Ethical decision making of accounting students: a cross-cultural comparative study

The study investigates cross-cultural differences in ethical decision making for future accountants from different cultures. Instruments used consist of the Defining Issues Test which is used to assess participants' ethical development, and the Multidimensional Ethics Scales which is employed to measure participants' ethical awareness and ethical intention when facing ethical dilemmas. Undergraduate junior and senior accounting students from USA and Taiwan were selected and studied. The results indicate significant differences in ethical awareness, ethical development and ethical intention between US and Taiwanese accounting students. The differences in the relationships between ethical perceptions are situation-specific.