The Effect of Moral Reasoning on Intention to Fraud in the Procurement of Goods and Services under Obedience Pressure: An Experimental Study

Abstract

This study examines the influence of obedience pressure and individual moral reasoning on the attention to commit fraud in the context of the procurement of goods and services. This study uses a 2x2 factorial experimental design. The participants in this study were undergraduate accounting students who have passed courses in Professional Ethics, Public Sector Accounting, and Forensic Accounting who acted as implementers of the procurement of goods and services. Hypothesis testing in this study used ANOVA. The results of this study found the effect of obedience pressure and individual moral reasoning in committing fraud in the procurement of goods and services. Under conditions of obedience pressure, individuals with low moral reasoning will tend to commit fraud compared to individuals with high moral reasoning. Thus, individuals who have high moral reasoning tend to behave ethically, even though they are faced with pressure from superiors.

Moral Reasoning and Intention to Perform Unethical Behaviour of Lecturers in Malaysia

“…Previous study on moral reasoning have shown different result when it comes to intention to perform unethical behaviour. In the study of Sujana & Dewi (2022), they found that individuals who have low moral reasoning will tend to commit fraud compared to individuals with high moral reasoning. Individuals with higher moral reasoning tend to behave ethically even when under pressure from superiors.…”