The University of North Carolina at Greensboro
Bryan School of Business and Economics
Accounting 450
Accounting, Ethics, and International Business
Fall 2013
Dr. Bill Harden, Ph.D., CPA, ChFC
Office: 384 Bryan Bldg.
Phone: 256-0188
e-mail: jwharden@uncg.edu
Required:
Office Hours:
MW 12:30 – 2:00
or by appointment
McPhail, Ken and Diane Walters. Accounting and Business
Ethics: An Introduction. Routledge, Taylor and Francis
Group, 2009.
Classical readings per the schedule below
Recommended:
Tarabian, Kate L. A Manual for Writers of Research Papers,
Theses, and Dissertations, 7th Edition: Chicago Style
for Students and Researchers. University of Chicago Press,
2007.
Objectives and Overview:
This course has three broad objectives. First, students will be encouraged to
develop intellectually credible ways of understanding the relation between
accounting and ethics. Second, students will have the opportunity to work in a
way that will enhance their ability to write and speak. (This course carries a WI
marker.) Third, students will gain a basic knowledge of accounting in an
international context and apply ethical concepts in the context of international
business.
.
Specifically, the student will:
1. Students will increase their understanding of the relation between
accounting and ethics.
2. Students will improve their ability to communicate effectively using written
English (WI Marker).
3. Students will improve their ability to communicate orally using spoken
English.
4. Students will be able to recognize and write in genres appropriate to the
accounting and finance disciplines.
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5. Students will be able to use informal and formal approaches to writing and
multiple drafts to deepen their mastery of ethics as applied to accounting
and finance.
These objectives will be accomplished through:
1. Completion of 5 written essays in issues related to the course.
2. Participation in class discussions and presentations.
3. Reading classical works of western ethical and political thought from
ancient Greece to the post-colonial period that underlie the American
economic and accounting environment.
4. Present one of the course topics as a member of a team.
In order to understand the relation between accounting and ethics, one must
have an understanding of philosophical ethics and the ability to apply this
understanding to the conditions of accounting as it exists in practice in
international business. Also, accounting practice has developed based on the
political and economic environment in which it exists. Therefore we will endeavor
to develop our understanding of philosophical ethics, the political economy, and
accounting. We will also endeavor to improve our ability to communicate our
thoughts about these ideas.
Policies:
1. Attendance will be taken at the beginning of each class and will count as
part of your participation grade.
2. This is a seminar class, therefore attendance is crucial. I reserve the right to
drop students after two unexcused absences. Also, beginning with the
FIRST unexcused absence, any unexcused absences will result
in your final average being reduced by 2 points for each unexcused
absence. If you must miss a class, you may turn in the assignment early.
3. Students are expected to take the exams as scheduled. If you have an
emergency, you must notify me before the exam, and only university excused
absences will be accepted. You will be expected to provide verification of the
emergency before a make-up will be scheduled.
4. IF YOUR CELL PHONE GOES OFF DURING AN EXAM YOUR PAPER
WILL BE COLLECTED AT THAT POINT AND YOU WILL NOT BE
ALLOWED ADDITIONAL TIME TO COMPLETE YOUR EXAM.
5. Late work will not be accepted.
6. The complete Bryan School faculty and student guidelines can be referenced
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at: http://www.uncg.edu/bae/faculty_student_guidelines.pdf
Grading:
Midterm Exam
Final Exam
5 essays at 10% each
Presentation
Class Discussions/Participation
Total
*Less 2% for each unexcused absence
100-98%
97-93%
92-90%
89-88
87-83%
82-80%
79-78%
77-73
72-70%
69-68%
67-63%
62-60%
Below 60%
15%
15%
50%
10%
10%
100%
A+
A
AB+
B
BC+
C
CD+
D
DF
Written assignments
The written assignments will consist of 5 to 6 page papers on topics to be
assigned in class. The assignments must be submitted in two forms. First, the
papers must be submitted electronically through SafeAssign in Blackboard.
Please see detailed instructions that will be posted in Blackboard. It is YOUR
responsibility to ensure that your paper is successfully submitted and that
you submit the correct, final version of your paper. No late submissions
will be accepted. Any disputes regarding grading must be submitted to me in
writing for consideration. Second, the papers must also be submitted in a printed
version in class on the date due as well. The purpose of the two submissions is
that SafeAssign conducts a plagiarism check while the printed version is for
written comments from the professor.
All written assignments should be 5 to 6 pages, double spaced, with one-inch
margins on all four sides. Quoted and paraphrased materials may not
constitute more than 10% of the paper. A separate page for your name and
title should be attached in front of your paper. The papers will be graded for both
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content and grammatical structure. Proper referencing should be used in the
papers when citing works.
Presentations
Student teams will each prepare a 25 to 30 minute presentation of one of the
class readings. Teams will be assigned by the professor and team size will be
determined based on the number of students in the course. Grading of the
presentations will be a combination of the professor’s evaluation of the
presentation, a peer evaluation by other group members and an evaluation by
the students in the course observing the presentation.
University Policies and Resources

Students are expected to abide by the UNCG’s Academic Integrity Policy
and the Student Code of Conduct:
o Student Conduct: http://studentconduct.uncg.edu/policy/code/
o Academic Integrity Policy:
http://academicintegrity.uncg.edu/violation/
o Bryan School Faculty and Student Guidelines document:
http://bae.uncg.edu/assets/faculty_student_guidelines.pdf

Student Disabilities - Any request for special accommodations must
come through the Office of Disability Services with the appropriate
paperwork. Please visit http://ods.dept.uncg.edu/services/ for further
information.

Students in Distress: UNCG cares about your success as a student. We
recognize that students often balance many challenging personal issues
and demands. Please take advantage of the University resources
designed to help. For assistance accessing these resources, contact the
Dean of Students Office at 334-5514 or Student Academic Services at
334-5730. The Counseling and Testing Center is available for mental
health assistance, 334-5874. You may also visit me during my office
hours.
Tentative Schedule:
ACC 450 will involve writing papers and class discussions related to the following
works in addition to the accounting ethics text. The schedule indicates the timing
when we will be covering these works. With regard to the classic works,
students should be able to access free kindle editions of many of these
materials, and all are available in inexpensive paperback versions for those who
prefer a physical book while minimizing costs. Students should feel free to use
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free versions of all of these to keep their costs down if they prefer. All references
to a chapter are references to the textbook.
Dates
Readings/Assignment
Aug 19
Chapter 1
Aug 21
Aristotle, The Nichomachean Ethics
Aug 26
Aristotle, The Nichomachean Ethics
Aug 28
Chapter 2
Descriptive perspectives on accounting ethics: what
factors influence the way accountants respond to ethical dilemmas
Sep 4
Aristotle, Politics
Sep 9
Plato, The Republic
Sep 11
Chapter 3
Normative perspectives on accounting ethics: how
should accountants behave?
Sep 16
Machiavelli, The Prince
Sep 18
More, Utopia
Sep 23
Film (TBA) and class discussion
Sep 25
Chapter 4
Political moral philosophy and accounting ethics: why
should accountants be good?
Sep 30
Rousseau, Discourse on Art and Science
Oct 2
Midterm Exam
Oct 7
Rousseau, Discourse on Origin of Inequality
Oct 9
Rousseau, Discourse on Political Economy
Oct 16
Chapter 5
Post and new-modern perspectives on accounting
ethics: how have accountants become ethical
Oct 21
Mill, On Liberty and Utilitarianism
Introduction
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Oct 23
Marx, The Communist Manifesto;
Orwell , Animal Farm
Oct 28
Chapter 6
market
The function of accounting and the morality of the
Oct 30
Hume, An Enquiry Concerning the Principles of Morals
Nov 4
Kant, Fundamental Principles of the Metaphysics of Morals
Nov 6
Nietzsche, On the Genealogy of Morals
Nov 11
Chapter 7
Nov 13
Achebe, Things Fall Apart
Nov 18
Chapter 8
The ethics of international accounting: harmonization
and terrorism
Nov 20
Chapter 9
Nov 25
Readings on sustainability, TBA
Dec 2
Readings on sustainability, TBA
Dec 9
Final Exam, 3:30 – 6:30
The ethics of being a professional accountant
Ethics, intellectual capital and accounting reporting
Please be aware that topics may be shifted slightly based on the speed and
understanding of the class.