Title
Do Gender, Educational Level, Religiosity, and Work Experience Affect the Ethical Decision-Making of U.S. Accountants?
Abstract
Accounting plays a key role in the social and economic progress of a nation. Ethical standards are a hallmark of the accounting profession. An important question is what factors affect the ethical choices made by accountants. Past research suggests that factors such as gender, educational level, religiosity, and work experience may be related to the development of a person's ethical standards. This study attempts to do two things. First, the study provides a short review of contemporary ethical models, including the hermeneutical model. Second, the study examines factors affecting a person's ethical perspectives. Understanding the factors which shape the ethical standards of future accountants will help educational institutions develop appropriate ethics curriculum and help firms develop appropriate ethics training for their employees. Failure to bring appropriate ethical standards to the workplace will most assuredly hamper the profession's time-honored commitment to serve the public interest. The findings suggest that there are differences in individual ethical standards based on gender, college level (graduate versus undergraduate), religiosity, and work experience.
Department(s)
School of Accountancy
Document Type
Article
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cpa.2006.01.006
Keywords
business ethics, ethical decision-making, gender issues
Publication Date
2007
Recommended Citation
Keller, A. Craig, Katherine T. Smith, and L. Murphy Smith. "Do gender, educational level, religiosity, and work experience affect the ethical decision-making of US accountants?." Critical perspectives on accounting 18, no. 3 (2007): 299-314.
Journal Title
Critical perspectives on accounting
