Topics and methods in forensic accounting research

2015 ◽  
Vol 28 (1) ◽  
pp. 98-114 ◽  
Author(s):  
James A. DiGabriele ◽  
Wm. Dennis Huber

Purpose – The purposes of this paper are to highlight those topics of forensic accounting that have received little or no attention in the forensic accounting research that has been published in forensic accounting research journals; discover what research methods have been most commonly used; and identify research methods that have been infrequently used. Design/methodology/approach – This is a descriptive research study that explores the topics and methods used in forensic accounting research published in forensic accounting journals. Findings – Fraud and quantitative methods make up the largest percentage of topics and research methods published in forensic accounting journals. Research limitations/implications – Limited to forensic accounting journals. Results suggest forensic accounting researchers are using mimetic topics and methods of accounting research. The absence of diversity in forensic accounting research topics and methods has the potential to compromise the overall contribution of forensic accounting research. Practical implications – This paper identifies gaps in topics and research methods in forensic accounting research to encourage research in diverse topics using diverse methods that will be valuable to forensic accountants. Originality/value – This original research is the first to survey and classify research published in forensic accounting journals according to topic and method.

2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 319-328
Author(s):  
Ian Pepper ◽  
Ruth McGrath

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the impact of an employability module, the College of Policing Certificate in Knowledge of Policing (CKP), on students’ career aspirations, their confidence and wish to join the police along with the appropriateness of the module. This will inform the implementation of employability as part of the College of Policing-managed Police Education Qualifications Framework (PEQF). Design/methodology/approach A three-year longitudinal research study used mixed methods across four points in time to evaluate the impact on students studying the employability module. Findings The research suggests that the employability-focussed CKP was useful as an introduction to policing, it developed interest in the police and enhanced the confidence of learners applying to join. Lessons learnt from the CKP should be considered during the implementation of the PEQF. Research limitations/implications The ability to generalise findings across different groups is limited as other influences may impact on a learner’s confidence and employability. However, the implications for the PEQF curriculum are worthy of consideration. Practical implications As the police service moves towards standardised higher educational provision and evolution of policing as a profession, lessons can be learnt from the CKP with regards to the future employability of graduates. Originality/value Enhancing the employability evidence base, focussing on policing, the research identified aspects which may impact on graduates completing a degree mapped to the PEQF. The research is therefore of value to higher education and the professional body for policing.


2014 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 52-56
Author(s):  
Antony Sheehan

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to trace the health management career of Antony Sheehan, a former executive in England's National Health Service and now president of the Church Health Center in Memphis, TN, and reveals principles that guide his management priorities. Design/methodology/approach – The approach is reflective, reading-based, and anecdotal. Findings – Three leadership priorities emerge: liberating talent, profound belief in knowledge, and purpose beyond self, all three being mediated by respect. Research limitations/implications – The narrative is not based on clinical research, but specific experience of the author. Practical implications – Readers may find inspiration to examine the principles that guide their own leadership efforts. Originality/value – Based in the author's own experience, the paper does not represent original research.


2017 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 148-163 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lutfi Abdul Razak ◽  
Muhammad Nabil Saupi

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to elucidate the concept of ḍamān al-milkiyyah (ownership risk) and to assess its application in contemporary Islamic financial products and services. Design/methodology/approach The methodology adopted is that of descriptive research. Findings From an Islamic law of contract perspective, the concept of ḍamān al-milkiyyah is central to legitimate profit-making transactions and hence must be adhered to in practical applications of Islamic finance. Research limitations/implications This study should help motivate further investigation into the position of ḍamān al-milkiyyah among different parties in existing Islamic financial products and services. Practical implications Policymakers and regulators should ensure that Islamic financial products and services are structured in a way that does not allow parties to profit without adequately bearing the liability for potential loss. Social implications The condition of ḍamān al-milkiyyah as a source of legitimate profit reflects the idea that the role of finance in Islam is to promote and ensure social benefits. Originality/value This paper emphasizes the importance of ḍamān al-milkiyyah as a fundamental condition for profit in Islamic financial transactions.


2014 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 44-65 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jon Talbot ◽  
Andy Lilley

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to outline a small research project designed to explore the practices of the UK work-based learning (WBL) tutors in facilitating formal research projects in the workplace. Design/methodology/approach – Data were collected using a short questionnaire to practitioners administered electronically and a daylong workshop where issues were discussed in greater depth by participating tutors. Findings – The main findings are that there is a degree of agreement by WBL tutors about the distinctiveness of WBL research projects; that although there is increasing use of technology to support delivery only one institution is using e-learning as the principal means of delivery; emphasis is upon a relatively small number of techniques and there is a strong preference for qualitative over quantitative methods. Research limitations/implications – The main limitation of the study is the relatively small number of active participants. However, this is the only study of its kind and the results offer insights into an important element of pedagogic practice in WBL. Practical implications – The project enabled the identification of common approaches and facilitated discussion of problems shared by WBL tutors across the field. There appears to be a consensus that situated investigation exists within a different contextual framework to traditional academic dissertation projects and that the focus is therefore necessarily on generating data as the basis for active problem solving. Originality/value – This is the only empirical study of practice in respect of facilitating research projects on WBL programmes in higher education.


Kybernetes ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 45 (4) ◽  
pp. 622-636 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel Joh. Adriaenssen ◽  
Jon-Arild Johannessen

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present a general scientific methodology on tenets from Mario Bunge’s philosophy. Design/methodology/approach – Systemic thinking and conceptual generalisation. Findings – A general scientific methodology based on tenets from Mario Bunge’s philosophy of social science. Research limitations/implications – Using quantitative methods to conduct a research to test Asplunds motivation theory and North’s action theory. Practical implications – How to conduct a research based on a systemic perspective. Social implications – An advantage of linking a systemic perspective to organisational psychology studies is that it may result in new ways of looking at old problems and bring new perspectives to the methods used. One explanation may be the fact that while researchers within various organisational psychology subject fields are largely specialists, the systemic perspective is oriented towards general scientific methodology. Originality/value – The authors have not seen anybody who have tried to apply systemic thinking as a general methodology for research.


2018 ◽  
Vol 21 (3) ◽  
pp. 264-289 ◽  
Author(s):  
S.M. Solaiman

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate that the recurrent amnesties to black money holders (BMHs) in Bangladesh have not benefited the national economy, rather have increased corruption and money laundering, and that offering further opportunity to whiten back money as recommended by the Anti-Corruption Commission of Bangladesh will do more harm than good. Design/methodology/approach This research relies on both primary and secondary materials adopting an archival analysis of the existing literature. Findings The major findings include the following: the recurrent amnesties to BMHs have damaging impacts on corruption and money laundering in Bangladesh; the Anti-Corruption Commission of Bangladesh’s recommendation to provide further opportunity to legalise black money is flawed, ill thought-out and misjudgement of the futility of the amnesties offered to date; and the black money problem could be better addressed through using educational, preventive and punitive measures that have been specifically formulated in this paper. Research limitations/implications This research does not examine the flaws that may remain in the provisions of existing laws; rather it gives emphasis to the enforcement of the law in place. Legal flaws thus can be a subject matter of another endeavour. Practical implications As implications, it is expected that this research will encourage the concerned authorities in Bangladesh to stop offering amnesties to BMHs for good. Also, other countries facing a similar problem can learn from the experience of Bangladesh presented, and specific recommendations submitted, in this paper, in dealing with black money, corruption and money laundering. Social implications It is expected that if the recommendations furnished in this paper are implemented, corruption in, and money laundering from, Bangladesh will reduce. This reduction will facilitate ensuring fairness in the society in many respects, deter criminal activities associated with black money and enable honest taxpayers to buy their homes in a level-playing filed. Originality/value This paper presents original research in terms of analysis of materials and the recommendations submitted to deal with corruption, black money and money laundering.


2015 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 72-87 ◽  
Author(s):  
Samsukri Glanville bin Mohamad Glanville bin Mohamad ◽  
Chad Perry

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate how fund managers in a non-Western country like Malaysia follow investment processes developed in the West and taught in the finance departments of universities. Design/methodology/approach – This convergent interview research investigates how fund managers in Malaysia actually make their decisions, and develops a framework about their investment process. Findings – Understanding the economy was important for the managers but was an ongoing learning process. Their analyses sometimes started bottom-up or top-down, but all followed a four-layer process. The managers did not believe the investment process could be quantified. Research limitations/implications – Convergent interviewing is meant to be a first step in a complete research program. So, future researchers could consider extending the research to different periods, different research settings in other countries like Singapore, India or Indonesia, different types of investors and different methodologies like surveys. Practical implications – Practitioners should build on their experience, and understand principles of behavioral finance. Students in business schools should be taught in an experiential way, and school staff should use qualitative methods like convergent interviewing in their research projects. Originality/value – Contributions centre on the article’s behavioural finance findings that experience and non-quantitative methods are the core of Malaysian investment managers’ decision-making, and on its detailed description of the unusual research methodology in finance of convergent interviewing.


2016 ◽  
Vol 23 (3) ◽  
pp. 652-670 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christina Langwell ◽  
Dennis Heaton

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine how small- and medium-sized organisations that were already participating in recognised sustainability programmes in Iowa, USA, in how they were utilising activities normally associated with human resources (HRs) to implement sustainability – activities included communication, engagement, incentives and recruitment and retention. Design/methodology/approach – The authors were interested in how small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) were utilising HR functions to implement sustainability. This was an exploratory, qualitative research study utilised semi-structured interviews to obtain data. Findings – Based on the findings, some of the functions are being utilised more than others, with some activities not being implemented at all. Research limitations/implications – This research offers empirical research on how sustainability is achieved in SMEs. Practical implications – This paper outlines some practical methods that any SME could utilise to help implement sustainability within an organisation. Originality/value – This paper adds empirical research on how SMEs are implementing sustainable practices into their operations by using activities normally associated with the HR department.


2015 ◽  
Vol 23 (2) ◽  
pp. 106-114 ◽  
Author(s):  
Naomi E. Boyd ◽  
Davide P. Cervone ◽  
Presha E. Neidermeyer ◽  
Adolph Neidermeyer

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the continued adherence to “standing” rules of thumb for the percentage of pre-retirement income which should be available to retirees. Design/methodology/approach – An analysis of census data to determine both the cause and magnitude of the debt load which retirees are carrying into their post-working years. Findings – The “standing” rules of thumb appear to provide less than adequate levels of income for retirees to service their continuing debt load which they have chosen to carry into their retirement years. Research limitations/implications – Census data are subject to the accuracy of “captured information” provided by the surveyed individuals. In this case, the information captured is consistent with generally reported data on the sufficiency of retirement income. Practical implications – Financial planners need to “get the word out early” that individuals need to consider earlier/greater funding of their anticipated retirement income. Social implications – Rising retirees may be “precluded” from retiring as anticipated because of the insufficiency of the replacement income they will have during their retirement years. Originality/value – Detailed census data have not been reviewed in detail with a focus on “individual debt load” as we have performed in this research study.


2020 ◽  
Vol 16 (4) ◽  
pp. 621-627
Author(s):  
Timothy J. Fogarty

Purpose The purpose of this paper is a reflective account in which one person who has been around long enough to see a good bit considers how COVID-19 might change the general contours of the world. Design/methodology/approach This paper follows a broadly based and relatively unstructured approach, based on personal understandings and whatever rigor might have been gained by a life spent thinking about research design and the limits of methodology. Findings The opposite of what many others believe will happen is argued for. Things will change more than we wish. Most will change for the worse. Research limitations/implications Accounting research will have a role to play, but to have impact, this study will require that researchers adopt a much more critical perspective about capitalism and its consequences than before. Practical implications Everyone must do the best they can. Everyone must learn to accept the new and not rage to restore that which existed in before times. Social implications Harsher climate of interpersonal relations will be realized. Originality/value This paper is more about change than about accounting. A 30,000-foot level analysis that does not try to provide many examples. An effort to rise above the specifics that vary across the world.


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