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Perceptions on the Causes of Individual and Fraudulent Co-offending: Views of Forensic Accountants

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  • Jeanette Akkeren

    (Queensland University of Technology)

  • Sherrena Buckby

    (Queensland University of Technology)

Abstract

Individual and/or co-offenders fraudulent activities can have a devastating effect on a company’s reputation and credibility. Enron, Xerox, WorldCom, HIH Insurance and One.Tel are examples where stakeholders incurred substantial financial losses as a result of fraud and led to a loss of confidence in corporate dealings by the public in general. There are numerous theoretical approaches that attempt to explain how and why fraudulent acts occur, drawing on the fields of sociology, organisational, management and economic literature, but there is limited empirical evidence published in accounting literature. This qualitative inductive study analyses perceptions and experiences of forensic accountants to gain insights into individual fraud and co-offending in order to determine whether the conceptual framework developed from literature accurately depicts the causes of fraud committed by individuals and groups in the twenty-first century. Findings from the study both support and extend the conceptual framework, demonstrating that strain and anomie can result in fraud, that deviant sub-groups recruit and coerce members by providing relief from strain, and that inadequate corporate governance mechanisms both contribute to fraud occurring, and provide the opportunity for fraudulent activities to be executed and often remain undetected. Additional factors emerging from this study (the ‘technoconomy’, addiction and IT measures) were also identified as contributors to fraud, particularly relevant to the twenty-first century, and consequently, a refined conceptual framework is presented in the discussion and conclusion to the paper.

Suggested Citation

  • Jeanette Akkeren & Sherrena Buckby, 2017. "Perceptions on the Causes of Individual and Fraudulent Co-offending: Views of Forensic Accountants," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 146(2), pages 383-404, December.
  • Handle: RePEc:kap:jbuset:v:146:y:2017:i:2:d:10.1007_s10551-015-2881-0
    DOI: 10.1007/s10551-015-2881-0
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    4. Mark E. Lokanan & Prerna Sharma, 2023. "Two Decades of Accounting Fraud Research: The Missing Meso-Level Analysis," SAGE Open, , vol. 13(3), pages 21582440231, September.
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    6. Edson Costa Alves & Marcia Juliana d’Angelo, 2023. "Does the Signaling of Hiring Offenders Impact Corporate Reputation?," Corporate Reputation Review, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 26(2), pages 133-149, May.
    7. Cintia Rodrigues de Oliveira & Rafael Alcadipani da Silveira, 2021. "An Essay on Corporate Crimes in the Post-Colonial Perspective: Challenging Traditional Literature," RAC - Revista de Administração Contemporânea (Journal of Contemporary Administration), ANPAD - Associação Nacional de Pós-Graduação e Pesquisa em Administração, vol. 25(4), pages 190144-1901.
    8. Yang, Chih-Hao & Lee, Kuen-Chang, 2020. "Developing a strategy map for forensic accounting with fraud risk management: An integrated balanced scorecard-based decision model," Evaluation and Program Planning, Elsevier, vol. 80(C).
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