Cletus Agyenim-Boateng, Lexis Alexander Tetteh, John Kwaku Mensah Mawutor, Amoako Kwarteng and Daniel Susuawu
This study examines the effect of the social cognitive career theory (SCCT) factors (job stress, accounting stereotypes, job satisfaction and job prestige) on accounting students’…
Abstract
Purpose
This study examines the effect of the social cognitive career theory (SCCT) factors (job stress, accounting stereotypes, job satisfaction and job prestige) on accounting students’ intentions to pursue a career in auditing and the moderating role of ethical codes of conduct.
Design/methodology/approach
The study employed a survey design with a quantitative approach to data analysis. Data was gathered from a sample of 277 accounting students by adapting a closed-ended questionnaire. To test the hypotheses, the data were analysed using partial least square structural equation modelling.
Findings
The results indicate a significant negative relationship between accounting students’ aspirations to pursue a profession in auditing and their self-efficacy expectations. However, there was a significant positive correlation between their intention to pursue a career in auditing and their outcome expectations. Furthermore, a moderation test was conducted, which demonstrated that ethical codes of conduct strengthen the relationships between self-efficacy and outcome expectation factors and students’ intention to pursue career in auditing.
Research limitations/implications
Most participants lacked auditing job experience. Peers, relatives, educators and cultural norms may have influenced them to withhold honest and precise survey responses, undermining the results.
Practical implications
Educators can utilise the research findings on self-efficacy to direct accounting students in developing positive self-efficacy attitudes towards a career in auditing, rather than perceiving the auditing profession as stressful and characterised by stereotypes.
Originality/value
Utilising an extended version of the SCCT, this study provides empirical and theoretically grounded contributions to the existing body of knowledge regarding the factors that influence accounting students’ intentions to pursue a career in auditing.
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S.L. Middelberg, S. van Rooyen and A.J. Pienaar
Cost management is essential in every organisation, especially in an increasingly competitive environment (Jain & Yadav 2006:352). The management of distribution costs has become…
Abstract
Cost management is essential in every organisation, especially in an increasingly competitive environment (Jain & Yadav 2006:352). The management of distribution costs has become increasingly important because of the rising fuel costs in recent years (Gaffney 2008:40). Delivery routes should be optimised in order to reduce distribution costs. This article presents a comprehensive segment margin approach model for determining the financial viability of delivery routes. A specific bakery (henceforth referred to as Bakery A) was selected as a case study, and the use of general management accounting principles in determining the financial viability of delivery routes was specifically investigated.
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Siphe Zantsi, Louw Petrus Pienaar and Jan C. Greyling
Understanding diversity amongst potential beneficiaries of land redistribution is of critical importance for both design and planning of successful land reform interventions. This…
Abstract
Purpose
Understanding diversity amongst potential beneficiaries of land redistribution is of critical importance for both design and planning of successful land reform interventions. This study seeks to add to the existing literature on farming types, with specific emphasis on understanding diversity within a sub-group of commercially oriented or emerging smallholders.
Design/methodology/approach
Using a multivariate statistical analysis – principal component and cluster analyses applied to a sample of 442 commercially-oriented smallholders – five distinct clusters of emerging farmers are identified, using variables related to farmers' characteristics, income and expenditure and farm production indicators and willingness to participate in land redistribution. The five clusters are discussed in light of a predefined selection criteria that is based on the current policies and scholarly thinking.
Findings
The results suggest that there are distinct differences in farming types, and each identified cluster of farmers requires tailored support for the effective implementation of land reform. The identified homogenous sub-groups of smallholders, allows us to understand which farmers could be a better target for a successful land redistribution policy.
Originality/value
Most of the existing typology studies in South Africa tend to focus on general smallholders and in the Eastern Cape province; this study extends the literature by focussing on specific prime beneficiaries of land reform in three provinces. This study uses a more detailed dataset than the Statistics general and agricultural household surveys.
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Jonathan Crush and Wade Pendleton
The paper presents the results and discusses the implications of a national survey of South African health professionals which found extraordinarily high levels of dissatisfaction…
Abstract
The paper presents the results and discusses the implications of a national survey of South African health professionals which found extraordinarily high levels of dissatisfaction with working and living conditions in the country. Emigration potential is very high, and retention strategies have been largely unsuccessful. The survey findings suggest that remedial efforts within South Africa will not slow the brain drain. This has serious negative repercussions for the quality and level of health care available to patients in the country. The only workable retention strategy is for Western countries to stop issuing immigration and work permits to South African health professionals, a policy that would be consistent with their attitude to most other South African workers. However, as long as health professional shortages continue in Western countries and their immigration policy remains divorced from their international development policy, this scenario seems unlikely.
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This followed the publication of a public protector report the previous day outlining damaging evidence of alleged collusion between government ministers and Zuma associates, the…
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DOI: 10.1108/OXAN-DB214743
ISSN: 2633-304X
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Topical
Joshua J. Turner, Olena Kopystynska, Kay Bradford, Brian J. Higginbotham and David G. Schramm
High divorce rates have coincided with higher rates of remarriage. Although remarriages are more susceptible to dissolution than first-order marriages, less research has focused…
Abstract
High divorce rates have coincided with higher rates of remarriage. Although remarriages are more susceptible to dissolution than first-order marriages, less research has focused on factors that promote vulnerabilities among remarried couples. In the current study, the authors focused on whether predictors of divorce differ by the number of times someone has been married. The authors examined some of the most common reasons for divorce, as identified by parents who completed a state-mandated divorce education course (n = 8,364), while also controlling for participant sociodemographic characteristics. Participants going through their first divorce were more likely to identify growing apart and infidelity as reasons for seeking a divorce. Conversely, those going through a subsequent divorce were more likely to list problems with alcohol/drug abuse, childrearing differences, emotional/psychological/verbal mistreatment, money problems, physical violence, and arguing. Multivariate analyses indicated that sociodemographic factors were stronger predictors of divorce number than commonly listed reasons for divorce for both male and female participants. Implications for remarital and stepfamily stability and directions for future research are discussed.
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Randolph Nsor-Ambala, Gabriel Sam Ahinful and Jeff Danquah Boakye
This study applies social identity theory (SIT) to explore the perceptual differences among various stakeholder groups regarding the relevance of social and environmental…
Abstract
Purpose
This study applies social identity theory (SIT) to explore the perceptual differences among various stakeholder groups regarding the relevance of social and environmental accounting (SEA), SEA education and mandatory disclosure of SEA.
Methodology
The study adopts a mixed method applying a qualitative and quantitative approach. In total, 325 structured questionnaires were analyzed quantitatively, using ANOVA and group comparison methods. Responses from 18 interviews were analyzed qualitatively to provide complementary evidence for the quantitative study.
Findings
There were significant differences between various stakeholder groups regarding the relevance of SEA practice and SEA education. Regulators were mostly affected by considerations about the external perception of work quality, followed by financiers. Practitioners and shareholders were influenced by the ability of SEA in its current state to affect actual work quality. This possibly indicates that academic qualifications have marginal effects on predicting considerations about SEA compared to social identity.
Originality/Value
This is the first application of SIT to SEA research and contributes to the effort to improve SEA within emerging economies, highlighting that a one-size-fits-all approach may be ineffective.
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Peer review has been with humans for a long time. Its effective inception dates back to World War II resulting information overload, which imposed a quantitative and qualitative…
Abstract
Peer review has been with humans for a long time. Its effective inception dates back to World War II resulting information overload, which imposed a quantitative and qualitative screening of publications. Peer review was beset by a number of accusations and critics largely from the biases and subjective aspects of the process including the secrecy in which the processes became standard. Advent of the Internet in the early 1990s provided a manner to open peer review up to make it more transparent, less iniquitous, and more objective. This chapter investigates whether this openness led to a more objective manner of judging scientific publications. Three sites are examined: Electronic Transactions on Artificial Intelligence (ETAI), Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics (ACP), and Faculty of 1000 (F1000). These sites practice open peer review wherein reviewers and authors and their reviews and rebuttals are available for all to see. The chapter examines the different steps taken to allow reviewers and authors to interact and how this allows for the entire community to participate. This new prepublication reviewing of papers has to some extent, alleviated the biases that were previously preponderant and, furthermore, seems to give positive results and feedback. Although recent, experiences seem to have elicited scientists’ acceptance because openness allows for a more objective and fair judgment of research and scholarship. Yet, it will undoubtedly lead to new questions which are examined in this chapter.
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Engin Boztepe, Fatma Akyüz and Selçuk Gülten
Purpose: To investigate the impact of integrating artificial intelligence (AI) techniques, particularly deep learning, into bankruptcy prediction models within the banking sector…
Abstract
Purpose: To investigate the impact of integrating artificial intelligence (AI) techniques, particularly deep learning, into bankruptcy prediction models within the banking sector.
Need for the study: With the historical development of bankruptcy prediction models, there is a growing recognition of the potential for AI to enhance the accuracy of these models. This study addresses the need to explore how AI can improve the prediction of financial failures in banks.
Methodology: Using data from banks spanning from 2020 to 2023, this study applies well-established bankruptcy prediction models including the Altman Z model, Altman Z’ model, Springate model, Zmijewski model, and Taffler model. Deep learning techniques are employed to teach these models to AI. Evaluation of the results is conducted using a majority voting decision-making system, incorporating algorithms such as KNN, naive Bayes, and decision trees.
Findings: Integrating AI techniques into bankruptcy prediction models has the potential to enhance the accuracy of forecasts. Evaluation criteria encompass both accuracy and precision, with promising results observed through the majority voting decision-making system. This study suggests a shift toward more sophisticated techniques for bankruptcy risk assessment within the banking sector.
Practical implications: Improved bankruptcy prediction models facilitated by AI techniques could enhance risk management strategies within banks, leading to more informed decision-making processes. This, in turn, could contribute to the overall stability and efficiency of the financial system. Moreover, the importance of considering contradictory results when applying AI-driven models in practice, highlighting areas for further research and refinement in the field of financial risk assessment.
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Ziyanda Khumalo and Abdul Latif Alhassan
Taking motivation from South Africa's ranking of 50 out of 50 countries who participated in the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study of Grade four learners in 2016…
Abstract
Purpose
Taking motivation from South Africa's ranking of 50 out of 50 countries who participated in the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study of Grade four learners in 2016, this paper examines the social and economic outcomes of literacy in South Africa.
Design/methodology/approach
Using unemployment, income and crime rates as proxies for social and economic outcomes, the effect of literacy is examined by employing the fixed- and random-effects techniques to estimate a panel data covering nine provinces in South Africa from 2008 to 2017.
Findings
The results show that literacy rate worsens unemployment but improves crime rate and income per capita across South African provinces.
Practical implications
Policymakers need to consider an expanded view of literacy by extending investments to cover financial and technology literacy in addition to functional literacy to fully maximise the benefits of education.
Originality/value
To the authors’ best knowledge, this is the first empirical assessment of literacy outcomes in South Africa.