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Social Cognitive Theory: The Antecedents and Effects of Ethical Climate Fit on Organizational Attitudes of Corporate Accounting Professionals—A Reflection of Client Narcissism and Fraud Attitude Risk

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Abstract

The rash of high-profile accounting frauds involving internal corporate accountants calls into question the individual accountant’s perceptions of the ethical climate within their organization and the limits to which these professionals will tolerate unethical behavior and/or accept it as the norm. This study uses social cognitive theory to examine the antecedents of individual corporate accountant’s perceived personal fit with their organization’s ethical climate and empirically tests how these factors impact organizational attitudes. A survey was completed by 203 corporate accountants to assess their perception of relevant variables. The results of the structural equation model indicate three significant antecedents relating to ethical climate fit: higher internal levels of locus of control; greater numbers of prior job changes; and higher perceptions of an increasingly better fit with the firm’s ethical climate (e.g., fit trend). Our results also indicate that higher levels of perceived fit to the ethical climate of a firm are associated with higher levels of perceived job satisfaction and organizational commitment. We also theorize that perceptions of an organization’s ethical climate may be reflections of client narcissism and serve a potential indicator of fraud risk. This is an important topic of study, since current auditing standards call for auditors to examine organizational attitudes toward fraud, but offer minimal guidance in doing so.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Accounting, Stetson School of Business and Economics, Mercer University, Macon, GA, 31207, USA

    Madeline Ann Domino

  2. Department of Accounting and Information Systems, University of Canterbury, Christchurch, New Zealand

    Stephen C. Wingreen

  3. Department of Information Systems and Decision Support, College of Business Administration, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL, 33620, USA

    James E. Blanton

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  1. Madeline Ann Domino
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  2. Stephen C. Wingreen
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  3. James E. Blanton
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Correspondence to Madeline Ann Domino.

Appendix: Instrumentation

Appendix: Instrumentation

Ethical Climate Fit

How well you currently “fit” with your current organization with respect to the following organizational conditions?

  1. 1.

    Freedom to follow one’s own personal and moral beliefs.

  2. 2.

    Freedom to decide for oneself what is right and wrong.

  3. 3.

    Freedom to be guided by one’s own personal ethics.

  4. 4.

    Freedom to act in the best interests of everyone in the organization.

Organizational Commitment

  1. 1.

    I am willing to put in a great deal of effort beyond that normally expected in order to help this organization be successful.

  2. 2.

    I talk up this organization to my friends as a great organization to work for.

  3. 3.

    I feel very little loyalty to this organization.

  4. 4.

    I would accept almost any type of job assignment in order to keep working for this organization.

  5. 5.

    I find that my values and this organization’s values are very similar.

  6. 6.

    I am proud to tell others that I am a part of this organization.

  7. 7.

    I could just as well be working for a different organization as long as the type of work was similar.

  8. 8.

    This organization really inspires the best in me in the way of job performance.

  9. 9.

    It would take very little change in my present circumstances to cause me to leave this organization.

  10. 10.

    I am extremely glad that I chose this organization to work for over others I was considering at the time I joined.

  11. 11.

    There is not too much to be gained by sticking with this organization indefinitely.

  12. 12.

    Often, I find it difficult to agree with this organization’s policies on important matters relating to its employees.

  13. 13.

    I really care about the fate of this organization.

  14. 14.

    For me, it is the best of all possible organizations for which to work.

  15. 15.

    Deciding to work for this organization was a definite mistake on my part.

Job Satisfaction

  1. 1.

    I am not very satisfied with my job.

  2. 2.

    My job is enjoyable.

  3. 3.

    I feel a sense of pride in doing my job.

  4. 4.

    I like doing the things I do at work.

  5. 5.

    I sometimes feel my job is meaningless.

Self-efficacy

  1. 1.

    I prefer my job assignments to be pretty difficult.

  2. 2.

    If I cannot do a job the first time, I keep trying until I can.

  3. 3.

    When I set important goals for myself, I rarely achieve them.

  4. 4.

    If something looks too complicated, I avoid it.

  5. 5.

    When trying to learn something new, I soon give up if I am not initially successful.

  6. 6.

    If a new task seems especially difficult, I become more determined to master it.

  7. 7.

    Initial failure just makes me try harder.

  8. 8.

    I feel confident about my ability to do things.

  9. 9.

    I am a self-reliant person.

  10. 10.

    I am capable of dealing with most problems that come up at work.

Locus of Control

  1. 1.

    A job is what you make of it.

  2. 2.

    On most jobs, people can pretty much accomplish whatever they set out to accomplish.

  3. 3.

    If you know what you want out of a job, you can find a job that gives it to you.

  4. 4.

    Making money is primarily a matter of good fortune.

  5. 5.

    In order to get a really good job, you need to have family members or friends in high places.

  6. 6.

    Promotions are usually a matter of good fortune.

  7. 7.

    It takes a lot of luck to be an outstanding employee on most jobs.

  8. 8.

    The main difference between people who make a lot of money and people who make a little money is luck.

  9. 9.

    I try very hard to improve on my past performance at work.

Fit trend

With respect to your overall fit with your organization, is the goodness of fit between you and your organization getting better or worse?

The control variables of number prior job changes and the number of prior employer are introduced as an indicator of fit trend

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Domino, M.A., Wingreen, S.C. & Blanton, J.E. Social Cognitive Theory: The Antecedents and Effects of Ethical Climate Fit on Organizational Attitudes of Corporate Accounting Professionals—A Reflection of Client Narcissism and Fraud Attitude Risk. J Bus Ethics 131, 453–467 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-014-2210-z

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