Ethical behavior of accountants

Several accounting organizations have codes of ethics governing the behavior of their members. For instance, both the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the Institute of Management Accountants have formulated such codes. Many business firms have also developed codes of ethics for their employees to follow.

Ethical behavior involves more than merely making sure you are not violating a code of ethics. Most of us sense what is right and wrong. Yet get-rich-quick opportunities can tempt many of us. Almost any day, newspaper headlines reveal public officials and business leaders who did not do the right thing. Greed won out over their sense of right and wrong. These individuals followed slogans such as: "Get yours while the getting is good"; "Do unto others before they do unto you"; and "You have done wrong only if you get caught". More appropriate slogans might be: "If it seems too good to be true, it usually is"; "There are no free lunches"; and the golden rule, "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you".

An accountant's most valuable asset is an honest reputation. Those who take the high road of ethical behavior receive praise and honor; they are sought out for their advice and services. They also like themselves and what they represent. Occasionally, accountants do take the low road and suffer the consequences. They sometimes find their names mentioned in The Wall Street Journal and news programs in an unfavorable light, and former friends and colleagues look down on them. Some of these individuals are removed from the profession. Fortunately, the accounting profession has many leaders who have taken the high road, gained the respect of friends and colleagues, and become role models for all of us to follow.

Many chapters in the text include an ethics case entitled, "An ethical perspective". We know you will benefit from thinking about the situational ethics in these cases. Often you will not have much difficulty in determining "right and wrong". Instead of making the cases "close calls", we have attempted to include situations business students might actually encounter in their careers.