Pual Miller Nad Paul Bahnson

8/14/2019 Pual Miller Nad Paul Bahnson

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Making Ethics a Pervasive Component of

Accounting Education

By Esmond-Kiger, Connie

Publication: Management Accounting Quarterly

Date: Thursday, July 1 2004

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HEADNOTE

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Is it possible to make our students exude ethics? As Theodore

Roosevelt once said, "To educate a person in mind and not in morals is to educate a menace

to society." Though it may sound like a "pie in the sky"

goal, instilling a maximum level of ethical values and sensitivity in our students is what

accounting educators should be striving for. Even if we fall short, the progress we make can

only enhance the ethical orientation of our accounting graduates. This article presents several

ideas for self-reflective assignments that can be used in the classroom to enhance the ethical

awareness and sensitivity of students. Many of these assignments incorporate news articles,

trying to take the bad press accountants have suffered in recent years and get something

positive from it. Based on comments taken from student essays and the results of a survey

administered to students in the "pre-Enron" era versus the current "post-Enron" era, this

reflective approach to raising the ethical awareness among students appears to be working.

"THERE IS MUCH WORK TO BE DONE TO PREPARE THE NEXT GENERATION OF

MANAGERS AND ACCOUNTANTS SO THAT THEY DON'T REPEAT THE

TRANSGRESSIONS OF THEIR PREDECESSORS










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MANAGERS AND ACCOUNTANTS SO THAT THEY DON'T REPEAT THETRANSGRESSIONS OF THEIR PREDECESSORS."-PAUL B. MILLER & PAUL R.

BAHNSON

Historically, there have been many calls for increasing the level of ethics education in the

accounting curriculum. These calls turned to screams in the wake of the corporate scandals

of the past few years. Many of these screams are coming from accounting professors who are

increasingly frustrated with the behavior of some accounting professionals. In his opening

statement in testimony before Congress, L. Murphy Smith stated that the leadership of the

accounting profession, in practice and in academe, has a responsibility to inculcate ethical

behavior and personal integrity in practitioners and students. He also believes there is no

classroom that does not offer opportunities to foster and teach ethical behavior and integrity

as well as the consequences of their absence.1 Paul B. Miller and Paul R. Bahnson voice

concern that professors are failing to generate from their students any commitment to our

profession's long-standing duty to do what is right for the capital markets and the greater

economy.2 G. Peter Wilson, former president of the American Accounting Association, said

that educators need to increasingly emphasize within the classroom the two values that have

long been the mainstay of the accountant's reputation: integrity and professional skepticism.3

The first organized push to incorporate ethics into the business curriculum came in 1979,

when the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) made ethics

education a requirement for students in business education programs.4 A more specific focus

on ethics in accounting education came from the Bedford Committee, which stated,

"Professional accounting education must not only emphasize the needed skills and

knowledge, it must also instill the ethical standards and the commitment of a professional." 5

Shortly thereafter, the Treadway Commission and the AICPA added their voices to the

demand for ethics to become an integral part of accounting education.6 In 1989, the AACSB

increased the emphasis on ethics by requiring ethics to be taught within the major area of

study in business programs.7





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reflective approach to raising the ethical awareness among students appears to be working."THERE IS MUCH WORK TO BE DONE TO PREPARE THE NEXT GENERATION OF


TRANSGRESSIONS OF THEIR PREDECESSORS."-PAUL B. MILLER & PAUL R.

BAHNSON

























In response to these calls, educators have incorporated ethics into their curricula in a number

of ways, often by using textbook cases, case problems, video presentations, and articles from

various publications.8 We've also seen a debate arise about whether ethics can be taught


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once students reach college age and arrive at our classroom door. Many believe that a

person's ethical beliefs are formed at an early age and may be hard to change. H.Q.

Langenderfer and J.W. Rockness, however, consider this notion to be unwarranted, noting

that education literature supports the idea that people develop their ethics throughout life.9This notion of continuing ethical development may be good news, but it also may explain how

even the most ethical person engulfed in an unethical corporate culture may find it difficult to

distinguish between what is proper behavior and what is questionable behavior in the eyes of

an outsider. As we attempt to teach ethics to our students, therefore, we need to consider

that, because people develop their ethical values throughout life, an individual's ethics are

subject to change negatively as well as positively, depending on the environment. For

example, Barbara Toffler, a business ethics consultant and author of Final Accounting:

Ambition, Greed, and the Fall of Arthur Andersen, made the following statement in an

interview with WNET-TV concerning the time she spent as a consultant with Arthur Andersen:

I don't want to say that I forgot everything that I was raised with, but you know, when you

spend time working in an organization, particularly one that has a strong culture, you find

yourself being drawn into that culture and beginning to behave the same way the people

around you do.10

This statement, made by someone considered to be an ethics expert, suggests that our

efforts in the classroom should not be focused entirely on teaching ethics in terms of

academic subject matter. There is also a need to stress the importance of developing an

ethical sensitivity in our students in order to provide them with a keen, internalized awareness

of the ethical status of their current academic environment and, subsequently, the corporate

environments they encounter.

HEADNOTE












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MANAGERS AND ACCOUNTANTS SO THAT THEY DON'T REPEAT THETRANSGRESSIONS OF THEIR PREDECESSORS."-PAUL B. MILLER & PAUL R.

BAHNSON































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that education literature supports the idea that people develop their ethics throughout life.9

This notion of continuing ethical development may be good news, but it also may explain how

even the most ethical person engulfed in an unethical corporate culture may find it difficult todistinguish between what is proper behavior and what is questionable behavior in the eyes of










around you do.10







This article provides several ideas for assignments that can be used in the classroom to

enhance the ethical awareness and sensitivity of students. Examples of comments written by

students are included to show the depth of thought and concern these assignments generate.

Also presented are the results of a survey administered to accounting students enrolled in

college during the "pre-Enron" era and to students currently enrolled. The results indicate that

students conducting ajob search in the present day view a company's ethical environment as

a more important consideration than did students in the pre-Enron days. Thus, accounting

students currently enrolled at my university appear to be more aware and concerned about

ethics and the environment in which they will begin their accounting careers than students in

previous years.

THE ASSIGNMENTS

The three assignments described here require students to write self-reflective essays aboutpersonal experiences related to ethics. This method ensures that all students are involved in


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the learning process instead of passively listening to lectures on ethics-a method that does

not even guarantee that all the students in the class are paying attention. Self-reflection is

considered to be the primary determinant of self-knowledge.11 Completing these

assignments, therefore, will likely increase the probability that students will internalize andabsorb the ethics lesson.

The first assignment, presented in Table 1A, is given to students on the first day of class of

Intermediate Accounting II. They are required to read the provided negative and positive news

articles related to ethical behavior and then write a reflective ethics essay that addresses

questions included in the assignment. Comments from student essays for this assignment are

included in Table 1B. The follow-up assignment, in Table 2A, is distributed during the last

week of the same class and is intended to have students reflect on their ethical behavior and

that of their peers over the course of the academic quarter. Student reflections taken from this

assignment are included in Table 2B. The assignment used in my Intermediate III class is

shown in Table 3A. This project emphasizes values, requires some research, and has

students write their own values mission statement. Examples of the mission statements

written by students are shown in Table 3B. The student reflections presented in Tables 1B,

2B, and 3B demonstrate how seriously students take these assignments, with many pouring

their hearts and souls into their papers.













BAHNSON






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classroom that does not offer opportunities to foster and teach ethical behavior and integrityas well as the consequences of their absence.1 Paul B. Miller and Paul R. Bahnson voice































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around you do.10





of the ethical status of their current academic environment and, subsequently, the corporateenvironments they encounter.










previous years.

THE ASSIGNMENTS

The three assignments described here require students to write self-reflective essays about

personal experiences related to ethics. This method ensures that all students are involved in




assignments, therefore, will likely increase the probability that students will internalize and

absorb the ethics lesson.






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assignment are included in Table 2B. The assignment used in my Intermediate III class isshown in Table 3A. This project emphasizes values, requires some research, and has





In addition to these assignments, I incorporate ethics into much of what we do in class. I

frequently hand out relevant articles on ethics in the corporate world and the accounting

profession and remind students of the importance of maintaining an awareness of the positive

and negative stories relating to ethics and corporate governance. Recently, I also started to

include ethics as part of the evaluation criteria required in team contracts written by students

for their group projects. Students in the intermediate accounting classes have six different

group projects and must agree on and submit a team contract for each of the final three

groups they work in. One interesting comment from the evaluations shows how students

become more attuned to their ethical sensitivity:

[Rosemary] has improved her ethical behavior greatly since the last time I was in her group,

but overall I think everyone in the class has.

This is encouraging news that I believe shows it may be possible to influence students' ethical

behavior simply by letting them know that their peers are watching what they do. The hope is

that this is a team strategy they will carry into their careers.

Another method used to impart ethical thinking within students is by explaining the importance

of client confidentiality once they begin their accounting career, then relating this to the need

to ensure that project solutions from the class do not get passed on to the next incoming

class, as well as the importance of not telling their peers about any information that appears

on exams if they take the exam earlier than others.

I also provide them with a thought for the day that often is related to ethics. One of my

favorites is "Who are you when no one is looking?" Thus, in addition to incorporating the

formal ethics assignments presented, I have inundated my students with ethics tidbits as a

form of ethics socialization. My hope is that when students are confronted with ethical

dilemmas in their future, just one of these experiences will pop into their head and lead themto do the right thing, regardless of what those around them are


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ideas for self-reflective assignments that can be used in the classroom to enhance the ethicalawareness and sensitivity of students. Many of these assignments incorporate news articles,








BAHNSON
























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around you do.10














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previous years.

THE ASSIGNMENTS






assignments, therefore, will likely increase the probability that students will internalize andabsorb the ethics lesson.
























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of client confidentiality once they begin their accounting career, then relating this to the need








dilemmas in their future, just one of these experiences will pop into their head and lead them

to do the right thing, regardless of what those around them are doing.

SURVEY RESULTS

During the Spring 2000 academic quarter, junior and senior accounting majors at my

university completed a survey about their job-search criteria and career-path preferences.

Several of the items that students responded to dealt with ethics and the ethical environment

of future employers. Having collected these data prior to the downfall of Enron and others, I

administered the survey to students enrolled during the Spring 2003 academic quarter to

determine if their responses to these ethics issues were different from those of the pre-Enron

students. Both groups of students completed the survey instrument voluntarily and

anonymously.

The survey instructed students to rank 10 job-search criteria in order of importance. Table 4

shows the results from both groups of students. For students who completed the survey in

2000, their top five criteria, in order of importance, were: (1) salary level, (2) potential for

advancement, (3) benefits package, (4) type of accounting work, and (5) ethical environment

of the company. The rank order of ethical environment of the company moved up significantly

for students who completed the survey during 2003 (Mann-Whitney U, 2-tailed sig.= .001).

This group's rankings were: (1) potential for advancement first, (2) salary level, and (3) ethical

environment. The move from fifth-highest to third-highest in importance implies that post-

Enron students are more concerned about the ethical corporate culture they will be working


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in. It also suggests that these students are more attuned to and cognizant of the effects

ethical and unethical behavior will have throughout their careers.

Students were also asked to respond to questions regarding their willingness to leave a job

due to unethical occurrences and their willingness to report unethical behavior on the part of a

supervisor or a peer. In each case, students in 2003 were more willing to leave a job or report

a supervisor or peer than were the students in 2000. The increase in willingness, however,

was not significant for any of the three questions. See Table 5 for the questions and results.

INCREASING ETHICS AWARENESS













BAHNSON














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around you do.10




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previous years.

THE ASSIGNMENTS




















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of client confidentiality once they begin their accounting career, then relating this to the needto ensure that project solutions from the class do not get passed on to the next incoming









SURVEY RESULTS







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anonymously.


















The feedback from the self-reflective ethics assignments suggests that, as intended, the

students are internalizing an appreciation for the importance of ethical behavior in their

coursework, their future careers, and their life in general. In addition, the student comments

and survey results indicate thataccounting studentsat my university are quite concerned

about the ethical environment of their future employers. Student comments show an

increasing awareness that they may have to deal with ethical pressures in their future work

environments. Additionally, many of the comments also demonstrate that the students put a

lot of thought into the appropriate actions to take when faced with hard decisions under

questionable circumstances. Other comments reveal disappointment that outsiders perceive

the accounting profession as a whole as having a negative ethical culture. Despite their

frustration with this current state of affairs, the students seem to be committed to pursuing an

accounting career. Several appear to have gone so far as to internalize a sense of

responsibility toward improving the ethical tenor of the accounting profession. Finally, several

comments attribute an increased personal focus on ethical issues to the exercises they have
http://www.allbusiness.com/accounting/3504572-1.htmlhttp://www.allbusiness.com/accounting/3504572-1.htmlhttp://www.allbusiness.com/accounting/3504572-1.htmlhttp://www.allbusiness.com/accounting/3504572-1.html


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completed in my class. This feedback leads me to believe that by enhancing the self-

knowledge of students' values and ethical beliefs while increasing their awareness of potential

ethical traps that may be encountered, it is possible to increase the ethical sensitivity of our

students.

As a result of the exposure to ethics issues and the self-reflection assignments they are

required to complete, I believe my students have a better chance of quickly recognizing when

they are being asked to do something unethical. I am hopeful that when these young

professionals do confront an ethical dilemma in practice, their automatic response will be to

do the right thing despite any pressure to act otherwise. I am optimistic that the positive

ethical actions of a few can influence others to behave ethically. According to several student

comments, this has occurred already in my class. The cascading result of actions such as

these would be a first step toward demonstrating that the accounting profession will once

again exude ethics and integrity-in both perception and reality.













BAHNSON











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that educators need to increasingly emphasize within the classroom the two values that havelong been the mainstay of the accountant's reputation: integrity and professional skepticism.3






























around you do.10


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ethical sensitivity in our students in order to provide them with a keen, internalized awarenessof the ethical status of their current academic environment and, subsequently, the corporate











previous years.

THE ASSIGNMENTS



















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Another method used to impart ethical thinking within students is by explaining the importanceof client confidentiality once they begin their accounting career, then relating this to the need










SURVEY RESULTS






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anonymously.


















The feedback from the self-reflective ethics assignments suggests that, as intended, the

students are internalizing an appreciation for the importance of ethical behavior in their

coursework, their future careers, and their life in general. In addition, the student comments

and survey results indicate thataccounting studentsat my university are quite concerned

about the ethical environment of their future employers. Student comments show an

increasing awareness that they may have to deal with ethical pressures in their future work

environments. Additionally, many of the comments also demonstrate that the students put a

lot of thought into the appropriate actions to take when faced with hard decisions under

questionable circumstances. Other comments reveal disappointment that outsiders perceive

the accounting profession as a whole as having a negative ethical culture. Despite their

frustration with this current state of affairs, the students seem to be committed to pursuing an

accounting career. Several appear to have gone so far as to internalize a sense of

responsibility toward improving the ethical tenor of the accounting profession. Finally, several
http://www.allbusiness.com/accounting/3504572-1.htmlhttp://www.allbusiness.com/accounting/3504572-1.htmlhttp://www.allbusiness.com/accounting/3504572-1.htmlhttp://www.allbusiness.com/accounting/3504572-1.html


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comments attribute an increased personal focus on ethical issues to the exercises they have

completed in my class. This feedback leads me to believe that by enhancing the self-

knowledge of students' values and ethical beliefs while increasing their awareness of potential

ethical traps that may be encountered, it is possible to increase the ethical sensitivity of ourstudents.

As a result of the exposure to ethics issues and the self-reflection assignments they are

required to complete, I believe my students have a better chance of quickly recognizing when

they are being asked to do something unethical. I am hopeful that when these young

professionals do confront an ethical dilemma in practice, their automatic response will be to

do the right thing despite any pressure to act otherwise. I am optimistic that the positive

ethical actions of a few can influence others to behave ethically. According to several student

comments, this has occurred already in my class. The cascading result of actions such as

these would be a first step toward demonstrating that the accounting profession will once

again exude ethics and integrity-in both perception and reality.

SIDEBAR

Table 1A: Self-Reflective Ethics Assignment

Required: Write a two- to three-page typed, double-spaced essay. Your paper is due at the

beginning of class on Tuesday, April 8, 2003.

About WHAT? Your assignment is to read the attached newspaper, etc., stories about liars,

cheaters, thieves, and embezzlers, many of whom UNFORTUNATELY are connected with the

accounting profession. The packet also includes an article that addresses an inclusion issue,

which is very much a part of ethics, and three very positive stories.

Then, respond in essay form to the following thoughts-in other words, don't just give me a list

of answers to these questions, statements, etc., and don't necessarily address them

specifically or in the order they appear. Also, you do not have to address every question

specifically, except for #5.

1. You have chosen accounting as your major field of study and as your career. The

accounting profession has a professional code of ethics and has held itself out to be one of

the most ethical professions in existence. Can you live up to those expectations?

2. What impact do these articles have on you personally? What impact will they have on your

academic endeavors? Your professional endeavors?

3. What ramifications do these articles have for the accounting profession?


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4. Who is your ethics mentor? In other words, who in your life abides by the ethical standards

that you (hopefully) are striving to achieve?

5. Read the "Cheating" paragraph in your syllabus. Include a statement in your essay that

addresses this paragraph.

6. Accounting is difficult. Why have you chosen to major in accountancy? Who is responsible

for your success or failure in this class, in the accounting program, in the business world?













BAHNSON
















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on ethics in accounting education came from the Bedford Committee, which stated,"Professional accounting education must not only emphasize the needed skills and

























around you do.10






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previous years.

THE ASSIGNMENTS






















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and negative stories relating to ethics and corporate governance. Recently, I also started toinclude ethics as part of the evaluation criteria required in team contracts written by students









Pual Miller Nad Paul Bahnson

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