Ethics, Equity, and Regulation

No greater issue than the relationship between ethics, equity, and regulation can be said to have emerged in these "troubled times." How can we account for continuing inequalities in an era promoting enlightened social and economic connections? What mechanisms of perceptions and politics will enable policy makers and scholars to advance significant progressive change? This volume offers diverse research examining accounting's contribution to these challenges given the profession's multifaceted roles. Authors scrutinize executive compensation packages to evaluate whether ideals of managerial power are consistent with the betterment of stakeholders. Others confront issues of gender stereotyping and describe attitudes fostering greater equality. How can US regulations improve auditor independence, enhance reporting quality, promote environmental conscientiousness, and augment responsibility are the aims of some authors, whereas accountability and public policy in a non-US setting are researched in another. Together, these chapters work toward illuminating the role of the accounting profession as a potential change agent fostering public interest issues.