Proceedings of Eurasia Business Research Conference
16 - 18 June 2014, Nippon Hotel, Istanbul, Turkey, ISBN: 978-1-922069-54-2
Obstacles to Integrating Forensic Accounting in the
Accounting Curriculum: The Case of Bahrain
Abdullah Al-Hadrami* and Sutan Hidayat**
The importance of forensic accounting is increasing steadily all over the
world. Therefore, forensic accounting is seen as one of the most important
careers in the near future, yet universities in Bahrain are still not offering
separate program or course in forensic accounting. This study aims to
explore educators’ opinion regarding the main obstacles to integrate
forensic accounting in the accounting curriculum across universities in
Bahrain. The study surveyed all accounting educators in universities
across Bahrain. 34 accounting instructors from all universities in Bahrain
completely answered the survey questionnaire. Like the results of the
previous studies, the results of this study also indicated that the majority of
instructors are expecting an increasing demand on forensic accounting.
Additionally, it has been found that obstacles related to academic matters
(curriculum and faculty) are the most important obstacles that prevent the
accounting Department in universities across Bahrain from offering a
program or a course in forensic accounting. However, the study found a
significant difference among respondents as for the obstacles to integrate
forensic accounting in the accounting curriculum only when the
respondents are grouped according to their academic rank. Accordingly,
and in light of these results the accounting departments in the universities
across Bahrain should revise their academic curriculum to integrate
forensic accounting, and to attract qualified faculties who have good
experience in the field of forensic accounting.
Field of research: Accounting Education
1. Introduction
As it has been discussed in many literatures, accounting is defined as a system
that identifies, records, and communicates relevant, reliable and comparable
information in order to help the users in making better decisions (Wild, et. al,
2007). The above definition clearly highlights one of the most important
characteristics of accounting information namely reliability. However, this is not
always the case in practice. For the last decades, the world has seen several
frauds in accounting both in developed and developing countries that resulted in
serious damages to the social and economical aspects of a society (Efiong,
2012). As a result, there is a need to prevent further damages caused by frauds
in accounting through emphasizing efforts on the development of a fraud
detection and litigation support service known as forensic accounting (Rezaee
et.al, 1992).
*
Dr. Abdullah Al-HAdrami, Business Department, University College of Bahrain, Bahrain.
E-mail: ahadrami@ucb.edu.bh
**
Dr. Sutan Hidayat, Business Department, University College of Bahrain, Bahrain,
E-mail: Sutan@ucb.edu.bh
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Proceedings of Eurasia Business Research Conference
16 - 18 June 2014, Nippon Hotel, Istanbul, Turkey, ISBN: 978-1-922069-54-2
Forensic accounting is a specialized field of accounting that portrays
arrangements that result from real or anticipated disputes or litigation. Forensic
accounting combines accounting, auditing and investigative skills to solve
problems involving legal matters (Modugu and Anyaduba, 2013). This field of
accounting has drawn a significant attention of regulators, academicians and
accounting practitioners especially in the developed world. In order to support the
industry need of forensic accountants, many universities in the developed
countries such as the U.S have integrated forensic accounting courses into their
accounting curriculum (Ozkul and Pamukcu, 2012). On the other hand, beside
there is a need and demand on forensic accountant career in their respective
countries, most developing countries still find difficulties in integrating forensic
accounting courses into their accounting curriculum (Zadeh and Ramazani,
2012).
Kingdom of Bahrain as one of the developing countries is not an exception.
Recently, it was reported that the number of accounting frauds in the kingdom is
expected to increase in the upcoming years (Price Water Cooper House, 2011).
As a result, forensic accounting practices exist in many accounting firms across
the country serving a wide variety of litigation and investigative needs 1.
Surprisingly, despite the existence of forensic accounting services in practice,
there is no forensic accounting courses offered across universities in Bahrain
(Hidayat and Al-Sadiq, 2014). This situation has made accounting firms across
Bahrain to solely rely on foreign universities' graduates to fill up their forensic
accountants' position. In the long run, this situation is not favorable for the
country, thus offering a new program in forensic accounting or at least integrating
a course in forensic accounting into the accounting curriculum in the universities
should be highly considered to fill the gap in the increasing demand on this
career.
The above situation also has posed a serious question "why do not universities in
Bahrain offer forensic accounting courses in their accounting curriculum? Or in
other words "what are the obstacles? The above question has become the
motivation of this study. In other words the main objective of this study is to
identify the obstacles of integrating forensic accounting into accounting
curriculum of universities across Bahrain. In order to achieve this objective,
accounting instructors across universities in Bahrain were surveyed to identify
the obstacles. It is expected that the results of the study can be used by
universities' management across Bahrain as an input to find solutions in
overcoming the obstacles. The results of the study also can be used by higher
learning authority in the country to set up a policy in order to support the
development of forensic accounting education across universities in the country.
The study also can be used as a reference for future research in the area of
forensic accounting. However, it is very important to note that since this study is
1
http://www.bibf.com/2014/bibfcatalogue2014.pdf It was accessed on March 22, 2014.
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Proceedings of Eurasia Business Research Conference
16 - 18 June 2014, Nippon Hotel, Istanbul, Turkey, ISBN: 978-1-922069-54-2
conducted only in Bahrain, the results of this study cannot be used as a universal
conclusion.
2. Literature Review
In this section, several related previous studies in the area of forensic accounting
from developed and developing countries are reviewed and presented. All the
previous studies are used as the references of this study. Review of literature
concludes that there are significant numbers of studies about forensic accounting
conducted in developed countries especially in the United States (Rezaee and
Burton, 1997; Buckhoff and Schrader, 2000; Rezaee et. al, 2003; Seda and
Peterson, 2008; Daniels, et. al, 2013). On the other hand, it is observed that less
number of studies about forensic accounting conducted in developing countries
such as in Nigeria, Turkey, Iran and Bahrain (Efiong, 2012; Zadeh and
Ramazani, 2012; Enofe, et. al, 2013; Hidayat and Al-Sadiq, 2014). In addition,
only two studies are found that specifically discussed the obstacles of integrating
forensic accounting into accounting curriculum in the universities (Razaee et. al,
1992; Seda and Peterson, 2008). The review of literature also concludes that this
study might be the first research that focuses on the obstacles in integrating
forensic accounting into accounting curriculum across universities in Bahrain and
might be also the first study across developing countries.
It is interesting to note that almost all the above previous studies employed a
survey questionnaire as their research method. In addition, most of them found
that the global demand for forensic accounting education is expected to increase
in the future and therefore there is a need to integrate forensic accounting into
accounting curriculum of universities worldwide (Rezaee and Burton, 1997;
Buckhoff and Schrader, 2000; Rezaee et. al, 2003; Seda and Peterson, 2008;
Efiong, 2012; Daniels, et. al, 2013; Enofe, et. al, 2013; Hidayat and Al-Sadiq,
2014). Hidayat and Al-Sadiq (2014) particularly conducted a survey in Bahrain
about the opinion of accounting practitioners in the country on the importance of
perceived benefits of forensic accounting education and the importance of
integrating forensic accounting courses into accounting curriculum of universities
in Bahrain. Hidayat and Al-Sadiq (2014) found that the accounting practitioners in
Bahrain are in the opinion that the perceived benefits of forensic accounting
education as very important and integrating the courses into accounting
curriculum of universities in Bahrain is also regarded as very important.
However, Hidayat and Al-Sadiq (2014) did not identify the obstacles of
integrating forensic accounting into accounting curriculum of universities across
the country. Therefore, this study attempts to fill the gap in the literature by
extending the work of Hidayat and Al-Sadiq (2014). In addition, the obstacles of
integrating forensic accounting into accounting curriculum at the universities as
identified by Razaee et. al, (1992) and Seda and Peterson (2008) in other
countries are also used as the main reference in developing the survey
questionnaire. The next section presents the research methodology of this study.
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Proceedings of Eurasia Business Research Conference
16 - 18 June 2014, Nippon Hotel, Istanbul, Turkey, ISBN: 978-1-922069-54-2
3. Research Methodology
3.1 Research Method
Based on the previous literatures, it is found that most studies related to forensic
accounting education used survey questionnaire as their research method.
Therefore, this study uses the same method as the previous studies (Rezaei and
Burto, 1997; Buckhoff and Schrader, 2000; Rezaei et al, 2003; Zadeh and
Ramazani, 2012; Hidayat and Al-Sadiq, 2014).
The questions in the questionnaire are divided into four groups. The first group
collects information about the demographic profile of the respondents. The
second group of questions collects information about accounting educators'
familiarity with forensic accounting education and their opinions about the
demand for forensic accounting. The third group of questions collects information
about accounting educators' views on the severity of the obstacles of integrating
forensic accounting into accounting curriculum of universities in Bahrain. The
third group of questions uses 5 Likert-scale types of questions. This scale has
the following scale values:
4.50 – 5.00
3.50 – 4.49
2.50 – 3.49
1.50 – 2.49
1.00 – 1.49
Very Severe (VS)
Severe (S)
Not Sure/I don't Know (N)
Somewhat Severe (SS)
Not Severe (NS)
The third group of questions consists of 7 questions divided into 3 questions
related to academic matters (faculty and curriculum) and 4 questions related to
administrative matters and demand from both employers and the students.
3.2 Data Gathering
Due to the limited number of accounting educators in Bahrain as this country is
the smallest country in the GCC in term of area, the survey questionnaire has
been distributed to all accounting educators across all universities in Bahrain. 34
accounting educators participated in filling up the questionnaire of the current
study.
3.3 Statistical Treatment
The collected data are analyzed using the following techniques:
1. Descriptive analysis: to determine each of the distribution percentage and
the weighted mean of the responses. This has been conducted using the
following two equations:
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Proceedings of Eurasia Business Research Conference
16 - 18 June 2014, Nippon Hotel, Istanbul, Turkey, ISBN: 978-1-922069-54-2
a- Percentage of Distribution = F/N x 100
Where:
F = frequency of an item or response.
N = total number of items or responses.
b- Weighted Mean - The arithmetical average when all the scores are
added and divided by number of items obtained using the following
formula:
M = ΣX / N
Where:
M = mean
ΣX = sum of the scores / measures in the series
N = number of cases
2- Analysis of Variance (ANOVA): to determine the existence of significant
differences among respondents when they are grouped according to
gender, level of education, academic rank, and work experience.
4. Data Analysis and Findings
4.1 Demographics of the Educators (Respondents):
Table 1 shows the demographic profile of the respondents. As seen in this table
the majority of the accounting educators in Bahrain are males (91.2%).
Additionally, the results indicate that 22 (64.7%) of the educators have PhD
degree, and most of them obtained a rank of assistant professor (38.2%)
followed by the rank of lecturer (35.3%). Moreover, 12 respondents (35.2%) have
over 15 years of experience.
4.2 Forensic Accounting and Educators in Bahrain
The analysis of the educators' responses indicate that 22 (65%) of them are
familiar about forensic accounting, but 10 respondents (29.4%) declared that
they are not familiar about forensic accounting and 2 respondents (5.6%) left this
question blank. This indicates that the majority of accounting educators are
aware of forensic accounting. However, the unfamiliarity of 29.4 % of the
respondents about this important topic put more responsibility on the accounting
departments at the universities in Bahrain to increase the awareness among
accounting educators about forensic accounting. The shortage of the universities
role in spreading the awareness about forensic accounting is very clear from the
educators' responses about the source of information about forensic accounting,
that 26.5% of the educators indicated that they obtained knowledge about
forensic accounting from the internet followed by journals and text books
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Proceedings of Eurasia Business Research Conference
16 - 18 June 2014, Nippon Hotel, Istanbul, Turkey, ISBN: 978-1-922069-54-2
(23.5%). Only 17.6% of the educators indicated that they got information about
forensic accounting from workshops and conferences.
Table 1: Demographic profile of the respondents
Gender
Frequency
Percent
Male
31
91.2%
Female
3
8.8%
Total
34
100%
Level of
Education
PhD
22
64.7%
Master
10
29.4%
Bachelor
2
5.9%
Total
34
100%
Academic Rank
Professor
3
8.8%
Associate
6
17.7%
professor
Assistant professor 13
38.2%
Lecturer
12
35.3%
Total
34
100%
Work Experience
Less than 5 years
6
17.7%
6-10 years
10
29.4%
11-15
6
17.7%
Over 15
12
35.2%
Total
34
100%
Regarding the educators expectation about the future demand on forensic
accounting 56% of them are expecting a steadily increase. But 20.6% believe
that the future demand will not witness any changes. On the other hand, 2.9% of
the respondents expecting a decrease on the demand for forensic accounting,
and 20.6% are not sure whether this demand will change or not.
4.3 Obstacles to Integrating Forensic Accounting into the Accounting
Curriculum
Table 2 shows a summary of the educators' responses regarding the severity of
seven obstacles that prevent the integration of forensic accounting in the
accounting curriculum. The first 3 questions are related to academic matters and
the rest are related to administrative and demand from both employers and
students.
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Proceedings of Eurasia Business Research Conference
16 - 18 June 2014, Nippon Hotel, Istanbul, Turkey, ISBN: 978-1-922069-54-2
Table 2: Distribution of Accounting Educators' Responses about the
Severity of Obstacles to Integrate Forensic Accounting in the Accounting
Curriculum of Universities across Bahrain
Item
Limited room for additional courses
in the accounting curriculum
No qualified faculty to teach forensic
accounting topics
Not of significant importance to be
included in the curriculum
Lack of administrative interest and
support
Scarcity of instructional materials
Absence of job opportunities
No student interest
1
2
3
0
0
7
0
0
8
0
0
1
8
3
5
4
5
1
9
1
5
1
0
1
3
1
5
1
8
4
5
M
S
1
3
1
5
1
0
1
0
1
4
1
1
4.20
S
4.09
S
9
3.82
S
5
3.29
N
6
4
3.17
N
6
4
3.03
N
3
3
2.94
N
Overall Weighted Average: 3.51
As seen in table 2 above, the overall weighted average of the seven obstacles is
3.51 with verbal interpretation of severe. Only obstacles related to the academic
matters have a verbal interpretation of severe namely limited room for additional
courses in the accounting curriculum, no qualified faculty to teach forensic
accounting topics and not of significant importance to be included in the
curriculum. On the other hand, obstacles related to the administrative matters,
and demand by employers and students have a verbal interpretation of Not sure.
This indicates that the main prevention for the integration of forensic accounting
in the accounting curriculum is related to academic matters. The first statement
(Limited room for additional courses in the accounting curriculum) has the
highest weighted average (M= 4.20) followed by the second statement (No
qualified faculty to teach forensic accounting topics) with a weighted average of
(M= 4.09). In the third place comes statement number three (Not of significant
importance to be included in the curriculum) with a weighted average of (M=
3.82).
4.4 ANOVA Analysis
Several analysis of variances were conducted to indicate any statistically
significant differences among educators about the severity of the obstacles that
prevent the integration of forensic accounting in the accounting curriculum, when
the respondents are grouped according to gender, educational level, years of
experience, and academic rank. The cut off point for this analysis is 5%. Table 3
summarizes the results of ANOVA test.
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Proceedings of Eurasia Business Research Conference
16 - 18 June 2014, Nippon Hotel, Istanbul, Turkey, ISBN: 978-1-922069-54-2
Table 3: Summary of ANOVA Results
Severity of the obstacles to
integrate forensic accounting
in the accounting curriculum
Gender
Male
Level of
education
Academic rank
Years of
Experience
F Test
F-ratio
F sig.
n
Mean
3
1
3
2
3.49
.276
.603
3.67
3.79
.507
.607
Master or
equivalent
PhD or
equivalent
Professor
1
0
2
2
3
3.39
3.124
.040*
Associate
professor
Assistant
professor
Lecturer
6
3.98
1
3
1
2
6
3.47
.450
.719
1
0
6
1
2
3.59
Female
Bachelor
5 years or
less
6-10 years
11-15 years
More than
15
3.49
2.95
3.45
3.64
3.29
3.48
* P<0.05
As seen in the table 3 above, the only statistically significant difference was
found when the respondents were grouped according to their academic rank.
That associate professors perceived the severity of the seven obstacles more
than the other academic ranks, this followed by lecturers, assistant professors,
and professors respectively. Using a significant level of 0.05, no significant
gender differences were found for the responses of the educators regarding the
severity of the seven obstacles. However, female educators consider the seven
obstacles as severe (M=3.67) while male educators not sure about the severity of
these obstacles (M=3.49). This means that there is a difference between males
and females regarding their perception of the seven obstacles but this difference
is not statistically significant. This might be due to the low number of the female
educators who participated in the current study.
With regard to the level of education, Table 3 also shows no statistically
significant differences when the respondents are grouped according to their level
of education for their perception of the severity of the obstacles that prevent the
integration of forensic accounting in the accounting curriculum. As seen in Table
3 above, respondents who hold Bachelor degree have the highest mean
(M=3.79). This followed by the holder of PhD or equivalent degree with a mean of
3.49, finally holders of Master or equivalent degree have a mean of 3.39 out of 5.
These results indicate only the holder of Bachelor degree perceive the seven
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Proceedings of Eurasia Business Research Conference
16 - 18 June 2014, Nippon Hotel, Istanbul, Turkey, ISBN: 978-1-922069-54-2
obstacles as severe while the other two groups are not sure about the severity of
these obstacles.
Finally, the results of ANOVA test indicated no significant difference among the
respondents when they are grouped according to years of experience for their
perception of the severity of the obstacles that prevent the integration of forensic
accounting in the accounting curriculum. As presented in Table 3 above, the first
two groups (5 years or less and 6-10 years) perceived the seven obstacles as
severe with a mean of (M= 3.64 and M= 3.59 respectively) while educators who
have 11 years and more of experience are not sure about the severity of the
obstacles.
5. Conclusion
The analysis of the study questionnaire indicated that the obstacles related to the
academic matters (curriculum and faculty) are the main obstacles that prevent
the integration of forensic accounting in the accounting curriculum in the
universities across Bahrain. The greatest academic obstacle is that there is no
space for additional course in the accounting curriculum. To overcome this
problem, universities in Bahrain can offer a forensic accounting course as an
elective course in the accounting curriculum or as a university elective course
that can be studied by any student from any major in the university. The second
severe academic obstacle is the lack of qualified faculty to teach forensic
accounting. This can be overcome by attracting qualified professional forensic
accountant or by sending the current faculty to workshops and training courses in
forensic accounting. A surprising result indicated that the majority of the
accounting educators in Bahrain don’t think that a separate course for forensic
accounting is important to be included in the accounting curriculum. This might
be due to the fact that forensic accounting topics can be incorporated into the
existing accounting courses such as auditing and financial accounting. This result
implies the low awareness of the accounting educators about the benefits of
offering a separate course in forensic accounting in the accounting curriculum.
Therefore, its important to conduct seminars and workshops for the accounting
educators in Bahrain by professional forensic accountants and academicians
who have good knowledge and experience in forensic accounting to present the
increasing demand on forensic accountant career and the benefits employers
can obtain from improving students knowledge and skills in forensic accounting
which can be accomplished by offering a separate program in forensic
accounting or at least a separate course in the accounting curriculum. If these
obstacles are overcome the next question is which one is better for the
universities, either to open a new program in forensic accounting or just integrate
a course in forensic accounting in their accounting curriculum? This suggests a
further research to conduct a comparison between the benefits of opining a new
program in forensic accounting or integrating a forensic accounting course in the
accounting curriculum.
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Proceedings of Eurasia Business Research Conference
16 - 18 June 2014, Nippon Hotel, Istanbul, Turkey, ISBN: 978-1-922069-54-2
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