A Comparison of Job Attitudes and Turnover Intentions Among CPAs in Public

Advances in Accounting Behavioral Research
A comparison of job attitudes and turnover intentions among CPAs in public,

private and governmental work settings
Morris H. Stocks, J.Russell Hardin
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A COMPARISON OF JOB ATTITUDES
AND TURNOVER INTENTIONS
AMONG CPAs IN PUBLIC, PRIVATE
AND GOVERNMENTAL WORK
SETTINGS
Morris H . Stocks and J . Russell Hardin
ABSTRACT
This study examines the differences among several attitudinal variables

using CPAs from three work settings . The work settings include public
accounting, private industry accounting, and governmental accounting .
This study uses General Linear Models to investigate the effect of work
setting on the attitudinal variables of organizational commitment and job
satisfaction and the effect of work setting on the behavioral variable of
turnover intentions. Work setting was observed to significantly affect the
reported levels of organizational commitment, job satisfaction, and
turnover intentions . The results of the study also suggest that governmental
CPAs and private industry CPAs do not differ with regard to the attitu-
dinal variables addressed in this study .
Advances in Accounting Behavioral Research, Volume 4, pages 233-259 .

Copyright 2001 by Elsevier Science Ltd.
All rights of reproduction in any form reserved .
ISBN : 0-7623-0784-6
233

234 MORRIS H . STOCKS AND J . RUSSELL HARDIN
INTRODUCTION
Behavioral researchers observe that job-related attitudes such as satisfaction and

commitment affect turnover (Seiler & Sapp, 1979 ; Benke & Rhode, 1980 ;
Bullen & Martin, 1987 ; Meixner & Bline, 1989 ; Rasch & Harrell, 1990; Bline
et al ., 1992) . In general, the subjects in these studies are employees of large
public accounting firms . A few studies include accountants employed in
governmental accounting (Aranya & Ferris, 1984 ; Lachman & Aranya, 1986 ;
Meixner and Bline, 1989 ; Bline et al., 1992), while a few studies include
accountants employed in private industry accounting (Aranya & Ferris, 1984 ;
Lachman & Aranya, 1986 ; Bline et al ., 1992) . One recent study, Marxen et al .,
(1998) investigated the attitudes of accounting graduates working in accounting
and non-accounting work settings .
The purpose of this study is to compare work-related attitudes of accoun-
tants employed in three different work settings : public accounting firms, private
industry accounting departments, and governmental entities . The work-related
attitudes examined are organizational commitment, overall job satisfaction, and
turnover intentions . This study is important for several reasons . First, it appears
that governmental accountants have been relatively ignored in previous research
related to these three attitudinal variables . Governmental accountants are impor-
tant to include in the study of job attitudes because the number of accountants
working in governmental settings continues to increase . Hay and Wilson (1995)
state that there are approximately 87,000 local government units plus the 50
states and the federal government. All of these entities employ a significant
number of accountants making it imperative that we understand something about
the job attitudes and behaviors of this group of accountants . In addition, govern-
mental accountants comprise an increasing portion of the AICPA . According
to the AICPA (1999), "The AICPA considers this constituency very important ."
A second reason this study is important is that it contains the first comparison
of organizational commitment, turnover intentions, and job satisfaction, three
commonly researched and important job attitudes, across the three primary
accounting work settings . Third, we address some of the same issues consid-
ered by Bline et al . (1992), while overcoming some methodological problems
encountered in that study .
While Bline et al . (1992) provide an interesting comparison of work settings,
the data collection procedures employed suggest the need for additional exam-
ination of the impact of work settings on organizational commitment, job
satisfaction, and turnover intentions . The Bline et al . (1992) study contained
two potential data collection deficiencies . First, a portion of their data was

Job Attitudes of CPAs 235
collected from subjects in 1984 (Aranya & Ferris, 1984), while the remainder
was from a study published in 1989 (Meixner & Bline, 1989) . This five year
time differential could account for some of the variation found in their study .
A second problem is that their subjects were from two different populations .
The subjects for the 1984 study were randomly selected from the list of
Canadian Chartered Accountants and from the list of Certified Public
Accountants (CPAs) of the state of California . The survey for the 1989 study
was sent to the entire population of Chief Finance Officers of the state and
local governments of five southwestern states (Arkansas, Louisiana, New
Mexico, Oklahoma, and Texas) . The present study is designed to address similar
questions raised by Bline et al . (1992) while overcoming some of the data
collection limitations .
The job attitudes of accountants may differ across work settings for several
reasons . First, it is conceivable that accountants self-select into particular job
settings because the requirements and constraints of a particular job appear to
be more compatible with the goals and objectives of the individual . This could
result in different types of jobs appealing to different types of accountants who
hold different job attitudes . Second, the development of job attitudes, such as
organizational commitment, may depend on whether the organization allows
the professional to achieve professional goals . Bline et al . (1992) states that the
rules of governmental entities impose restrictions on the professional tasks
performed by governmental accountants and accordingly may impact job atti-
tudes. Relatedly, Aranya and Ferris (1984) suggest that organizations may vary
in the degree to which they allow professionals to exercise professional judg-
ment. They further state that professional work settings (i .e . public accounting
firms) generally allow greater exercise of professional judgment than bureau-
cratic work settings (i .e . government) . Accordingly, the level of organizational
commitment of accountants in the professional work setting should be higher
than the commitment of accountants working in bureaucratic settings . Their
findings supported this hypothesis . Finally, Green (1992) states, "there are
unique characteristics in governmental and nonprofit settings that could have
different (and perhaps contradictory) influences on behavior in those settings .
For example, the civil service system is unique to the governmental sector . This
system imposes a significantly different organizational structure and reward
system on governmental accountants ."
Current accounting labor market conditions suggest continued competition
between employers to hire and retain the best accounting employees . Public
accounting firms have recognized that they are competing not only with other
public firms, but also with other accounting and non-accounting work settings.
It is imperative that accounting employers understand the job attitudes of their

236 MORRIS H. STOCKS AND J . RUSSELL HARDIN
employees so that they can maintain conditions that promote job satisfaction
and commitment while reducing turnover . This study is designed to examine
these job attitudes across accounting job settings .
BACKGROUND
Work Settings
Scott (1965) distinguishes between two types of work settings for professionals,
heteronomous and autonomous . In the autonomous work setting, organizational
officials delegate to the group of professional employees considerable respon-
sibility for defining and implementing organizational goals, for setting
performance standards, and for making sure that standards are maintained. Each
individual professional is expected to be highly skilled and motivated and to
have internalized professional norms so that little external supervision is
required . Public accounting firms would fit within Scott's definition of the
autonomous professional organization .
The second work setting for professionals defined by Scott (1965) is called
"heteronomous ." According to Scott, professionals in the heteronomous orga-
nization are subordinated to an administrative framework with a minimal amount
of autonomy granted to the professional employee . Scott goes on to state that
a system of supervisory controls and an elaborate set of rules govern many
aspects of the tasks performed by professional employees . These controls make
it difficult to define an area of activity for which the professionals are indi-
vidually or collectively responsible . Scott states that many public agencies
correspond to the heteronomous type of organization . Based on Scott's discus-
sion, it appears that governmental accountants tend to work for heteronomous
organizations .
Motivated by Scott's work concerning work settings, Hall (1968) studied a
number of professions (including accounting) to examine the relationship
between professionalization and bureaucratization . Hall's study retained the defi-
nitions of the autonomous and heteronomous organizations developed by Scott
(1965) . In addition, Hall added a third work setting for professionals . This third
work setting is described as the professional "department" which is part of a
larger organization . Hall states that professionals who work in this kind of situ-
ation may or may not be able to affect the manner in which their own work is
structured . Hall includes the legal, engineering, and personnel departments in
this category along with accounting departments of manufacturing organiza-
tions . It appears that Hall's work supports the existence of three work settings
for professionals .

The study conducted by Bline et al . (1992) categorized accounting profes-

sionals into the three work settings advocated by Scott (1965) and Hall (1968) .
Bline et al . categorized public accounting firms as autonomous organizations
based on the descriptions set forth by Hall (1968) and Scott (1965) . They
included governmental accountants in the heteronomous group based on two
factors. First, administrators in the governmental entity, who are often elected
officials, are probably not trained in the same profession as the employees .
Second, Hall's (1968) inclusion of governmental entities in the heteronomous
category is based on the proposition that these organizations are subject to
legislative structuring . The accounting department in private industry organi-
zations is the third category used by Bline et al . based on Hall's study . Hall
(1968) states that a heteronomous organization is an entity unto itself, while a
department is subject to the control of the entire organizational hierarchy . Hall
included accounting professionals employed in corporate accounting depart-
ments as part of this third category .
Based on the work of Scott (1965), Hall (1968), and Bline et al. (1992), the
current study utilizes the three categories of work settings described above . The
work settings investigated are governmental entities (heteronomous), public
accounting firms (autonomous), and accounting departments of manufacturing
organizations (departmental) .
Organizational Commitment
Porter et al. (1974) define organizational commitment as the "strength of an

individual's identification with and involvement in a particular organization ."
Organizational commitment refers to the nature of an individual's relationship
to an organization such that a highly committed person will exhibit : (1) a will-
ingness to exert considerable effort on behalf of the organization, (2) a strong
desire to remain a member of the organization, and (3) a strong belief in and
acceptance of the values and goals of the organization . It is an attitude the indi-
vidual holds toward his or her employing organization (Porter et al ., 1976) .
As an attitude, commitment differs from job satisfaction in several respects .
First, commitment is more global, reflecting a general affective response to the
organization as a whole, while job satisfaction reflects one's response either to
one's job or to certain aspects of one's job . Next, organizational commitment
should be more stable over time than job satisfaction . Finally, commitment devel-
ops slowly over time whereas job satisfaction reflects more immediate reactions
to specific and tangible aspects of the work environment (Mowday et al ., 1979) .
Several studies conducted in recent years use accountants as subjects and
organizational commitment as either the focus of the study or as part of a larger

study . Using accountants from three field offices of a "Big Eight" firm, Norris
and Niebuhr (1983) find organizational commitment positively related to profes-
sionalism and to job satisfaction . Williams and Hazer (1986) find organizational
commitment to be inversely related to turnover intentions . McGregor et al .
(1989), using management accountants as subjects, find that organizational
commitment remains a key factor with regard to turnover intentions and job
satisfaction. Gaffney et al. (1993) examined gender effects on the commitment
levels of public accountants using subjects from the offices of two "Big Eight"
accounting firms in one city . Their analysis did not find a significant main
effect on gender using organizational commitment as the dependent variable
although they did find some significant interactions with gender and some other
demographic variables .
Job Satisfaction
Job satisfaction is an attitude or set of related attitudes based on a comparison

between what is expected in a job and what is actually experienced (Albanese &
Van Fleet, 1983) . A high level of job satisfaction is a goal toward which both
employer and employee strive . The employee's total existence is more pleasant,
agreeable, and fulfilling when a high level of job satisfaction is achieved . At one
time, employer interest in providing an environment conducive to job satisfac-
tion was based upon the belief that increased productivity followed higher levels
of job satisfaction (Seiler & Sapp, 1979) . Behavioral research by Vroom (1974)
has shown, however, that the relationship between productivity and job satisfac-
tion is weak or probably indirect . Nevertheless, employees who have high levels
of job satisfaction are more likely to express positive sentiments about the orga-
nization and are easier to work with inside the organization . Also, employees
with high levels of job satisfaction tend to avoid internal conflict and have lower
absenteeism and turnover (Seiler & Sapp, 1979) .
A number of studies address job satisfaction of accountants . These studies
examine job satisfaction and its relationship to organizational hierarchy
(Strawser et al ., 1969), perceived job uncertainty (Ferris, 1977) and personal
characteristics and job features (Benke & Rhode, 1980) . Harrell and Stahl (1984)
find McClelland's Trichotomy of Needs Theory useful in understanding satis-
faction. Other studies examine the impact of undesirable work stress (Snead &
Harrell, 1991), newcomer information (Morrison, 1993) and stress arousal and
gender (Smith et al ., 1998) on job satisfaction .
In general, these studies use CPAs in large public accounting firms as sub-
jects . However, a study by Beeler et al . (1997a) compared the job satisfaction of
public auditors with state and federal auditors and found that public auditors

reported significantly higher job satisfaction than state and federal auditors . In a
related study, Beeler et al . (1997b) demonstrated that internal auditors reported
higher job satisfaction than auditors from public accounting firms . More recently,
Marxen et al . (1998) compared several attitudinal variables for accounting alumni
of a single university employed in a variety of accounting, non-accounting, and
executive positions . Among the variables considered in their study were job
satisfaction and turnover intentions . The respondents in this study reported
no significant differences in job satisfaction across work settings . In addition,
the authors report that accounting graduates working in accounting job settings
reported marginally higher turnover intentions than accounting graduates
working in non-accounting settings . However, it appears that this minimal
difference may be due to the fact that executives, who were included in the non-
accounting work setting group, reported the lowest turnover intentions .
Turnover Intentions
Employee turnover in public accounting has historically been a significant and

costly problem . I According to Egan (1985), approximately 80% of newly hired pro-
fessionals leave within the first five years . Roth and Roth (1995) state that the
turnover rates for staff and senior accountants approach 25% annually . Turnover
of accounting professionals in other organizations is also seen as problematic.
Personnel managers continuously complain about the significant costs and resources
required to train and develop highly qualified accountants only to have many of
them leave prior to their time of greatest contribution (Lampe & Ernest, 1984) .
In light of the significance of the turnover problem, several studies examine
employee turnover or turnover intentions . Hellriegel and White (1973) use a sam-
ple of CPAs to determine if significant differences exist in the attitudes of turnover
and non-turnover accountants . Lampe and Earnest (1984) survey CPAs and find a
strong correlation between turnover and levels of work motivation . Harrell et al .
(1986) study internal auditors and identify an inverse relationship between
turnover intentions and job satisfaction (a similar result was found by Bullen &
Flamholtz, 1985 ; Gregson & Bline, 1989 ; and Rasch & Harrell, 1990) . Bullen and
Martin (1987), using "Big Eight" subjects, find a significant difference in intended
turnover based on tenure. Smith et al . (1998) study men and women in public
accounting firms and find stress arousal to be a significant mediator in the relation
between men's and women's reported job turnover intentions .
When studying turnover across accounting job settings, it is important to recog-
nize that the nature of a particular job setting may impact the likelihood of turnover .
Marxen (1996) suggests that many accounting graduates join Big Six (now Five)
accounting firms hoping to gain a variety of experiences and boost their credentials

for more rewarding jobs . Many view the experience gained by accountants working
in a large public accounting firm as building a foundation (or serving as a stepping
stone) for careers in industry, government, academics, or private practice . This per-
spective suggests a higher turnover rate in public accounting firms simply because
of the nature of the work experience gained in that work setting . However, public
accounting firms have recognized the tremendous cost of turnover, and have taken
steps to curb that pattern . In particular, CPA firms are devoting more resources to
retaining their high performers so they can better succeed in an ever more com-
petitive professional services market (Hermanson et al ., 1995) .
Summary
In general, previous research focuses on large public accounting firms . Little

has been done to investigate the job satisfaction, organizational commitment,
and turnover intentions of accountants in other job settings . Behavioral research
on job-related attitudes and behaviors of governmental accountants is particu-

larly sparse. The present study focuses on differences on several attitudinal
variables measured for CPAs across three different job settings. Specifically,
CPAs in public accounting, private accounting, and governmental accounting
are included . These comparisons should prove valuable to individuals func-
tioning as employees in the accounting profession and to employers of
accounting professionals . A discussion of the benefits of this analysis is provided
in the Discussion and Conclusions section .
HYPOTHESES
Previous research finds differences in some employee attitudes in different work

settings . Bartol (1979) examines professionals in a variety of fields and reports
that autonomy is positively related with job satisfaction . Porter et al . (1974)
observes that, for medical professionals, job satisfaction is a predictor of orga-
nizational commitment. Bline et al . (1992) suggest that public accountants work
in a more autonomous work setting . Based on the established links between
job setting and organizational commitment and the findings of Bline et al ., we
propose that the level of organizational commitment (and job satisfaction) of
CPAs in public accounting firms (autonomous organizations) will be greater
than the level of organizational commitment of CPAs in either a governmental
setting (heteronomous) or a private industry setting (departmental) . Also based

on the Bline et al . findings, we predict that the organizational commitment of

private industry CPAs will be greater than the organizational commitment of
governmental CPAs . The research hypotheses are as follows :
HI : The organizational commitment of CPAs in public practice is greater

than the organizational commitment of CPAs employed in governmental
accounting .
H2 : The organizational commitment of CPAs in public practice is greater

than the organizational commitment of CPAs employed in private industry
accounting .
H3 : The organizational commitment of CPAs employed in private industry

accounting is greater than the organizational commitment of CPAs employed
in governmental accounting .
Job Satisfaction
Similarly, prior research finds differences in some employee attitudes in different

work settings, and a positive relationship between organizational commitment and
job satisfaction (see Williams & Hazer, 1986 ; Gregson, 1992 ; Bline et al ., 1992) .
Since job satisfaction is positively related to organizational commitment, both
variables should move in the same direction . Consistent with the hypotheses
related to organizational commitment developed in the previous section, the
following research hypotheses for job satisfaction are stated as follows :
H4 : The job satisfaction of CPAs in public practice is greater than the job
satisfaction of CPAs employed in governmental accounting .
HS : The job satisfaction of CPAs in public practice is greater than the job
satisfaction of CPAs employed in private industry accounting .
H6 : The job satisfaction of CPAs employed in private industry accounting

is greater than the job satisfaction of CPAs employed in governmental
accounting .
Turnover Intentions
Prior research has also demonstrated an inverse relationship between organiza-

tional commitment and turnover intentions (Williams & Hazer, 1986 ; Gregson,
1992) . Since turnover intention is negatively related to organizational commit-
ment, then the variables should move in opposite directions . Based on the above
discussion the research hypotheses are stated as follows :

H7: The intent to turnover of CPAs in public practice is lower than the
intent to turnover of CPAs employed in governmental accounting .
H8: The intent to turnover of CPAs in public practice is lower than the
intent to turnover of CPAs employed in private industry accounting .
H9: The intent to turnover of CPAs employed in private industry accounting
is lower than the intent to turnover of CPAs employed in governmental
accounting .
RESEARCH METHODS
Data for the present study were collected by means of a questionnaire admin-
istered to a sample of 1,440 CPAs selected from the membership directory of
the North Carolina Association of CPAs . The CPAs were randomly selected
from those identified as working in public accounting, governmental accounting,
and private industry accounting . Unlike many prior studies addressing job
attitudes of practicing accountants, only CPAs were included as subjects in the
present study . CPAs were chosen as the population of interest because they
generally represent the most valuable accounting employees . They have, in most
states, been employed for two years or more and have survived a very high
turnover period (the first two years of employment) . CPAs also appear to be a
more homogenous group, thus eliminating any variance due to differences
between CPA and non-CPA accountants .
In total, 407 usable responses (29 .0%) were received from the 1,440
questionnaires mailed. The questionnaires were mailed first class and included
a postage-paid, business reply envelope . Of the 407 respondents, 207 were
employed in public accounting, 127 in private industry, and 73 in governmental
accounting . 2 Subjects reported a mean age of 39 .4 years, with approximately
15 years of accounting experience . Almost 90% of the sample reported earning
a bachelor's degree, with 30% of that group earning some graduate credit .
Salary levels ranged from below $25,000 to greater than $150,000 .
Approximately 55% of the subjects reported working for small firms and
entities (See Table 3) .
To determine whether a non-response bias existed, the completed question-
naires were dated and numbered, and the "time trends" method applied .
According to this method, late respondents are assumed to be similar to non-
respondents (Armstrong & Overton, 1977) . The first fifty responses received,
accordingly, were compared to the last fifty received . The results of ANOVA
testing indicated that early and late respondents did not differ significantly
(p > 0 .05) on any of the attitudinal variables measured in the study .

Table 1 . Mean Need for Autonomy by Work Setting .
Job Setting Mean Need for Autonomy*
Governmental 3 .7068
Private 3 .8309
Public 4.1069
*The dependent measure used in this analysis was the mean response to a five-item inventory
designed to measure need for autonomy . The measurement scale for each item was from 1-6 with
6 representing a high need for autonomy .
Preliminary Analysis
It appears that the work setting categorizations developed by Scott (1965)
are based in large part on a difference in autonomy . Scott (1965, p . 68) states,
"The basis of the proposed typology is the amount of autonomy granted to

professionals by the administrative control structure ." Hall (1968, p . 94) states
that departmental employees (private industry accountants in our study)
"may or may not be able to affect the manner in which their own work is
structured ." As with autonomous and heteronomous work settings, depart-
mental work settings are defined in terms of the degree of autonomy granted
professionals .
While theory and prior research suggest that public accounting professionals
work in a more autonomous environment than private industry and govern-
mental accountants, there appears to be no empirical evidence to support such
a conclusion . While it would be impossible to develop a measurement of
work-setting autonomy for each subject in our study, it was possible to measure
each subject's need for autonomy . It is reasonable to assume that accounting
professionals gravitate to work settings that are consistent with their intrinsic
values . It follows, then, that accounting professionals with a high need for
autonomy would be employed in work settings that are characterized by a higher
degree of autonomy. In order to measure need for autonomy, we administered
five questions from Schein's Career Inventory (1990) that were specifically
designed to measure need for autonomy . These five questions were answered
on a 1-6 scale, with 1 representing a low need and 6 representing a high need
for autonomy .
To test for differences in this measure between work settings, we calculated
a mean response for these five questions for each subject . These means are
presented in Table 1 . Using ANOVA contrasts, we compared the mean
responses for public, private, and governmental accountants . Statistical analysis

indicates that responses on this variable do not differ (at a = 0 .05) when
comparing governmental and private accountants . However, the mean for public
accountants is significantly higher than the mean for both governmental and
private accountants (at a = 0 .05) . This evidence provides direct empirical
support that public accounting professionals report a higher need for autonomy,
and indirect support that, in general, public accounting provides a more
autonomous work environment than either private industry or governmental
accounting work settings .
Primary Analysis
For hypothesis testing, we collected appropriate data to examine the impact of
work setting (JOB) on the employee attitudes of organizational commitment
(OC), job satisfaction (JS), and turnover intentions (TI) . The general structure
of the model examining these relationships is :
(OC, JS, TI) = f(JOB, control variables) .

Organizational commitment was assessed using a 15-item questionnaire devel-

oped by Porter et al. (1974) and adapted for use with accountants by Aranya
et al . (1981) . The questions were answered on a verbally anchored rating scale
ranging from 1 (strongly disagree) to 6 (strongly agree) . Included in this instru-
ment are items pertaining to the subject's acceptance of and belief in the
organization's goals and values (Aranya et al ., 1981) . For this study, inter-item
reliability for organizational commitment, using Cronbach's Alpha, was 0 .93,
which suggests strong reliability of the measure .
Job satisfaction was assessed using the Andrews and Withey Job Satisfaction
Questionnaire (1976) . Andrews and Withey conducted a nation-wide study dur-
ing 1972-1973 using a 123-item questionnaire . Five of the questions used in the
study are presumed to constitute an overall job satisfaction questionnaire . The five
questions are answered on a verbally anchored rating scale ranging from 1 (terri-
ble) to 6 (delighted) . Using data from the current study, the internal consistency of
this five-item scale was examined using Cronbach's Alpha . This measure is the
most commonly used reliability coefficient and is viewed as "an index of inter-
item homogeneity" and ranges from 0 .0 to 1 .0 (Cronbach, 1951) . Kerlinger (1986,
p . 405) defines a reliability coefficient as "the accuracy or precision of a measur-
ing instrument." In the current study, Coefficient Alpha for the job satisfaction
scale was 0 .80, which is considered an acceptable reliability rating . 3
The final assessment item included in the instrument was a single question
to measure turnover intentions . Respondents were asked to indicate one of six
possible responses ranging from 1 (I would quit this job at once if I could) to
6 (1 would not exchange my job for any other) (Harrell et al ., 1986) . Gardner

Table 2 . Sample Size, Means, Standard Deviations, Minimum Score and

Maximum Score by Work Setting .
Public CPAs
Variable N Mean Std . Dev . Minimum Maximum
Organizational
Commitment 207 4 .78 0.88 2 .13 6.00
Job Satisfaction 207 4 .86 0.73 3 .00 6.00
Turnover Intent 207 4 .52 1 .23 1 .00 6.00
Private CPAs
Organizational
Commitment 127 4 .28 0 .94 1 .33 6 .00
Job Satisfaction 127 4 .50 0 .77 2 .40 6 .00
Turnover Intent 127 3 .91 1 .33 1 .00 6 .00
Governmental CPAs
Organizational
Commitment 73 4 .03 0 .84 1 .87 6.00
Job Satisfaction 73 4 .46 0 .87 1 .80 6.00
Turnover Intent 73 3 .84 1 .36 1 .00 6 .00
et al . (1998) state that single item scales are appropriate when the construct to
be measured is relatively uncomplicated or unidimensional . Our measure of
turnover intention appears to be such a construct .
The measures of organizational commitment and job satisfaction for each
respondent were computed by averaging the responses to the questions contained
in each scale . This procedure is consistent with that used by Porter et al . (1974) .4
The means and standard deviations for each measure are presented in Table 2
for the three work settings . The research instrument is included in Appendix I .
Demographic and personal information was also collected on the research
instrument, including Education, Salary, Age, Years of Accounting Experience,
and Firm Size . 5 These items served as control variables in the hypothesis testing.
The demographic information is summarized in Table 3 . 6
The data were analyzed using the SAS General Linear Model procedure . This
procedure provides tests for significance of estimated regression coefficients for
interval scale variables while testing for differences in regression coefficients
across selected levels of categorical independent variables by means of the
contrast option . This SAS option establishes the regression line of one level of
the categorical variable as a base and compares the slope of the regression line
Table 3 . Demographic Characteristics of the Respondents .
Demographic Variable Total Sample Public Private Government
Age 39.4 40.4 37 .9 39.5
Years in Accounting 14.9 15 .5 13 .8 14.9
Education
Some College 1 .2% 1 .9% 0 .8% 0.0%
Bachelor's 68.6% 68.6% 66 .9% 71 .2%
Some Graduate 9.6% 11 .1% 8 .7% 6.9%
Grad. Degree 20.6% 18 .4% 23 .6% 21 .9%
Salary Level
Below $25,000 2.7% 4.8% 0 .8% 0.0%
25,001-50,000 36.9% 34.3% 29 .9% 56.2%
50,001-75,000 30.0% 22.2% 37 .8% 38 .4%
75,001-100,000 12 .5% 14 .0% 14 .2% 5 .4%
100,001-125,000 6 .1% 6 .3% 9 .4% 0 .0%

125,001-150,000 3 .4% 3 .9% 4 .7% 0.0%
Over 150,000 8 .4% 14.5% 3 .2% 0.0%
Firm Size
Small 55 .3% 64 .3% 45 .7% 46 .6%
Large 44.7% 35 .7% 54 .3% 53.4%
Note: Age and Years in Accounting are presented as means . Education, Salary Level, and Firm
Size are presented as proportions of total . Firm Size was defined as follows :
LARGE SMALL
Public Regional and National Local
Private Industry 500 or more employees Less than 500 employees
Governmental Federal and State City and County
for other levels of the variable (Bline et al ., 1992) . This option was used to
test for differences in levels of OC, JS, and TI .
RESULTS
The results of the comparisons between work settings for organizational commit-
ment are presented in Table 4 . Panel A reveals that the overall model is
significant (p = 0 .0001) in predicting the organizational commitment of the
respondents . Panel C shows that there is a significant difference (p = 0 .0001)

Table 4. Results of GLM Analysis of Organizational Commitment for

Public, Private and Governmental Accountants .
Panel A
Test of Model
Sum of Mean
Source DF Squares Square F Value Pr > F
Model 14 81 .885 5 .849 8 .28 0 .0001

Error 392 276.979 0.707
Corrected Total 406 358 .864
Panel B
Parameter Estimates
Source DF Type III Mean F Value Pr > F
SS Square
JOB SETTING 2 16.622 8 .311 11 .76 0 .0001

EDUCATION 3 3 .640 1 .213 1 .72 0 .1629
SALARY 6 12 .330 2 .055 2 .91 0 .0087
AGE 1 0.007 0.007 0 .01 0 .9216
YEARS IN ACCT. 1 0.189 0.189 0 .27 0 .6049
FIRM SIZE 1 15 .756 15 .756 22 .30 0 .0001
Panel C
Hypothesis Testing
Comparisons of Work Settings
Contrast DF Contrast Mean F Value Pr > F
SS Square
Public vs . Gov . 1 11 .811 11 .811 16 .72 0 .0001

Public vs . Private 1 10.553 10.553 14 .94 0 .0001
Private vs . Gov . 1 0.638 0.638 0 .90 0 .3426
between two pairs of work settings . This result is different from Bline et al.
(1992) who find significant differences between all three pairs of work settings .
The current study finds public CPAs more committed to their organization than
governmental CPAs (H1) and public CPAs more committed than private
industry CPAs (H2) 7 No significant difference was found between the organi-
zational commitment of private and governmental CPAs (H3) . The research
results, therefore, provide support for Hypotheses H1 and H2 while Hypothesis
H3 is not supported .

Of the control variables included in the model, only salary level and firm size
are found to be significantly related to organizational commitment . Panel B of
Table 4, along with an examination of the raw data, reveals that CPAs in small
firms are more committed (mean = 4 .70) than CPAs in large firms (mean = 4 .21) .
Two factors contribute to this difference . First, partners report higher commit-
ment than non-partners (F = 52 .77 ; p = 0 .0001) and our small firm sample con-
tained a larger proportion of partners (64 .7%) than the large firm sample
(47 .3%) . 8 Second, partners in small firms report a higher level of commitment
to their firm than do partners in large firms (F = 5 .28 ; p = 0 .001) . In explaining
the impact of salary on organizational commitment (the only other significant
control variable), it appears that CPAs earning between $25,001 and $50,000 are
the least committed (mean = 4 .19), while CPAs that make less than $25,000 and
more than $150,00 are the most committed (means for both groups = 4 .95) .
Job Satisfaction
Table 5 presents the results of the comparisons among work settings with regard
to job satisfaction. Once again, Panel A shows that the independent variables
in the model have significant explanatory power (p = 0 .0001) for the job satis-
faction dependent variable . Panel C provides the results of the hypothesis testing
related to job satisfaction . Once again, there is a significant difference between
two of the three pairs of work settings . The results indicate that public CPAs
report significantly greater (p = 0 .0422) job satisfaction than governmental CPAs
(H4) . In addition, public CPAs reported greater job satisfaction (p = 0 .0033)
than private industry CPAs (H5) . Again, there was not a significant difference
(p = 0.7516) between the job satisfaction levels reported by private and govern-
mental CPAs (H6) . The research results, therefore, provide support for H4 and
H5, while Hypothesis H6 is not supported . These results are contradictory to
that reported by Reed et al . (1993) . They reported that accountants in private
industry expressed significantly greater, rather than less, overall satisfaction with
regard to their current position than did those in public practice .
Of the control variables included in the model, only firm size is found to be
significantly related to job satisfaction . Panel B of Table 5, along with an exam-
ination of the means, reveals that CPAs in small firms report greater satisfaction
(mean = 4 .84) than CPAs in large firms (mean = 4 .46) . These findings are
consistent with Patten (1995) . It is interesting to note that salary was not found
to be a significant predictor of job satisfaction . Compensation and reward
schemes are often considered integral components of job satisfaction .
Accordingly, we included salary as a control variable . Our results indicate that
salary was not a significant predictor (F = 1 .53 ; p = 0 .1683) of job satisfaction .

Table 5 . Results of GLM Analysis of Job Satisfaction for Public, Private

and Governmental Accountants .
Panel A
Test of Model
Sum of Mean
Model 14 38.006 2.715 4 .98 0 .0001

Error 392 213 .573 0.545
Panel B
Parameter Estimates

SS Square
JOB SETTING 2 5 .395 2.697 4 .95 0 .0075

EDUCATION 3 1 .351 0.450 0 .83 0 .4797
SALARY 6 4 .987 0.831 1 .53 0 .1683
AGE 1 0 .233 0.233 0 .43 0 .5137
YEARS IN ACCT . 1 0.014 0.014 0 .03 0 .8713
FIRM SIZE 1 11 .397 11 .397 20 .92 0 .0001
Panel C
Hypothesis Testing

SS Square
Public vs . Gov . 1 2.264 2 .264 4 .16 0 .0422

Public vs . Private 1 4.758 4 .758 8 .73 0 .0033
Private vs . Gov . 1 0.055 0.055 0 .10 0 .7516
While our finding that salary is not significantly related to job satisfaction may
be counter intuitive, it is consistent with considerable prior research (Bullen &
Flamholtz, 1985 ; Gregson & Bline, 1989 ; Seiler & Sapp, 1979) .
Turnover Intentions
Table 6 presents the results of the comparisons among work settings with regard
to turnover intentions . As with the previous analyses, Panel A indicates that

Table 6. Results of GLM Analysis of Turnover Intentions for Public,

Private and Governmental Accountants .
Panel A
Test of Model
Sum of Mean
Model 14 120.737 8 .624 5 .76 0 .0001

Error 392 587 .337 1 .498
Panel B
Parameter Estimates

SS Square
JOB SETTING 2 18 .956 9 .478 6 .33 0 .0020

EDUCATION 3 9 .230 3 .077 2 .05 0 .1059
SALARY 6 10 .216 1 .703 1 .14 0 .3403
AGE 1 1 .324 1 .324 0 .88 0 .3478
YEARS IN ACCT. 1 0.490 0.490 0 .33 0 .5677
FIRM SIZE 1 25 .310 25 .310 16 .89 0 .0001
Panel C
Hypothesis Testing

SS Square
Public vs . Gov . 1 9 .537 9 .537 6 .36 0 .0120

Public vs . Private 1 15 .596 15 .596 10 .41 0 .0014
Private vs . Gov . 1 0.006 0 .006 0 .00 0 .9516
the overall model is statistically significant (p = 0 .0001) in predicting the

turnover intentions of the respondents . The results of the hypothesis testing
related to turnover intentions are also consistent with previous analysis . Panel
C of Table 6 indicates that public CPAs are less likely (p = 0 .0120) to
separate from their current employer than either governmental CPAs (H7) or
private industry CPAs (H8) . No differences existed between the turnover inten-
tions reported by private and governmental CPAs (see the means provided in
Table 2) . The research results, therefore, provide support for Hypotheses H7

Job Attitudes of CPAs 25 1
and H8 while Hypothesis H9 is not supported . Once again, this result is contrary
to that reported by Reed et al. (1993) . While they find differences between
public and private accountants, they report that accountants in public practice
appear to be more, rather than less, likely to turnover than accountants in private
industry .
Of the demographic variables included the model, only firm size is found
to be significantly related to turnover intentions . Panel B of Table 6, along with
an examination of the raw data, reveals that CPAs in small firms report lower
turnover intentions (mean = 4 .47) than CPAs in large firms (mean = 3 .87) .
DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS
Many suggest that employers of accountants are in the midst of a labor-shortage

crisis that will only get worse in the next few years (Holub, 1998) . As this
labor shortage intensifies, there will be greater competition between employers
to hire and retain the best accounting employees . As a matter of fact, many
large accounting firms have begun to include a significant "signing bonus" in
their compensation packages in order to attract recruits . Public accounting firms
have recognized that they are competing not only with other public firms, but
with other accounting and non-accounting work settings .
Our study compared three important job attitudes across the primary
accounting work settings and found that employees in public accounting
reported : (1) higher levels of organizational commitment, (2) higher job satis-
faction ; and (3) lower turnover intentions than accountants in private industry
or in governmental accounting . Since the competition for accounting recruits
has intensified, it is important for employers to maintain conditions conducive
to high levels of commitment to reduce employee turnover and training costs .
This study suggests that employers of private industry and governmental accoun-
tants should examine work-related conditions to determine what can be done
to raise levels of commitment and job satisfaction and to lower turnover inten-
tions in order to effectively compete for accounting employees .
The findings of this study provide support for the premise that the
work setting in which professional accountants are employed affects the accoun-
tants' level of organizational commitment, job satisfaction, and intentions to
turnover. Our findings also support the propositions by Scott (1965) and Hall
(1968) that organizational autonomy differs across work settings, and, as a
result, impacts job attitudes of those work settings . We found that accountants
working in public practice demonstrated a greater need for autonomy than those
employed in public or governmental accounting . In support of Hall, the
autonomous work setting (public practice) was observed to have a greater level

25 2 MORRIS H . STOCKS AND J . RUSSELL HARDIN
of organizational commitment than either the heteronomous (governmental) or

the departmental (private industry) work setting . Hall's proposition that the
heteronomous and departmental work settings were not greatly different was
also supported.
An interesting finding in the present study is public accountants report lower
turnover intentions than governmental accountants and accountants employed
in private industry . As reported earlier, this finding is inconsistent with that
reported by Reed et al . (1993) . While they find differences between public and
private accountants, they report that accountants in public practice appear to be
more, rather than less, likely to turnover than accountants in private industry .
We believe that these contrary findings may be due to the fact that all subjects
in our study were CPAs, which suggests that they have generally been employed
at least two years (the normal experience requirement for certification) . Reed
et al . (1993) state that 80% of their sample report work experience of five years
or less . Our sample includes only 43 of 407 (10 .6%) subjects with similar expe-
rience . Previous research suggests that turnover is more likely in early years of
employment than in later years (Egan, 1985 ; Roth & Roth, 1995) . We believe
that because we chose to limit our sample to CPAs, we selected more experi-
enced subjects who were less likely to turnover .
With regard to our job satisfaction findings, the results of the present study
are consistent with the results of the Beeler et al . (1997a) study . Both studies
found that public accountants reported higher job satisfaction than governmental
accountants .
We also provide support for the procedure followed by Lachman and Aranya
(1986) . In their study, governmental CPAs and private industry CPAs were
combined together and classified as being in a "non-professional" work setting.
In other words, they treated governmental and private industry CPAs as essen-
tially a homogenous group . In the current study, governmental CPAs and private
industry CPAs are found to be similar on the attitudinal and behavioral vari-
ables of organizational commitment, job satisfaction, and turnover intentions.
This is not to say that those two groups of CPAs should necessarily always be
combined in behavioral studies . There are two reasons for this conclusion . First,
CPAs in the two work settings may differ significantly on other work-related
variables and attitudes . Second, although the current study adds to the body of
research on the three work settings of accountants, little research has been done
to date comparing the three work settings . The small body of research in this
area that does exist should, therefore, be considered inconclusive .
Due to the limitations of the research methods, these findings should be
viewed with caution . The number of subjects used in the study was sufficient
to provide good statistical power ; however, the sample was limited to one

geographical region. In addition, a mail questionnaire was used to gather the

data for this study . Mail questionnaires are subject to bias since the informa-
tion is self-reported by the subjects . Further research should be conducted on
the topic of the work settings of CPAs so that stronger conclusions can be
drawn in the future and so that current propositions, and propositions that are
as yet unstated and untested, may become well established behavioral accounting
theory .
NOTES
1 . The authors recognize that some turnover is desirable for both the employer and
the employee . Turnover allows the employer to infuse the organization with a different
perspective, new ideas, up-to-date technical training, etc . From the employee perspec-
tive, turnover can lead the employee to a better job, career advancement, and can promote
personal and professional career growth . However, when considering the issue of
employee turnover, it is important to stress that firms are trying to limit the turnover of
their productive employees .
2 . Governmental accountants who participated in the study were employed in state,
local, and national government positions. In addition, a smaller number of the govern-
mental accountants were employed in governmental hospital and educational settings .
3 . Rentsch and Steel (1992) compared the five item Andrews and Withey Job
Satisfaction Questionnaire with the Job Descriptive Index and the Minnesota Satisfaction
Questionnaire, two involved measures of job satisfaction . Their results indicate that the
Andrews and Withey measure demonstrated good internal reliability (Cronbach's Alpha
= 0.81) and was a reasonable alternative in measuring overall job satisfaction .
4 . We also performed our analysis using a total score, rather than a mean score, for
the commitment and satisfaction measures . The results were identical in both direction
and magnitude .
5 . Patten (1995) found that entry-level accountants in local and regional firms reported
greater job satisfaction than similar subjects from Big Six firms .
6 . We tested for interactions between all control variables and job setting . In general,
the explanatory variables did not interact with each other and did not interact with job
setting. The exception was that age and job setting tended to interact with turnover inten-
tions (F = 3 .519 ; p = 0 .031) and with organizational commitment (F = 4 .975 ; p = 0.007) .
Further analysis indicates that these interactions are driven by differences in younger
and older public accountants . Not surprisingly, younger public accountants tended to
exhibit lower organizational commitment and higher turnover intentions than older public
accountants . Private and governmental accountants exhibited no differences in these two
attitudinal variables based on age . Since both of these interactions were ordinal in nature,
inclusion of these significant interaction effects in the hypothesis testing did not effect
the interpretation of main effects .
7 . The direction of these differences can be determined by reviewing the cell treat-
ment means in Panel A of Table 2 .
8 . This comparison classifies sole practitioners as partners . Our small firm sample
included 31 sole practitioners .

254 MORRIS H . STOCKS AND J. RUSSELL HARDIN
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APPENDIX I
Research Instrument
SECTION I . Use the following scale to indicate how strongly YOU agree or
disagree with each statement by writing the appropriate number in the blank to
the left of each item :
STRONGLY DISAGREE STRONGLY AGREE
1 2 3 4 5 6
1 . I am willing to put in a great deal of effort beyond that

normally expected in order to help make my organization
successful .

2. I talk up this organization with my friends as a great organi-

zation to be associated with .
3. I feel very little loyalty to this organization .
4. I would accept almost any type of job assignment in order to

keep working for this organization .
5. I find that my values and the organization's values are very

similar .
6 . I am proud to tell others that I am of this organization .
7. I could just as well be associated with another organization

as long as the type of work was similar.
8. Being a member of this organization really inspires the very

best in me in the way of job performance .
9. It would take very little change in my present circumstances

to cause me to change to another organization .
10 . I am extremely glad that I chose this organization over others

I was considering at the time I joined .
11 . There's not too much to be gained by sticking with this orga-

nization indefinitely.
12 . Often, I find it difficult to agree with this organization's poli-

cies on important matters relating to its members .
13 . I really care about the fate of this organization .
14 . For me this is the best of all organizations to be a

member of.
15 . Deciding to be a member of this organization was a definite

mistake on my part .

SECTION II . Answer each of the following questions by writing a number

from the following scale in the blank to the left of each item:
TERRIBLE DELIGHTED
1 2 3 4 5 6
1. How do feel about your job?
2 . How do you feel about the people you work with - your co-
workers?
3 . How do you feel about the work you do on your job - the
work itself?
4 . How do you feel about what it is like where you work - the
physical surroundings, the hours, the amount of work you are
asked to do?
5 . How do you feel about what you have available for doing
your job - the equipment, information, good supervision, and
so on?
SECTION III. Circle the appropriate number
1 . How do you feel about changing jobs?
I would quit this job at I would not exchange my

once if I could job for any other
1 2 3 4 5 6
SECTION IV . Demographic Information : Please complete by placing a CHECK

MARK in the appropriate space or filling in the blank .
STATISTICAL PURPOSES ONLY!!!

1 . Age in years_
2 . Salary Level :
Below 25,000_
25,001-50,000_
50,001-75,000_
75,001-100,000
100,001-125,000_
125,001-150,000
Over 150,000
3 . Highest Education Level :

High School_
Some College_
Bachelor's Degree_
Some Graduate School _

Graduate Degree_
4 . # of years in current position
5 . # of years in accounting
6 . Current job setting :

Public Accounting
Private Accounting
Government
7 . Current position :
Staff Accountant TO BE COMPLETED BY CPAs
Senior Accountant IN PRIVATE INDUSTRY
Manager
Partner
Sole Proprietor
TO BE COMPLETED BY 8 . Firm Classification :

CPAs IN PUBLIC Local
PRACTICE ONLY Regional
National
9 . Total number of employees in your organization

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2. Elizabeth Dreike Almer, Julia L. Higgs, Karen L. Hooks. 2005. A Theoretical
Framework of the Relationship between Public Accounting Firms and Their
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A Comparison of Job Attitudes and Turnover Intentions Among CPAs in Public

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A Comparison of Job Attitudes and Turnover Intentions Among CPAs in Public

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Advances in Accounting Behavioral Research

A comparison of job attitudes and turnover intentions among CPAs in public,

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Morris H . Stocks and J . Russell Hardin

This study examines the differences among several attitudinal variables

Advances in Accounting Behavioral Research, Volume 4, pages 233-259 .

234 MORRIS H . STOCKS AND J . RUSSELL HARDIN

Behavioral researchers observe that job-related attitudes such as satisfaction and

Job Attitudes of CPAs 235

236 MORRIS H. STOCKS AND J . RUSSELL HARDIN

Job Attitudes of CPAs 237

The study conducted by Bline et al . (1992) categorized accounting profes-

Porter et al. (1974) define organizational commitment as the "strength of an

238 MORRIS H. STOCKS AND J . RUSSELL HARDIN

Job satisfaction is an attitude or set of related attitudes based on a comparison

Job Attitudes of CPAs 239

Employee turnover in public accounting has historically been a significant and

240 MORRIS H. STOCKS AND J . RUSSELL HARDIN

In general, previous research focuses on large public accounting firms . Little

on job-related attitudes and behaviors of governmental accountants is particu-

Previous research finds differences in some employee attitudes in different work

Job Attitudes of CPAs 241

on the Bline et al . findings, we predict that the organizational commitment of

HI : The organizational commitment of CPAs in public practice is greater

H2 : The organizational commitment of CPAs in public practice is greater

H3 : The organizational commitment of CPAs employed in private industry

Similarly, prior research finds differences in some employee attitudes in different

H6 : The job satisfaction of CPAs employed in private industry accounting

Prior research has also demonstrated an inverse relationship between organiza-

242 MORRIS H. STOCKS AND J . RUSSELL HARDIN

Job Attitudes of CPAs 243

Table 1 . Mean Need for Autonomy by Work Setting .

Job Setting Mean Need for Autonomy*

"The basis of the proposed typology is the amount of autonomy granted to

244 MORRIS H. STOCKS AND J . RUSSELL HARDIN

(OC, JS, TI) = f(JOB, control variables) .

Organizational commitment was assessed using a 15-item questionnaire devel-

Job Attitudes of CPAs 245

Table 2 . Sample Size, Means, Standard Deviations, Minimum Score and

Variable N Mean Std . Dev . Minimum Maximum

Table 3 . Demographic Characteristics of the Respondents .

Demographic Variable Total Sample Public Private Government

Age 39.4 40.4 37 .9 39.5

Years in Accounting 14.9 15 .5 13 .8 14.9

100,001-125,000 6 .1% 6 .3% 9 .4% 0 .0%

Job Attitudes of CPAs 247

Table 4. Results of GLM Analysis of Organizational Commitment for

Model 14 81 .885 5 .849 8 .28 0 .0001

JOB SETTING 2 16.622 8 .311 11 .76 0 .0001

Public vs . Gov . 1 11 .811 11 .811 16 .72 0 .0001

248 MORRIS H . STOCKS AND J . RUSSELL HARDIN

Job Attitudes of CPAs 249

Table 5 . Results of GLM Analysis of Job Satisfaction for Public, Private

Model 14 38.006 2.715 4 .98 0 .0001

Source DF Type III Mean F Value Pr > F

JOB SETTING 2 5 .395 2.697 4 .95 0 .0075

Contrast DF Contrast Mean F Value Pr > F

Public vs . Gov . 1 2.264 2 .264 4 .16 0 .0422

250 MORRIS H . STOCKS AND J . RUSSELL HARDIN

Table 6. Results of GLM Analysis of Turnover Intentions for Public,

Model 14 120.737 8 .624 5 .76 0 .0001