Purpose Islamic banking (IB) has witnessed remarkable growth in the past decade. The purpose of this study is to explore some factors that are influencing the choice of Islamic banking and finance (IBF) products and services in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), a predominantly Muslim country. Design/methodology/approach Students enrolled at a university located in a major emirate in the UAE were asked to respond to a survey on factors underlying their decision to open an account at an Islamic bank. Responses were analyzed using descriptive statistics, analysis of variance and regression analysis. Findings Results indicate that the decision to open an account with an Islamic bank is influenced by consumer expectations regarding the conformity of the bank’s operations with Islamic principles, as well as consumers’ Arab language skills. Variables such as consumers’ nationality, gender, education and familiarity with IB do not have a significant influence on the decision to open an account at an Islamic bank. Research limitations/implications The study focuses on university students from a certain Emirate only, which somewhat limits the generalizability of the research results. Nevertheless, the findings of this study may potentially provide some practical insights for further improving and promoting IB, with special reference to the UAE youth market segment. Originality/value The research is original in nature, particularly as there have not been many instances where the choice of potential consumers (university students) regarding IB and finance services has been explored within the IB sector in a predominantly Muslim nation such as the UAE, an emerging Gulf economy. Consequently, the research findings have important implications for Islamic banks operating in a predominantly Islamic environment.

This study seeks to determine what attributes are perceived by various groups of players in the Chinese auditing market as being important to audit quality. Attributes of audit quality were incorporated into a survey instrument which was administered to auditors from a local CPA (Certified Public Accountant) rm and a Big 5 rm operating in Shanghai, as well as subjects belonging to another group-regulators. Results indicate that the attributes perceived as having the most positive effect on audit quality correspond to a very high degree with those identi ed in the prior (mostly US-based) literature. Attributes thought to be most detrimental to audit quality, on the other hand, were developed from consultations with key players, and were unique to the Chinese context. Wide differences were observed between auditors and regulators (e.g., regulators and Big 5 auditors), but not among the independent practitioners (local CPAs and Big 5 auditors). In addition to heightening the current understanding of what attributes of audit quality are important to audit firms operating in emerging markets such as China, these ndings are expected to hold signi cant implications for strategy formulation by public accounting rms in China, both local as well as international.Key words: Audit quality, audit quality attributes, audit services market in China, Chinese audit environment, Chinese economic reforms, determinants of audit quality, differing perceptions of audit quality, evolution of audit regulation in China, independent auditing in China, joint venture audit rms. SUMMARYThe primary objective of this study is to nd out whether determinants of audit quality are perceived differently between local and Big 5 rms, and whether their perceptions correspond with those of Chinese regulators. The study further seeks to investigate underlying reasons that may explain why local and Big 5 auditors perceive audit quality in different ways.The research is expected to provide valuable evidence regarding what audit quality attributes are considered to be important by local and Big 5

business ethics, culture, students, international business,

No abstract

The current study surveys practising Canadian public accountants in Canada in both Big 4 and non‐Big 4 firms to determine their orientation with respect to Machiavellianism, defined as ‘attending to one's interests much more than to others'. Results indicate that while there are no significant differences in Machiavellianism between public accountants in the upper‐level positions (managers and partners), partners are significantly less Machiavellian than seniors. These results are consistent with previous studies on Canadian public accountants.