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literature or art, but in the development of character.” With the exception of few, CPAs are seen by the public as ethical people. We see ourselves as ethical people, as we should. CPAs have an obligation to serve and protect the public. Section ET 53 – Article II of the AICPA Code of Conduct states, “Members should accept the obligation to act in a way that will serve the public interest, honor the public trust and demonstrate commitment to professionalism.” Tere has long been a debate about whether ethics can be learned or are something you are born with. Te Merriam-Webster dictionary defines ethics as “an area of study that deals with ideas about what is good and bad behavior: a branch of philosophy that deals with what is right and wrong.” Tis definition asserts that ethics are something that can be learned. Who teaches us ethics? Of course, the first people we think of are our parents. We do get ethics from our parents, both in what they say and what they do. But we don’t all get the same level of teaching from our parents and, because we all must be ethical, according to the Code of Conduct, let’s take parents out of the equation. We all take our ethics education classes
when required. While these serve as wonderful reminders of how to handle certain situations and what our obligations are, do they teach ethics? Tink back over your formal education, from
preschool to graduate school, and even into your professional career with continuing education. Most CPAs would say they didn’t take any formal ethics classes until after passing the CPA exam. Of course, a formal ethics class is not the only way to learn to be an ethical person, just as a formal speech class is not the only way to learn to be a good speaker. Yet, speech is a general education requirement in many colleges and universities. Why then, is ethics also not a formal general education requirement in college, or maybe even high school? Te argument certainly
8 CPAFOCUS May/June 2015
Teach Them Early D
avid O. McKay said, “True education does not consist merely in the acquiring of a few facts of science, history,
exists that it should be. Tere was a time, just a few years ago, when the business world was rocked with the Enron, WorldCom and Bernie Madoff scandals. At the same time, dishonesty and cheating in school was also on the rise. However, cheating no longer carries the stigma that it used to. Increased competition for college admission has made students more willing to do whatever is necessary to get good grades. In the past, struggling students were more likely to cheat. Today, the above average students are also cheating for a better chance at admission and scholarships and to keep those scholarships once they are in college. Since 1992, the Josephson Institute of Ethics has issued a biennial report on the ethics of American high school students. Te survey polls students on many areas, from what they think, things they have done and their values and priorities. More than 23,000 students participated in the 2012 survey (full results are available at www.josephsoninstitute.org). For most questions, respondents were 85 percent or higher for agreeing with the “ethical answers.” However, a few answers did stand out. When asked if a person has to lie or cheat sometimes in order to succeed, 36 percent agreed. When asked if being wealthy is important, 71 percent answered in the affirmative. When asked if in the real world, successful people do what they have to do to win, even if they consider it cheating, 57 percent agreed. To be clear, we cannot totally depend on teachers and schools to teach ethics and we certainly cannot say a lack of ethics education classes in schools is responsible for the ethical fiascoes in recent years. A movement to include more ethics classes in business schools is currently underway. According to “Ethics Education in Business Schools,” the report of the Ethics Education Task Force to the board of directors of the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) International, there are four