Running head: ACCOUNTING PROFESSION: TRUST ENHANCEMENT
MODEL 1
Accounting Profession: Trust Enhancement Model
Angie Trumps
Jean Marie Olivier
Joe R. Estrada
Sharon Woodards
Liberty University
ACCOUNTING PROFESSION: TRUST ENHANCEMENT MODEL 2
Table of Contents
Abstract......................................................................................................................................3
Introduction................................................................................................................................4
Trust Enhancement Model – Elements......................................................................................4
Ability.....................................................................................................................................5
Benevolence...........................................................................................................................5
Integrity..................................................................................................................................6
Professional Judgment............................................................................................................7
Evaluation of the Model of Trust Enhancement in the Accounting Profession.........................8
Organizational Culture of the Accounting Profession............................................................8
AICPA Code of Professional Conduct.................................................................................11
Enhancing Public Trust in the Accounting Profession.............................................................13
Importance and interrelatedness of the elements in the model..............................................13
Recommendations for Accounting Profession – Improve public trust – Now.......................15
Recommendations for Accounting Profession – improve public trust – Future....................17
Conclusion................................................................................................................................18
References................................................................................................................................20
ACCOUNTING PROFESSION: TRUST ENHANCEMENT MODEL 3
Abstract
The model of trust enhancement examines three essential characteristics that form the
foundation of the code of conduct that accounting professionals are to abide to follow. It sets
the foundation for the code of conduct for the whole accounting profession. The three
characteristics of ability, benevolence, and integrity are vital to an accountant’s professional
judgment. This research paper thoroughly discusses the elements of the model, evaluates the
model with respect to the organizational culture of the accounting profession. Historically the
image and value of accountants has been portrayed as that of “gatekeepers.” The AICPA
Code of Professional Conduct, examine the importance and interrelatedness of the elements
in the model and provides recommendations on what the accounting profession needs to do
now and in the future to maintain and improve public trust in the accounting profession. This
model could be used to enhance confidence in the accounting profession as the AICPA
professional Code of Conduct also supports it.
Keywords: ability, benevolence, integrity, professional judgment, accounting, trust,
trustor (client), trustee (accountant)
ACCOUNTING PROFESSION: TRUST ENHANCEMENT MODEL 4
The preamble to the AICPA Code of Conduct emphasizes the importance of the
elements of the model of trust in coordination with the professional judgment that every
individual associated with the profession must model. The preface section indicates that
accountants have a responsibility to society and not just those who utilize the services. The
code outlines the elements conduct for which accountants are responsible. Accountants are to
maintain integrity, benevolence, and demonstrate the ability to uphold and abide by the code
of conduct that is has been set forth. The model that accountants and other professionals in
the accounting industry can use to build trust and credibility is the trust enhancement model.
The model requires individuals to demonstrate ability, benevolence, integrity and professional
judgment in the accounting practice. It is essential that the accounting profession and all the
duties it entails be trustworthy for the public as well as those who use the services offered by
the different accounting companies. This research discusses and evaluates the trust
enhancement model and its ability to enhance public trust in the accounting profession.
Elements of the Model of Trust Enhancement
A key trait for an accountant is the commitment they have for ethical guidelines. If the
accountant veers too far from the ethical standards their trustworthiness and judgment come
into question (UWF, 2017). Ethical codes are fundamental principles by which the accountant
chooses to abide by to demonstrate honesty and fairness. Not every accountant who works in
the accounting field is trustworthy. Daily violations of public and private trust occur, and
dilemmas do not always end favorably (UWF, 2017).
Trust is the assured reliance on the character, ability, strength, or truth of someone or
something; one in which confidence is based (Merriam-Webster, n.d.). For the accountant,
trust is an integral part of the profession. “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not
lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make
straight your paths.” (Proverbs 3:5-6, ESV). Accountants must keep in mind that establishing
ACCOUNTING PROFESSION: TRUST ENHANCEMENT MODEL 5
trust requires more than just honesty; it requires the ability to make sound moral values
choices (Coka, 2017). Significant elements of the trust enhancement model explain the
ethical issues an accountant may encounter, such as integrity, honesty, and openness. The
model’s chief components include the elements of ability, integrity, and benevolence, and
professional judgment.
Ability
Ability is a group of skills, competencies, and characteristics that enable a party to
influence within some specific domain (Mayer, Davis, & Schoorman, 1995). Ability is vital
because the accountant may be highly competent in a technical area that will allow trust from
others in that area. If the accountant is perceived to be incompetent, lacking skills, or
understanding of the tasks, the client may withhold their trust which could lead to
undermining the completion of the job. However, according to Krot and Lewicka (2012)
competence is considered to be an important factor in trust in professional relationships as
basic competence makes it possible for an employee to perform his or her roles as required. It
is easy to build confidence using abilities or trust as this form of trust is not subjective to
emotional interactions.
Benevolence
The client’s trust of the accountant may revolve around having confidence that they
will act in their best interest and refrain from taking advantage of them (Coka, 2017). If a
possibility that the trust may be broken it would involve an element of risk, fear, and anxiety
filtered in the mix. The higher the risk, the more likely the client will lose their trust. “So
then, as we have the opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are
of the household of faith.” (Galatians 6:10, ESV).
ACCOUNTING PROFESSION: TRUST ENHANCEMENT MODEL 6
Any failures in the accounting profession raise the questions ethical behavior and put
the spotlight on the responsibility of the accountant to maintain the balance of the serving the
public interests and the client’s interests (Coka, 2017). Checks and balances on the
accounting profession must be done to ensure they are acting ethically. The public is always
encouraged to report any discrepancies they may find.
According to Mayer et al. (1995) the person who is tasked with doing something for
another party does so because of the attachment between the two parties. The attachment
could either be a profit motive or just real service with no desire for extrinsic reward.
Benevolence builds on trust as it involves a perception that the trustee will act in the best
interest of the trustor.
Integrity
Integrity is an expression of honesty. It encompasses values of openness, a sense of
deep commitment, self-expression, honesty, respect reliability, discipline, and person
responsibility (Markovic, McAtavey, & Fischweicher, 2014). Principle III of the AICPA
expresses integrity as being a fundamental character to the profession that is measured
regarding of what is right and just (AICPA, 2018a).
The benefits of having an accountant with integrity are as follow: First, stability - if
the accountant has integrity, he/she will likely treat others fairly, and client can depend on the
accountant to do the right thing even when circumstances might tempt one to do otherwise.
Secondly, safety – one’s attitude is more likely to promote an atmosphere of open
communication. Lastly, reference - one can serve as a role model for those around her/him
(Maryville University, n.d.).
ACCOUNTING PROFESSION: TRUST ENHANCEMENT MODEL 7
Krot and Lewicka (2012) state that integrity refers to the level at which the trustor
feels like the actions and behavior of the trustee are acceptable. Integrity is also determined
by the past actions of the trustee, credible relationships and communications with other
parties relevant to the trustor and the belief by the trustor that the trustee has a deep sense of
justice and fairness. A trustee whose actions and behavior reflect his or her words are also
likely to be trusted than a trustee whose actions do not reflect their words. Integrity can be of
high level or low level. High-level integrity is often defined by someone being consistent in
his or her actions while low-level integrity might be defined as the ability of a person to
follow a set of principles.
Professional Judgement
Ability, benevolence, and integrity roll up to the application of professional judgment.
Professional judgment is the application of relevant training; knowledge and experience,
within the context provided by auditing; accounting, and ethical standards, in making
informed decisions about the courses of action that are appropriate (GAA Accounting, 2017).
According to Ivan (2016) professional judgment refers to the use of accumulated
knowledge and experience as in expertise such as accounting to make informed decisions.
Professional judgment is also made in reference to professional responsibilities and existing
laws and regulations that govern the profession. Professional judgment is an element of trust
as it involves the trustee making decisions in the best interest of the trustor based on the
knowledge and experience of the trustee.
Therefore, an accountant must use the following to incorporate professionalism in the
duties to the public:
Identify and define the issue,
Gather the facts, information, and identify the relevant literature,
ACCOUNTING PROFESSION: TRUST ENHANCEMENT MODEL 8
Perform the analysis and identify alternatives,
Make the decision,
Review and complete the documentation and rationale for the conclusion (1-5, CAQ,
2014).
Evaluation of the Model of Trust Enhancement in the Accounting Profession
If there is one thing that the accounting profession is asking of all professionals that
make a career in the field of accountancy is “trust.” Without trust, the serving public will be
unable to believe the numbers that are being generated by the work the accountants do. Trust
in business is one aspect that is impossible to do without it. It is the confidence that a
merchant has in his or her product that is being offered to its customers. Trust has a lot of
purchasing power in any business. According to Gill, Gill, and Roulet (2018) “trust is
described as the willingness to make oneself vulnerable to another person or a decision to
take a risk to depend on the to some extent” (p. 192). Having trust in someone else’s ‘trustee’
work is the cornerstone of the accounting profession. There are other authors who have
defined trust as “the willingness of a party to vulnerable to the actions of another party based
on the expectation that the other will perform a particular action important to the ‘trustor,’
irrespective of the ability to monitor or control that other party” (Mayer et al., 1995, p. 712).
Regardless of who defined the word ‘trust,’ the model of trust will need to be enhanced and
defined between both, the trustor and the trustee. To develop the model of trust within the
accounting profession, an interested individual would need to understand the characteristics
of trust within the organizational culture of the accounting profession.
Organizational Culture of the Accounting Profession
The organizational culture of trustworthy in the profession is with both – the trustor
and the trustee. According to Mayer et al. (1995) the characteristics of both the trustor and the
ACCOUNTING PROFESSION: TRUST ENHANCEMENT MODEL 9
trustee are considered since they both affect the amount of trust the trustor has for the trustee
and vice versa” (p. 711). The trustworthiness of both, the trustor and the trustee, consists of
three characteristics which fall into the application of the professional judgment of a CPA or
an accountant. Those three characteristics of being trustworthy are as follows: the ability to
tell the truth, the benevolence of the profession, and the integrity that the profession demands.
Ability. First, the ability to maintain the truth in the profession is an important
characteristic. In the words of Mayer et al. (1995) “ability is that group of skills,
competencies, and characteristics that enable a party to influence within some specific
domain” (p. 717). It is a reminder of why Geisler (2011) in his book lists the six ethical
views of truth-telling:
(1) “Lying is neither right nor wrong: there are no laws;
(2) Lying is generally wrong: there are no universal laws;
(3) Lying is sometimes right: there is only one universal law;
(4) Lying is always wrong: there are many nonconflicting laws;
(5) Lying is forgivable: there are many conflicting laws;
(6) Lying is sometimes right: there are higher laws” (1-6, p. 19-20).
The ability, to tell the truth, is to see the reality of what is right and wrong, period; and
not to be mucking around to fudge the truth with a lie. Many ethical views explain different
reasoning, but the fact is the truth, and it is essential that the ability to say it prevails. Having
the ‘ability’ is a crucial element to trustworthiness in the profession as benevolence explains
it position next.
ACCOUNTING PROFESSION: TRUST ENHANCEMENT MODEL 10
Benevolence. Second, the benevolence of the profession is the generosity that should
be in the heart of every professional in making a professional judgment. It is the respect and
the attachment that the trustee has for the trustor. One person may think ‘what is the purpose
of compassion with trust or what compassion has to do with trust?’ Being able to show
compassion toward one another is to show respect, and it is to ask the other to trust you with
whatever service that is being provided. According to Mayer et al. (1995) “benevolence is the
extent to which a trustee is believed to want to do good to the trustor aside from an egocentric
profit motive” (p.718). Showing compassion and goodwill toward the trustor as
‘benevolence’ is also another essential element to trustworthiness in the accounting
profession. Benevolence is a basis for trust just as integrity is a must to have in the
application of professional judgment.
Integrity. Lastly is the integrity that the accounting profession demands from all
professionals. Integrity is what keeps the profession alive and believable. As mentioned
earlier, according to Mayer et al. (1995) “the relationship between integrity and trust involves
the trustor’s perception that the trustee adheres to a set of principles that the trustor finds
acceptable” (p. 719). The reality is ‘if those set of principles are not respected or followed,
then there is no trust or integrity.’ That is the reality that exists within the accounting
profession every time there is a scandalous cheating or unethical behavior that comes up.
Paine (1994) a professor at Harvard Business School, states “unethical business practice
involves the tacit, if not explicit, the cooperation of others and reflects the values, attitudes,
beliefs, language, and behavioral patterns that define an organization’s operating culture” (p.
1). With such a statement, an organization that promotes integrity is an organization that
holds a robust standard, and this is where the AICPA code comes in. Therefore, in having
those trustworthy characteristics of ability, benevolence, and integrity, the application of
ACCOUNTING PROFESSION: TRUST ENHANCEMENT MODEL 11
professional judgment needs to be enforced and applied by the robust standards of the AICPA
Code of Professional Conduct.
Application of professional judgment. The application of professional judgment
rests in the robust standards of the AICPA code of professional conduct. The rules are to be
respected and followed by all professionals. There are the guiding principles for the
accounting profession. In the words of Paine (1994) “those guiding principles define and give
life to an organization’s guiding values, to create an environment that supports ethically
sound behavior, and to instill a sense of shared accountability among professionals” (p. 8-9).
Along with the three characteristics, the professional judgment guiding light is with the
AICPA Code of Professional Conduct.
AICPA Code of Professional Conduct
Although the AICPA code of professional conduct is primarily reserved to members
of CPA’s in public practice, the ethical principle and rules of professional conduct in business
apply to all within the accounting profession (AICPA, 2018b). In the words of Duska, Duska,
& Ragatz (2011) “the AICPA code is separated in two parts for good comprehension: first, the
principles of the profession, and second, the rules or standards of the AICPA. The six
principles are focused on: “responsibilities, service to the public interest, integrity, objectivity
and independence, due care, and the scope and nature of services.” The rules or standards are
separated into five distinct sections:
(1) That being independence, integrity, and objectivity;
(2) General Standards Accounting Principles;
(3) Responsibilities to Clients;
(4) Responsibilities to Colleagues;
ACCOUNTING PROFESSION: TRUST ENHANCEMENT MODEL 12
(5) Other Responsibilities and Practices” (1-5, pp. 80-107).
The principles and the rules formed the pillar for the guideline of the accounting
profession. In the words of Paine (1994) those guiding values must be defended by all
governmental bodies, commissions, standards, or other regulatory agencies.
Christian ethics. The three characteristics of professional judgment – ability,
benevolence, and integrity – are the foundation of Christian Ethics. They are of a different
view of ethics for Christians. Christian Ethics are vital to the soul of the accounting
profession. According to Baïada-Hirèche, and Garmilis (2016) “research in accounting ethics
has consistently stressed the importance of the ethical expertise of accounting professionals
as the ‘watchdogs’ of the financial system; this concern has yielded a prolific stream of
research focusing on assessing auditors and accountants level of ethics and identifying the
factors that influence their ethical judgment” (p. 639).
The need for such ethics is vital to the modern-day business activity. These moral, ethical
views must be taking seriously since the values of the accounting profession is under assault
by the greedy norms of Wall Street with scandals such as the Savings & Loans bust, and all
the way to Bernie Madoff’s ponzi-schemes. One of the most trustworthy characteristics of
Christian ethics is integrity.
Simple choice. Ethical or unethical; it is impossible to be both. The Bible tells us in
Matthew 6:24 "No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other,
or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and
money” (NIV). In short, to survive in the profession requires having an ethical conscience
close to heart. As accountants, temptations to do the wrong thing will certainly be at the front
door; but it is important to maintain an ethical objective to every decision for the profession.
In the words of Bogdan, Meşter, Gherai, and Scorţe (2017) “accounting professionals are
ACCOUNTING PROFESSION: TRUST ENHANCEMENT MODEL 13
constantly subjected to pressure in making the best decisions on events outside the realm of
their direct experience. They also make plans, render judgments, and make choices based
upon, or influenced by those thoughts” (p. 320). Therefore, Christian ethics and moral values
are vital to the soul and the integrity of the accounting profession.
Enhancing Public Trust in the Accounting Profession
Importance and Interrelatedness of the Elements in the Model
All the four elements of the trust enhancement model are interrelated as the AICPA
professional code of conduct emphasizes them, and they all enhance public trust. While the
elements of ability, benevolence, and integrity are all independent, they all contribute to an
accounting professional being trustworthy. For instance, ability refers to the competence,
knowledge, and skills that an accountant should possess in order to perform their duties as
required (AICPA, 2018c). Other than maintaining these skills, the accountant must be able to
act in the best interest of the trustor while performing accounting roles. On the other hand, an
accountant cannot operate in the best interests of the trustor if the accountant does not have
the necessary ability and competencies to perform his or her duties. Benevolence is also tied
to integrity in that while acting in the best interests of a client, an accountant must be able to
work with honesty and follow a set of rules and ethical standards.
When professionals dependably complete assigned tasks, and reports, they have
accomplished three significant outcomes which fall under one of many God’s
commandments, one of them being “benevolence.” For example, the first one is to assist
supervisors and directors to settle on wise choices by giving essential data, particularly as it
applies to long-term strategic planning. As mentioned earlier, benevolence is well defined in
the Bible, for instance, Galatians 6:10 states “therefore, as we have the opportunity, let us do
good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers (NIV), believers
ACCOUNTING PROFESSION: TRUST ENHANCEMENT MODEL 14
are inclusive of oneself as well. Secondly, another way to help others is to keep projects on
track and report the progress of the project for supervisors to see. Lastly, show one to be
reliable, and through, especially to allow one’s benevolence to shine on others, which will tell
the executives that one can be trusted. God again tells us to act in kindness through Hebrew
13:16 “and do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is
pleased” (NIV).
The four elements of the trust enhancement model are also interrelated in that they all
lead to a high level of trust. For instance, while seeking accounting or auditing services from
a professional accountant, a company owner would trust the accountant if the accountant, has
skills, competence, and expertise in accounting acts in the best interest of the client, and acts
with integrity and honesty (Duska et al., 2011). If the accountant works in the best interest of
the client, but he or she does not have adequate skills and competencies, then it is impossible
to trust the accountant. On the other hand, if the accountant has a high level of expertise,
experience, and competence but does not act with honesty, then it becomes difficult to trust
the accountant.
A client might choose to hire an accountant because of the relationship that the
accountant has with past clients or based on other people’s accounts regarding the
competencies of the accountant. However, the client might need to do their assessment of the
accountant’s integrity in order to trust them. An accountant might also have the integrity and
ability to act with honesty, but without knowledge and capabilities, the accountant might not
be very useful to a client. What this implies is that integrity alone is not enough to make an
accountant trustworthy.
The fourth element, professional judgment, wholly relies on the first three elements;
in accounting, certified public accountants must have knowledge, skills, experience, integrity,
and benevolence in order to make a professional judgment (AICPA, 2018d). What this
ACCOUNTING PROFESSION: TRUST ENHANCEMENT MODEL 15
implies is that in the truth enhancement model, professional judgment is the dependent
variable while ability, benevolence, and integrity are the independent variables. Ability and
competencies differ among accountants, and it takes benevolence and integrity for an
accountant to work within his or her competency and refer a client to a more competent
accountant to handle issues that are beyond the ability of the first accountant. It also takes a
high level of skill and competencies for an accountant to engage in good professional
judgment.
According to Mayer et al. (1995) “trust is a continuum and each of the four elements
can vary along the continuum.” In accounting practice, a high level of trust exists when the
four elements remain at a high level. What this implies is that an accountant must have high
levels of ability, benevolence, integrity and professional judgment for him or her to be
sufficiently trustworthy. However, meaningful trust can exist between an accountant and his
or her client even if one element is at a higher level. For instance, a novice accountant might
earn the trust of a client if the accountant knows his level of competence and is honest
enough to refer the client to a more qualified accountant if the issue being handled is beyond
the capability of the novice accountant. In this case, the novice accountant becomes very
trustworthy. However, in the accounting profession, trust cannot exist if there are low levels
of integrity and benevolence. Because, despite the high-level competencies and ability an
accountant has, one cannot trust an accountant who does not act with integrity or with the
best interest of the client. The lack of integrity is a significant source of financial statement
fraud that is being reported in major companies.
Recommendations for Accounting Profession – Improve Public Trust – Now
In order, to help re-establish public confidence in the accounting profession, the
profession should consider several strategies. One such strategy is changing the
organizational culture of the accounting profession from that of compliance to an ethical
ACCOUNTING PROFESSION: TRUST ENHANCEMENT MODEL 16
culture. Currently, the organizational culture is based on compliance with laws and
regulations while some accountants try to act in a professional way using the ability and
competencies. However, such a culture is rule-based, and this means that accountants are
motivated by compliance rather than standard ethical behavior. As a result, the organizational
culture should shift to an ethical culture whereby standard ethical behavior is pursued, and
this will highly likely promote compliance.
Professional organizations and institutions such as the AICPA should also play an
active role in ensuring that members of these bodies adhere to the professional code of
conduct. For instance, the AICPA professional code of conduct should not just be a public
relations exercise to show the public that accountants follow a certain standard, but should
also be a basis of regulatory control. Other things that the professional accounting bodies
should do to enhance public trust is to encourage good behavior among their members
through formal training, disciplinary procedures, quality control programs and client money
regulations (Stevens, 2017). These professional bodies should also work together with law
enforcement to investigate and punish cases of unethical behavior.
Another thing that the accounting profession needs to do now to improve public trust
is an improved financial reporting model. While no financial reporting model will protect
clients from the greed and self-interests of unethical accountants, an improved model will
provide clients with more quality information. For instance, the reporting model should
include more information about data that is often missing from the balance sheet. These items
include liquidity issues, nonfinancial performance indicators, and other risks and
uncertainties. The frequency of financial reporting should also be increased to provide clients
with real-time information.
In addition, because of the lack of creditability to the accounting profession, the
public sector is looking to the AICPA to close the gap between how the public views the
ACCOUNTING PROFESSION: TRUST ENHANCEMENT MODEL 17
accounting profession. One way to narrow the creditability gap is for the AICPA to be more
involved in increasing its “focus on antifraud education, training programs, and auditing
standards” (Razaee, 2004, p. 141). Another method is to reinforce the undergraduate program
with anti-fraud education by incorporating more credits in the area of fraud detection
recognition and integrating antifraud in education school courses with reading text material
for accounting understudies. In order, to better train future accountants the accounting
profession and educators must address the root of the problem, through anti-fraud education
(Razaee, 2004).
A key hindrance for some people is the absence of knowledge about vital business
matters. As supervisors, in retaining data become a stumbling block to the employees they
supervise. Learning is power, and on the off chance that one needs to engage with others
he/she should share what they know. Proverbs 9:9 states according to God’s word the
following, “Instruct the wise and they will be wiser still; teach the righteous, and they will
add to their learning” (NIV). Training and education are other significant elements of sharing
knowledge. Directors should share information, and in doing so, their employees'
performance will enhance, prompting expanded business successes. Proverbs 1:5 states
according to God’s word the following, “Let the wise listen and add to their learning, and let
the discerning get guidance” (NIV).
Recommendations for Accounting Profession – Improve Public Trust – Future
In order, to enhance public confidence in the future, the accounting profession should
consider a few changes. For instance, currently, anyone can call themselves an accountant
without even formal training or joining a professional organization. Having high professional
qualifications is strongly linked to lower cases of corruption and other unethical practices in
the profession; hence, there should be measures to ensure that those who call themselves
ACCOUNTING PROFESSION: TRUST ENHANCEMENT MODEL 18
accountants are monitored. One method could be through educational and ethical
requirements such as showing academic qualifications that someone is indeed an accountant.
Another thing that would help in improving public trust in the future is enhancing
financial management in the public sector. Since the public sector is the governing body for
all professions including the accounting profession, more transparency and accountability
could help in improving public trust. Government entities should play a more active role in
examining public sector financial reporting and take disciplinary measures against
accountants who knowingly misrepresent accounting information. With more transparency in
the public sector, the private sector is more likely to follow forth.
More smart and effective regulations could also help improve public trust in the
accounting profession in the future. According to Stevens (2017) in many countries, the laws
that deal with financial misreporting and other accounting crimes are mostly anti-money
laundering legislation. These laws often respond to symptoms rather than causes as they deal
with the money laundering act instead of the underlying causes of the offense. In future, laws
should target causes of corruption and money laundering by focuses on loopholes in the
accounting profession and other enablers of unethical practices.
Conclusion
Many things can be done to enhance the trust in the accounting world, but it must first
come from within that world. Society needs to feel and understand that the profession has
righted itself and can move on with trust and security. “Working together often involves
interdependence, and people must, therefore, depend on others in various ways to accomplish
their personal and organizational goals” (Mayer et al., 1995, p. 710). Trust along with
integrity, benevolence, and ability are the components that are vital to the accounting
profession and its success. With the many scandals of the previous decades, these
characteristics were lost. However, in applying the four elements could enable the accounting
ACCOUNTING PROFESSION: TRUST ENHANCEMENT MODEL 19
professionals to gain public trust in the wake of reduced public trust as a result of accounting
fraud.
With the help of new rules, regulations, and laws, the critical attributes of the
accounting profession and what it stands for, can shine beyond the doubts and fears that once
took over. As discussed earlier, all the four elements are interrelated, and accountants must
never compromise on integrity and benevolence, as without these elements, there will be no
trust. The following scriptures are relevant to the accounting profession in gaining the
public’s trust and confidence. Proverbs 28:6 states “better is a poor man who walks in his
integrity than a rich man who is crooked in his ways” (ESV); and according to Romans 12:2
“do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by
testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect”
(ESV).
ACCOUNTING PROFESSION: TRUST ENHANCEMENT MODEL 20
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