An Investigation of the Relationships Among Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) Participation and Ethical Judgment and Decision Making

Anne L. Christensen () and Angela Woodland ()
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Anne L. Christensen: Montana State University
Angela Woodland: Montana State University

Journal of Business Ethics, 2018, vol. 147, issue 3, No 4, 529-543

Abstract: Abstract The Pathways Commission ( http://www.pathwayscommission.org , 2012) calls on accounting educators to develop students’ skills in ethical judgment and decision making, but there is uncertainty about how best to accomplish this task. We test if participation in Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) programs is positively associated with students’ ethical judgment and decision making. Using a questionnaire administered to students participating in VITA and students not participating in VITA at seven universities, we form multiple measures of students’ ethical judgment and students’ ethical decision making. Regression analyses reveal that VITA participation is positively and significantly associated with ethical judgment and, in certain cases, is also positively and significantly associated with ethical decision making, even after controlling for other determinants including completion of ethics courses. We conclude that VITA programs can be effective educational interventions to promote ethical development in students. Our study adds to the growing literature on positive student outcomes associated with VITA participation, provides empirical evidence to support the tenets of situated learning and service-learning theories, and contributes to the development of effective ethics education.

Keywords: Ethical judgment; Ethical decision making; Ethics instruction; Professionalism; Service-learning; Situated learning theory (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2018
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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DOI: 10.1007/s10551-015-2957-x

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