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Although the benefits of financial statement comparability have been studied extensively, less is known about its determinants. This study examines how accounting education during the continuing professional development (CPD) stage helps improve comparability by leveraging the unique arrangement of CPD activities for non-practising certified public accountants (CPAs) in China. We argue that CPAs who attend the same CPD courses acquire similar interpretations and practising modes of accounting standards, which then systematically influence their practices. The empirical results show that two firms headquartered in provinces that employ the same CPD course supplier exhibit higher accounting comparability. Furthermore, this effect is stronger when the two firms have more CPAs in top management teams and/or have experienced the same education for a greater number of years. Finally, we consider the staggered adoption of CAS 14 (an equivalent of IFRS 15), during which initial professional development had a limited role, and find that firms that switched to the new standard provide accounting information that is more comparable if they share the same course supplier. Our findings shed light on the role of continuing accounting education in shaping accounting practices and deepen our understanding of how accounting comparability is achieved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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This paper provides a detailed, longitudinal study of the role and strategies of the Chinese Institute of Certified Public Accountants (CICPA) in building a Chinese home-grown public accounting profession since the late 1980s. Drawing on previously unaccessed archive materials and a series of interviews with senior representatives of the Chinese public accounting profession, this paper reveals a more nuanced empirical story of professional accounting development in China, in which the CICPA has had more strategic influence than is currently represented in the extant accounting literature. While the CICPA's position vis-à-vis the state is a fragile one and necessitates on various occasions following specific state requirements and instructions, it has still been able to pursue its strategic intention of securing a nationalistic approach to professional accounting development. This paper analyses the shifting nature of the CICPA's capacity for agency across three thematic areas of activities, including the CICPA's efforts to counter the power and influence of the Big Four in China, promote the growth of indigenous accounting firms and support the establishment of the Communist Party branches in accounting firms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As China advances, attitudes about ethical reasoning will continue to evolve from norms rooted in Confucianism, guanxi, and collectivism toward attitudes consistent with developed countries. With the lack of understanding of reasoning in China, business executives, professors, and students from developed countries rely on their society's cultural norms to inform ethical reasoning. The purpose of this study was to examine cross-cultural ethical reasoning skills of the next generation of executives in the United States and China represented by students from mid-sized universities. Using the Accounting Ethical Dilemma Instrument [Thorne, 2000. The development of two measures to assess accountants' prescriptive and deliberative moral reasoning. Behavioral Research in Accounting, 12, 139–169. https://aaajournals.org/loi/bria] and Hofstede's [1991. Cultures and organizations. McGraw-Hill] taxonomy of cultural identities, the researchers determined that students from a public university in the United States exhibited higher reasoning skills than their Chinese peers. With the potential evolution of ethical reasoning in China, findings from this study may prove beneficial in the future of the convergence of Chinese and Western cultures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Accounting vocational education directly bears on the competence of accountants, and affects the development of the accounting industry. In light of the background of vocational education, this paper develops a competence model of accounting vocational education in China, applies the established model in an actual case, and puts forward measures to improve the competence of accounting vocational education. The research results show that: the evaluation index system of accounting vocational education should highlight importance, incentives and effectiveness; the management and leadership ability is the primary factor of the competence of accounting vocational education; an excellent accounting vocational educator must enjoy outstanding management and leadership ability, accounting ability and accounting skills; the competence of accounting vocational education should be improved mainly through incentive measures, from the perspective of adjusting the education purpose. The research findings lay the theoretical basis for self-evaluation, selfmanagement and career planning of accounting vocational educators and accountants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This paper aims to examine the relevance of Big Data to forensic accounting practice and education by gathering opinions from a sample of academics and practitioners in China. Design/methodology/approach: The authors conduct a survey of academics and practitioners regarding the desired demand, importance and content of Big Data educational skills and topics for forensic accounting education to effectively respond to challenges and opportunities in the age of Big Data. Findings: Results indicate that the demand for and interest in Big Data/data analytics and forensic accounting will continue to increase; Big Data/data analytics and forensic accounting should be integrated into the business curriculum; many of the suggested Big Data topics should be integrated into forensic accounting education; and some attributes and techniques of Big Data are important in improving forensic accounting education and practice. Research limitations/implications: Readers should interpret the results with caution because of the sample size (95 academics and 103 practitioners) and responses obtained from academics and practitioners in one country (China) that may not be representative of the global population. Practical implications: The results are useful in integrating Big Data topics into the forensic accounting curriculum and in redesigning the forensic accounting courses/programs. Social implications: The results have implications for forensic accountants in effectively fulfilling their responsibilities to their profession and society by combating fraud. Originality/value: This study provides educational, research and practical implications as Big Data and forensic accounting are advancing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In determining whether stumbling blocks exist in the implementation of accounting education reform in Hong Kong, a survey questionnaire was sent to all accounting departments at public universities representing accounting academics, and the Hong Kong Institute of Certified Public Accountants representing the profession. The survey showed that both were in agreement that the 11 stumbling blocks experienced in the United States (identified through a literature review) are also applicable in Hong Kong, with five being significant. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Through ethnographic research, this paper explores narratives of failure constructed within a private Australian accounting college in China. The accounts provided by teachers and students are problematized in order to address how racialization is enacted through accounts of failure within the research site. Through an interpretive theoretical framework and the methodology of Michael Burawoy, racialization is exposed as a form of justification for the concerns teachers and students faced. Within accounts of failure, racial framing of the body and the acculturated minds of students were simultaneously ascribed negative attributes deemed in contradiction with this form of transnational education. In unpacking how these processes of racialization are tied to the very structure of transnational education itself, this paper addresses how standardized and globalized curricula produce unintended local effects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We examine the influence of national culture on the judgments of Australian and Chinese tertiary accounting students when they are interpreting selected International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRSs) that contain uncertainty expressions. To extend prior cross-cultural research, we also examine whether cultural values of individuals can change because of acculturation and accounting education, and measure their potential impact on accounting judgment. The results provide strong support for the notion that Chinese accounting students are more conservative than Australian accounting students in assigning probabilities to in-context uncertainty expressions contained in IFRSs. A unique finding of this study is that the cultural values of individuals can change because of acculturation and accounting education, and this could potentially improve the comparability of financial reports by moderating differences in the interpretation of accounting standards caused by cultural differences between accountants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The focus of this paper is to examine China's process of convergence with international accounting standards, through a review of the history and through the experiences of its accounting academics. The review of China's accounting history establishes a framework for understanding the current standards. The experiences of Chinese academics during the convergence process are of particular interest to other academics, and offer insight into the training and development of an internationalized accounting profession. To gain insights from the Chinese academics, we conducted interviews with ten professors, and solicited comments, suggestions, and advice from these academics. These academics report between 6 to 50 years of experience in Chinese accounting education. The focus of our interviews was to gain an understanding of the forces and circumstances that characterized the period during which China changed from an internal, rules-based accounting system to a system that has now achieved significant progress toward convergence with the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). The insights from these Chinese accounting professors will be of interest to educators in other countries that are dealing with IFRS-related issues in their curriculum. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Because they have taken the lead in providing transnational accounting programs in China, Australian universities have a corresponding responsibility to deliver programs of the highest quality. One of the challenges this poses for transnational accounting education is how to engage with the local Chinese context. This paper addresses this challenge by presenting a teaching note on teaching the Australian conceptual framework for financial reporting to Chinese students in the context of China's convergence with International Financial Reporting Standards. The teaching note attends to the special circumstances of transnational Chinese students and other challenges in teaching Western accounting theories. It justifies a comparative approach to engaging Chinese students in understanding the financial reporting framework in an Australian context whilst simultaneously identifying links to Chinese accounting practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose |!|#8211; The purpose of this study is to examine the influence of factors affecting students|!|#39; choice of accounting as a study major in Hong Kong. Design/methodology/approach |!|#8211; Multinomial logistic regression and Hierarchical Generalized Linear Modeling (HGLM) are used to analyze the survey data for the level one and level two data, which is the first time such an approach has been used in the literature. Twenty semi-structured interviews are conducted. Findings |!|#8211; Results reveal that parental influence has the highest explanatory power among all three groups of students (i.e. accounting major, accounting minor, and other majors). This finding reflects the inculcation in students of the Confucian cultural norms ingrained in Chinese societies. Intrinsic interest is the second most important influencing factor reported by students. Two factors, |!|#34;intrinsic interest|!|#34; (attitude towards the behavior) and |!|#34;parental influence|!|#34; (subjective norm) in the multinomial logistic regressions and HGLM make significant contributions to predicting a student|!|#39;s decision to major in accounting for the level one (undergraduate) and level two model (master|!|#39;s students). The results support the theory of reasoned action (TRA) model. |!|#34;First accounting course,|!|#34; |!|#34;high school accounting,|!|#34; and |!|#34;financial rewards|!|#34; are not found to be factors influencing the decision to major in accounting, in contrast to the findings of the literature prior to the Enron scandal. Females are more likely to choose accounting as a major or minor than are males in the level one and level two models. Practical implications |!|#8211; The findings indicate that Hong Kong universities and the Hong Kong Institute of Certified Public Accountants (HKICPA) need to promote accounting to improve the current negative image of the profession to attract more bright students, who traditionally might choose a non-accounting major. Originality/value |!|#8211; The findings of this study extend the application of the TRA model to the accounting profession. Besides, results provide insights for employers to better understand the mindsets of potential accounting graduates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While blended learning has been reported to produce promising results, most existing blended learning practices focus on degree or higher degree courses. With the increasing number of sub-degree students in Hong Kong, it is essential to develop an effective blended learning model for sub-degree courses in order to improve teaching and learning effectiveness. A two-year project was launched in August 2009 to help contribute an understanding of what an effective blended learning model for sub-degree accounting students is like. The project has been very successful and one of the contributing factors towards the success is the effective project management methodology employed in the project. This paper presents the project management process used in this project as a reference model for blended learning course development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article addresses the limited amount of research in the realm of programme marketing in the Chinese higher education sector. Original field research examines the emergence of marketing principles and strategies with specific reference to the experience of three higher education institutions in China. The development and promotion of executive and professional education courses provides the focus for each case. The analysis considers the benefits to be gained from a more proactive and business approach to the marketing of university programmes in this field. It also explores the challenges encountered, and problematic implications for the university sector as a whole. While the case studies are informative in their own right, the research also helps to reveal and understand a number of broader issues and dilemmas relating to the marketisation and commercialisation of higher education in China and beyond. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

International executive education is becoming a material source of revenue for universities, driven primarily by increased student demand and profit-seeking objectives. Educators who are hired to teach in specialized programs are under pressure to provide world-class content that is practically oriented to the daily work life of the executive student. Anecdotal evidence suggests a shorter half-life for executive educators who fail to make concise connections between practice and theory. For these reasons, the course content of a financial accounting course offering both traditional accounting theory and relevant skill development via a supplemental case tool that emphasizes financial statement analysis including (1) the ability to locate key financial information, (2) calculation of key fundamental ratios, (3) interpretation of key financial components and note disclosures, and (4) the ability to understand industry trends and norms is crucial to the provision of relevant executive education. Learning outcomes measuring perceived beliefs of 79 executive students in three different financial accounting classes in the People's Republic of China are presented. The results strongly indicate that the perceived beliefs are statistically different in pre- and postassessments. This generalized approach can ameliorate the delivery of executive education and offer an alternative teaching pedagogy for an international executive M.B.A. financial accounting module that favors a financial statement analysis approach over the traditional transactions-based model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study was to examine the dimensionality of a moral intensity construct in four ethical accounting scenarios and how the dimensions directly affect the specific processes of moral decision making of accounting students. A survey was conducted with 233 accounting students enrolled in the school of accounting in a university of mainland China. Results indicated that the dimensions of moral intensity were significantly related to moral recognition, moral judgement and moral intention in relation to moral issues. The mediational analyses revealed that moral judgement partly mediated the relation between moral recognition and moral intention and implied that the effect of moral recognition on moral intention was significantly reduced by a combination of moral recognition and moral judgement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents the findings of an empirical study on the determinants of student's performance in a three-year accountancy degree program in Hong Kong, addressing the importance of prior knowledge. In addition to gender and age, the factors investigated include prior studies of accounting, English and mathematics at high school and university levels. The results indicate a significant impact of prior accounting knowledge in all years, with no significant effect being found for prior studies of English and mathematics, age and gender except that females outperform males in the third year. Moreover, prior study of accounting displays a spiraling effect emphasizing the importance of background knowledge of accounting in university study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines whether cooperative learning can improve the learning outcomes of students in a passive learning environment. One hundred seventy-two accounting students who were attending a major Hong Kong university participated in this study. Using a 2 × 2 between-subjects experimental design, this study finds that students who were taught using a cooperative learning approach significantly outperformed those who were taught using a traditional lecture format. Moreover, the results of this study indicate that the students in cooperative learning sessions performed significantly better in answering indirect application-type questions than those in traditional lecture sessions. Overall, the results of this experiment suggest that cooperative learning is an effective teaching pedagogy for delivering accounting topics in a passive learning environment. The implications of this study for accounting education and the directions for future research are also discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study is to identify attributes of public accounting firms that accounting graduates find most desirable in their job selection decisions, and the impacts of individual differences on these perceptions. Factor analysis performed on the responses of 167 final-year accounting students in Hong Kong to a 30-item questionnaire identified seven factors. The results indicate that accounting graduates considered help in finishing their professional accounting examinations and good staff relationships as the most important criteria in their choice of employers. In addition, female accounting graduates were more concerned about the possibility of being required to travel or be transferred, but were less concerned about the reputation and profile (such as the client base and the size) of the firms than their male counterparts. Accounting graduates with a higher grade point average (GPA) were less concerned about the working environment, but more concerned about a firms' reputation and profile than those with a lower GPA. The implications of these results are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Provides information on a study of the effects of high school accounting qualification on student performance in university-level introductory accounting courses in Hong Kong, China schools. Effect of the strength of high school accounting qualification on student performance; Information on high school education in Hong Kong; Method used in the study; Results and conclusion.

China has given a high priority to education. Yet, as far as accounting is concerned, education does not meet the increasing demand for accounting personnel in either quantity or quality. Against this background, this paper investigates student perceptions of good accounting teaching and considers whether or not good teaching is good irrespective of the subject discipline. A repertory grid technique was used to collect data in 1996 from undergraduate students in three universities in Beijing. The most important characteristics of good teaching that were found are being knowledgeable, the adoption of effective teaching approaches, being responsible and conscientious, making teaching interesting, an ability to encourage and facilitate independent thinking, and an ability to provide moral and behavioural guidance. The characteristics of good teaching appeared to be the same for accounting and non-accounting subjects. Some of these characteristics are consistent with the educational traditions of China, while others reflect upon recent changes in the country. The study also reveals characteristics peculiar to China. These and other findings may be useful for Chinese universities in developing teaching training courses and in designing teaching assessment instruments and faculty recruitment policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigated the interaction between proficiency in both mathematics and English on students' performance in the first-year level financial accounting course, The data were gathered on the results of first-year accounting major students at the recently established Hong Kong University of Science and Technology and analysed using regression analysis. The findings showed that a higher degree of proficiency in mathematics was associated with a higher level of performance in the financial accounting course for students who were more competent in English. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the effects of exposing accounting graduate students to professional ethics. First, a method of instruction that encourages students to consider the ethical implications of business decisions was developed. This instruction included exposure to Kohlberg's theory of moral development, study of professional codes of ethics, and extensive use of written and video ethics cases. Next, instructional effectiveness was assessed through a pre-post-test with control group design. An accounting-specific test instrument was developed and validated. This instrument contains decision scenarios designed to elicit and identify students' stages of ethical reasoning. Test results revealed that students receiving ethics instruction demonstrated gains in ethical reasoning within the decision context. Appropriately designed ethics modules can thus foster consistent consideration of ethical issues in decision making. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ethics is concerned with individual character; it relates to morals and the treating of moral questions. Teaching ethics involves the study and evaluation of the moral consequences of reflective choices of actions among alternatives that are not clear, or that are in conflict with one another. Although it can be debated whether we should teach ethics, the question arises as to whether accounting educators should take up the challenge and sensitize their students to the ethical issues they will face throughout their professional careers. As an integral part of the first undergraduate programme in accountancy in Hong Kong, the Hong Kong Polytechnic developed a compulsory full-year subject, ethics in accountancy, for its final-year accountancy students. The Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in Accountancy course, which was implemented in 1988, was accredited to replace the traditional professional diplomas under the UK model. In 1990 the subject ethics in accountancy was first taught to about 230 final-year students in Hong Kong. This paper reviews the process of developing the subject from its initial form to its present structure. Based on practical experience, the paper addresses the issue 'Can ethics be taught?' and the questions of why, what and how. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study, which examines the factors that affect first year (Hong Kong) accounting student performance, is motivated by two considerations. First, such studies are important in providing comparative evidence from recently developed countries such as Hong Kong in the context of calls for the harmonization of international accounting education. Second, prior studies seldom consider the variable student personality type as one of the predictor variables. Results using 455 students in the introductory accounting class as subjects, and a multiple regression model indicate that self-expectation of examination results, English secondary school education, high school certificate level grades in English and Mathematics, personality type, intention to obtain a business degree and previous knowledge of accounting were significant predictors of student performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article focuses on the recent developments in accounting practices and the internationalization of accounting education in China. The recent economic reform and changes in governmental functions in macroeconomics management are considered responsible for this development. Economic reforms that began in the 1970s have brought about structural changes in the national economy. State enterprises are being converted to market-oriented modern enterprises. As a result, the knowledge and skills needed to practice accounting have changed, leading to the need for major change in accounting education. Soon after the start of the modernization campaign in the late 1970s, government officials and business managers found that qualified accountants were badly needed in order to help achieve their economic aims. Accounting regained its former position and accounting education began a period of rapid development. Economic reform has led to China gradually expanding her international economic activities. The main themes of accounting education reform in China are: to broaden the common body of knowledge; to understand the realities and complexities of the domestic and international economy; to be aware of different views on important matters; to know how to acquire new information; to form one's own judgments; and to express one's views clearly and articulately.

Reports on the status and recent changes in Chinese accounting education at universities supported by the central Chinese government, ministries and provinces. Economic reforms; Differences in Chinese and Western accounting concepts; Trends; Challenges.

Although Communist China has one-quarter of the world's population, the country remains a mystery to most Americans. This paper discusses the development of China's higher education system and then reports specifically on the education of accountants at the university level. The effects on higher education of the Cultural Revolution (1966-1976) are discussed as well as developments since 1978 when the policies of “openness and modernization” were adopted by the Chinese Communist Party. Xiamen University, located just across the Formosa Strait from Taiwan, Is one of China's national-level comprehensive universities. The university community is described as are Its accounting programs at the bachelor's, master's, and doctoral levels. Specific course requirements and options are noted and contrasted with typical American university programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]