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Pathways to accountant fraud: Australian evidence and analysis

Author

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  • Paul Andon
  • Clinton Free
  • Benjamin Scard

Abstract

Purpose - – The purpose of this paper is to explore pathways to fraud perpetrated in accounting-related roles, focusing both on situationally driven attitudes and contextual elements. Design/methodology/approach - – Drawing on an anomie-based criminological taxonomy developed by Waringet al.(1995) and Weisburd and Waring (2001), which highlights individual attitudes and situational elements and their connection to illegitimate behaviour, the authors perform a qualitative content analysis of available media and court-reported information on a hand-collected database of 192 accountant frauds in Australia during the period 2001-2011. Findings - – The analysis highlights four distinct pathways to accountant fraud – crisis responders, opportunity takers, opportunity seekers and deviance seekers – and the relative distribution of identified cases among these pathways. It also identifies the prevalence of gambling, female offenders, small and medium enterprises as victims, as factors in fraud, as well as the relatively unsophisticated methods in much accountant fraud. In addition, it establishes the importance of situational attitude in moderating inherent character as it relates to fraudulent behaviour and the variable importance of the fraud triangle elements across the pathways to accountant fraud. Originality/value - – This paper provides direct evidence on the nature and pathways to accountant fraud, thus improving understanding of a significant category of occupational fraud. The evidence challenges conventional characterisations of accountant fraud offenders in prior research.

Suggested Citation

  • Paul Andon & Clinton Free & Benjamin Scard, 2015. "Pathways to accountant fraud: Australian evidence and analysis," Accounting Research Journal, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 28(1), pages 10-44, July.
  • Handle: RePEc:eme:arjpps:v:28:y:2015:i:1:p:10-44
    DOI: 10.1108/ARJ-06-2014-0058
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Monica Ramos Montesdeoca & Agustín J. Sánchez Medina & Felix Blázquez Santana, 2019. "Research Topics in Accounting Fraud in the 21st Century: A State of the Art," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(6), pages 1-31, March.
    2. repec:arp:tjssrr:2019:p:918-923 is not listed on IDEAS
    3. Paul Andon & Clinton Free & Radzi Jidin & Gary S. Monroe & Michael J. Turner, 2018. "The Impact of Financial Incentives and Perceptions of Seriousness on Whistleblowing Intention," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 151(1), pages 165-178, August.
    4. Kuang, Yu Flora & Lee, Gladys, 2017. "Corporate fraud and external social connectedness of independent directors," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 45(C), pages 401-427.
    5. Radiah Othman & Rashid Ameer, 2022. "In employees we Trust: Employee fraud in small businesses," Journal of Management Control: Zeitschrift für Planung und Unternehmenssteuerung, Springer, vol. 33(2), pages 189-213, June.
    6. Gladys Lee & Esther Pittroff & Michael J. Turner, 2020. "Is a Uniform Approach to Whistle-Blowing Regulation Effective? Evidence from the United States and Germany," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 163(3), pages 553-576, May.
    7. Namrata Sandhu & Shefali Saluja, 2023. "Fraud Triangle as an Audit Tool," Management and Labour Studies, XLRI Jamshedpur, School of Business Management & Human Resources, vol. 48(3), pages 418-443, August.

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