employee Job Satisfaction: A Study Within The Accounting Profession, Susan Shurden

All Dissertations

Narcissism is a personality disorder now identified in professionals in both education and business. The disorder is diagnosed when an individual possesses five of nine characteristics listed in the American Psychiatric Association's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders/ (fourth edition, text revision version). Narcissism is prevalent in most successful leaders and is both destructive and constructive. The focus of this Dissertation is on the destructive characteristics and how narcissistic leadership affects job satisfaction among employees within the accounting profession.

A Proposal For An Ethics Class For The Master Of Accountancy Program At The University Of Tennessee, Knoxville, Philip Hardman

Chancellor’s Honors Program Projects

No abstract provided.

Incorporating Ethics Into Accounting Education: A Proposal For An Undergraduate Accounting Ethics Course For The University Of Tennessee, Knoxville, Courtney Michaluk

Chancellor’s Honors Program Projects

No abstract provided.

Internal Auditor And Internal Whistleblowing Intentions : A Study Of Organisational, Individual, Situational And Demographic Factors, Syahrul A. Ahmad

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Whistleblowing is a type of ethical decision-making behaviour, and it has been one of
the positive outcome behaviours investigated in the ethical decision-making literature.
The issue has garnered widespread attention since the collapse of global multinational
companies which lead to the passage of the renowned Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002.
Since then a vast amount of research has been conducted in the whistleblowing stream,
though it is still predominantly taking place largely in western countries. Such studies
as have been undertaken in Asian countries neglect to consider how Malaysian
respondents might play their roles in undertaking this type of ethical decision-making …

Ethics In Accounting: Sustainability As A Predictor Of Financial Statement Usefulness, Kyle L. Shipley

CMC Senior Theses

This paper examines the impact of ethics on financial statement usefulness in 120 publicly traded companies. Because ethics are difficult, if not impossible, to quantify, Corporate Social Responsibility ratings are used as a proxy. The potential implications of this study are vast, though the main idea is that investors would be able to make better financial decisions should the hypothesis come to fruition. Contrarily, investors will also be able to avoid potentially bad investments if they can ascertain certain companies that lack ethical values. In this paper, I will discuss several facets of corporate ethics such as creative accounting in …

An Empirical Examination Of The Effects Of Ethics, Disclosure, And Signal Theory On Disciplinary Actions Within The Accounting Profession, Benjamin Mcmillan

Doctoral Dissertations

There has been extensive research examining the relationship between the public mission of the accounting profession and the private interests of its professionals. All professions have been offered a special place within society due to the importance of the functions they perform as well as their stated public missions. In exchange, society delegates specific rights to the professions such as exclusivity of practice, self-discipline, and self-selection of their membership. Existing research suggests that the accounting profession's private interests have potentially encroached upon its public mission.

By using the Economic Theory of the Self Regulated Profession, Disclosure Theory, and Signal Theory, …

Teaching Ethics In Schools Of Business In Oklahoma Colleges And Universities, Shelsea Ellis

McCabe Thesis Collection

The research in this study seeks to establish the degree to which ethics is included in the business curriculum of four-year colleges and universities in Oklahoma. If ethics is taught as a separate course, the study inquires about the methodology used in that course. If there is not a separate ethics course, the study determines if ethics is included in several courses of the business curriculum. Clarification is also determined as to the percentage of time dedicated to the teaching of ethics and whether or not the dean of the School of Business believes this percentage to be appropriate.