Making a Difference with a Discrete Course on Accounting Ethics

Haidt’s social intuitionist model: What are the implications for accounting ethics education?

To develop and validate a psychometric measure of cognitive moral development in professional ethics in pharmacy. Pharmacy practice in Australia. A psychometric instrument, the Professional Ethics in Pharmacy (PEP) test, was developed and validated following a systematic procedure. The theoretical foundation of the instrument was based on a hypothesised theory of cognitive moral development in professional ethics, which was integrated into a selection of scenarios experienced in practice by pharmacists in NSW, Australia. The PEP, along with the well established DIT test, was mailed in the form of a questionnaire to a randomly selected sample of 1,500 practising pharmacists. Data collected from returned questionnaires were statistically analysed to establish validity and reliability of the instrument. The P-score calculated for each participant from DIT and PEP data and defined as a measure of principled moral reasoning, represented the main outcome measure for statistical testing. Pearson's correlation coefficient was used to determine the strength of the relationship of the PEP with the DIT (regarded as the "gold standard") in order to establish criterion and concurrent validity. Factor analysis was used to investigate construct validity. Cronbach's Alpha, a measure of reliability of the instrument, was used for indicating internal consistency. Linear regression models further investigated construct validity in relation to predictors of moral reasoning. Face and content validity were established by pilot and peer review. Pearson's coefficient of 0.53 indicated an acceptable level of concurrent validity. Factor analysis yielded factors closely related to the theoretical stages of cognitive moral development hypothesised, which indicated construct validity. Cronbach's alpha of 0.75 demonstrated the reliability of the instrument, and linear regression models provided further evidence of construct validity. The PEP was established as a robust instrument on several dimensions of validity and reliability. The validated PEP test has the potential to provide the pharmacy profession with valuable information for use education and research. The validation process also provided evidence supporting the hypothesis that moral reasoning in professional ethics in pharmacy is a developmental process, which has profound implications for furthering the understanding of professional behaviour.

The ethical integrity and accountability of Information Technology (IT) professionals is important given our reliance on various forms of IT. We examined the applicability of Lawrence Kohlberg’s theory of Cognitive Moral Development (CMD) in non-Western contexts by investigating the ethical values of IT professionals in Asia’s two largest economies. Analysis of survey data from Japan (n=289) and China (n=290) indicates support for the basic six-stage model of CMD. The concept of abiding by universal laws and rules (termed stage 4 reasoning by Kohlberg) was widely accepted by IT professionals in both Japan and China, despite the Confucian cultural emphasis on personal relationships with particularistic obligations. However, differences between Japanese and Chinese IT professionals were found while, in direct contrast with the stage-wise theory of CMD, the respondents from Japan and especially China exhibited significant volatility, reasoning at different stages simultaneously. The implications of these findings for research and practice are discussed.

In this paper, we study the agency relationship between the firm’s owners and managers. We apply the theory of Cognitive Moral Development (CMD) to answer the question: what factors affect salience of the interests of the firm’s owners to the managers? Using a sample of Russian managers, we found that higher levels of CMD weaken the relationship between the owners’ perceived urgency and the owners’ salience and strengthen the relationship between the owners’ perceived power and the owners’ salience. We also found that managerial CMD is positively associated with the perceived legitimacy of the owners’ demands to the managers. Our results show that the higher the managers’ CMD, the less applicable are the recommendations of agency theory to incentivizing and controlling the managers.

Data from the Rest longitudinal study of moral judgment development were used to (i) consolidate past research into a single process model of moral judgment development, and (ii) assess the relative contributions of education and work to moral judgment development. Subjects were 102 individuals who were first interviewed in 1972–1974 and were followed up in 1983. A general model was specified which included moral judgment development in adolescence, dedication, educational attainment, occupational attainment, fulfilling career, and adult moral judgment development. The model was tested on the total sample and in a subsamples analysis that examined the unique pathways to moral development of subsamples which had either completed 2 years or more of college (higher education) or had completed less than 2 years of college (lower education). The general model confirmed that both education and occupation play important roles in the explanation of adult moral judgment development; the subsamples analysis suggested that work-related variables were the most important determinants of development in the lower education group and that education was the most important determinant of the higher education group.

As a result of increased concerns regarding ethical issues in engineering, this project assessed the influence on moral reasoning skills of teaching students a course specifically addressing the ethical and social issues in engineering. The Defining Issues Test (DIT), which is based on cognitive moral development theory, was used as the instrument of assessment. Students were pretested, taught a course on engineering ethics, and posttested at the end of the semester. In the Fall of 1995, a total of 301 students participated in the study with 162 students completing the DIT at both the pretest and posttest. In the Spring of 1996, a total of 263 students participated in the study with 155 students completing the DIT at both the pretest and posttest. Analysis of the data revealed a statistically significant increase in the moral reasoning skills of the students for both semesters. Statistical analysis revealed a significant correlation between the change in moral reasoning scores and age in the Spring semester with younger students showing more change but not in the Fall semester. There was no significant relationship between the moral reasoning scores and gender at either the pretest or the posttest, nor in the rate of change by gender. This study demonstrates that the teaching of ethics in engineering can be rigorously measured, tested and analyzed and that it can have a significant positive influence on the moral reasoning skills of the students. However, these findings need to be replicated by other studies in different settings.

Kohlberg’s theory of moral development has maintained a dominant position in cognitive moral development literature over several decades. This universal influence has been particularly evident in its application to moral education literature and policy. A closer assessment of Kohlberg’s theoretical conceptualization suggests the application of universal assumptions masked by Eurocentric values and possible unconscious bias. In this paper, the relevance of Kohlberg’s theory of moral development in the South African context is explored in relation to early childhood development. In addition, through the example of violence in South Africa, we illustrate how moral development occurs in ways that are at odds with the universalist claims made by Kohlberg. While acknowledging the value of Kohlberg’s work, our appraisal unveils its blind spots. This appraisal contends that moral reasoning is negotiated in context and thus needs to be understood within the local socio-historical, cultural, and economic milieu.

PARIKH, BINDU. Development of Moral Judgment and Its Relation to Family Environmental Factors in Indian and American Families. CHILD DEVELOPMENT, 1980, 51, 1030-1039. The present research is a study of (a) the rate of development of moral judgment in a sample of urban upper-middle-class Indian children, adolescents, and parents; and (b) the relationship of family environmental factors to moral judgment development. The results are compared with similar studies of American families. The assumptions underlying the study are based on Kohlberg's theory of moral judgment development. The results of the study support Kohlberg's claim of cross-cultural universality of sequences and stages. Some differences in the rate of development of Indian and American parents are observed, although the size of the sample and possible variation in the scoring methods do not allow for final conclusions. Family influences favorable for the American samples are also found to be so for the Indian sample in the 15-16-year age group but not for the 12-13-year age group, which nonetheless indicates that reciprocity in parent-child relationships is a favorable condition for the moral judgment development of the children of urban upper-middle-class families in both cultures.

Contents: Preface. J.R. Rest, Background: Theory and Research. S.P. McNeel, College Teaching and Student Moral Development. L.J. Duckett, M.B. Ryden, Education for Ethical Nursing Practice. F-Y. Chang, School Teachers' Moral Reasoning. N.A. Sprinthall, Counseling and Social Role Taking: Promoting Moral and Ego Development. L.A. Ponemon, D.R.L. Gabhart, Ethical Reasoning Research in the Accounting and Auditing Professions. M.J. Bebeau, Influencing the Moral Dimensions of Dental Practice. D.J. Self, D.C. Baldwin, Jr., Moral Reasoning in Medicine. D.J. Self, M. Olivarez, D.C. Baldwin, Jr., Moral Reasoning in Veterinary Medicine. B.J.L. Bredemeier, D.L.L. Shields, Applied Ethics and Moral Reasoning in Sport. T. Westbrook, Tracking the Moral Development of Journalists: A Look at Them and Their Work. S. Thoma, Moral Judgments and Moral Action. J.R. Rest, D. Narvaez, Summary: What's Possible?

Nursing, like the changing society of which it is a part, is beginning to focus on ethical and moral dimensions. Nursing interventions traditionally based primarily on scientific and theoretical knowledge, previous clinical experience, or personal capabilities are now being considered within the realm of moral decision-making. In any age where organs are transplanted, pregnancies terminated by elective abortions, and lives maintained by artificial means, the nurse is constantly faced with situations arousing moral discourse at each step in the nursing process. The nursing process is one of continuous decision-making in which value commitments are inherent. Moral judgments made by nurses influence patient decisions and impact on their relationships with other health professionals within the work setting. For example, community nurses providing home health are placed in the conflicting situation of trying to document a need for skilled care for a Medicare patient whose needs are primarily of a psychological nature. The nurse also encounters less obvious conflicts that demand moral decisions. Yet, the majority of nurses have not received educational preparation to assist them in making decisions in situations that involve moral judgments (Crisham, 1981). The nursing profession has begun to recognize the need to facilitate the moral development of its practitioners. Kohlberg's (197 1) cognitive theory of moral development has provided the framework for this advancement. A prevailing assumption of Kohlberg's theory is that persons functioning at higher levels of moral development will make decisions that are supportive of the dignity, values, and rights of all concerned. This theory describes three levels of moral development ranging from a low preconventional level with an obedience/punishment orientation to a more principled, altruistic level. A key concept necessary for one to advance to the principled level of moral decision-making is role-taking. Role-taking occurs when an individual experiences

Kohlberg's theory of moral development explores the roles of cognition and emotion but focuses primarily on cognition. Contemporary post‐formal theories lead to the conclusion that skills resulting from cognitive‐affective integration facilitate consistency between moral judgement and moral behaviour. Rest's four‐component model of moral development delineates these skills specifically. The components, moral motivation, moral sensitivity, moral reasoning and moral character, operate as multidimensional processes that facilitate moral development and subsequently promote moral behaviour. The relationships between these components have been relatively unexplored, thereby missing the opportunity to unpack the processes underlying moral growth and development. In this study, moral motivation (spirituality), moral sensitivity (post‐formal skills) and moral reasoning are operationalized to examine the mediational effects of moral sensitivity of medical students. In the complex moral environment of medical students opportunities arise to question values and develop cognitive‐affective skills, among them spirituality and post‐formal thinking which are linked to increases in post‐conventional moral reasoning. The models tested indicate that moral sensitivity mediates the relationship between moral motivation and moral reasoning.

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to shed light on and introduce the ethics of earnings management (EM) to researchers and students in the academic community in light of Kohlberg’s theory. Design/methodology/approach The paper contextualises and analyses the relevant literature to provide insights around the key concepts of the issue of ethics of EM. Therefore, theoretical approach has been adopted by reviewing the literature using a descriptive method. The study suggests relevance of the theory of moral development and reasoning by Kohlberg (1969) as an approach in the process of exploring the background and the reasons behind ethics of managers regarding EM. This theory helps to explain how individuals demonstrate and justify a sense of right or wrong. Thus, the paper is a literature review concluded with a proposed conceptual framework. Findings The paper provides conceptual insights about the ethics of EM, and it proposes a link between manager’s ethics regarding the phenomenon of EM and the framework of moral reasoning theory by Kohlberg (1969). Originality/value The importance and implications of Kohlberg’s theory, in terms of EM, resides within the fact that the theory is concerned with questions about how one ought to act – being as it acknowledges the well-known ethical theories. The work of Kohlberg can be classified as a descriptive analysis to the extent that it attempts to describe individuals’ moral development. This integration of normative and descriptive ethics, in turn, enables the theory to be used to explore managers’ moral reasoning in a more helpful way.

The purpose of this research is to discuss creative accounting limitation through ethical developments, focusing on features as: measurement and behavior.In this respect we turn to an original search in the literature that comprise together estimation segment in accounting and theoretical developments from behavioral accounting, all with the scope of creating awareness regarding ethics role.After assessing the areas approached, our goal was further to discuss a possible development of a theoretical framework comprising cognitive structures.Important aspects of decision making process were approached and in correlation we discussed the implications that Machiavellian behavior, moral action model and cognitive moral development theory have upon creative accounting measurement and behavior.The originality of the paper consists in the manner we assess the ethics role as the "tone of the top" in the business sector and its implications to measurement and behavior in the area of creative accounting.The findings of our paper indicates that ethics as a solution used for limiting opportunistic behavior in accounting can have an unlimited potential as long term solution.

about the consistency, coherence, and political intelligence of the American public. This paper argues that such results too often reflect the limited ways in which researchers attempt to identify the structure of constrained belief. It adapts Lawrence Kohlberg's theory of cognitive moral development to explore an alternative measure of constraint in mass belief systems and shows that Melvin Kohn's questions about childrearing values yield a theoretically plausible, empirically reliable measure of developmental stages. This measure exhibits both internal and external validity and demonstrates marked stability over time. It also yields provocative empirical findings which suggest the need for an expanded notion of rational constraint. This study supports the claim that failure to identify a cognitive structure in mass belief systems owes more to limited conceptualization by researchers than to empirically identified limitations of citizens.

In this article the authors present results from research that tested well-established assumptions and explored longstanding dissatisfactions concerning questions about the relationship between moral development and religious development. Relying upon classical constructs derived from the work of Lawrence Kohlberg, Fritz Oser, and certain of their colleagues, the authors translated, revalidated, and employed a measure developed by John Gibbs for the measurement of moral judgment, and developed, validated, and employed a new measure of religious judgment for the purpose of comparing moral judgment and religious judgment levels in a population of French-speaking Belgian adolescents and young adults. Their findings introduce the beginning of a large-scale empirical effort in the testing of claims central to the literature of developmental psychology and the practice of developmental education where moral and religious judgment are concerned. The results of their research also raise a series of interesting questions about conflict and convergence in moral and religious development. Readers are invited to regard these findings both as a source of reinvigoration for the constructivist case about the relatedness of moral and religious development, and as an opportunity to enquire collaboratively into a series of perplexing questions which arise therein.