Accounting fraud - Research Paper Example

? Accounting fraud Supervisor: June 29, Accounting fraud Introduction Academic research papers are organized tomeet professional standards and follow defined formats with distinct elements. Exploration of background information into a research, development of problem statement, research questions, research hypotheses, and methodology, and implementation of the methodology are some of the fundamental elements of an academic research paper. This paper identifies research problem and purpose in a research paper, aligns the problem and purpose to identify strengths and weaknesses of qualitative research methods and case study design, and justifies selection of qualitative methods and the case study design over other research methods and designs. Overview of the research problem and purpose Fraud, a deception or misrepresentation that aims at deriving unauthorized gain, is a common phenomenon in organizations and has extensive effects on different stakeholders. Examples of fraud include employee embezzlement, vendor fraud, customer fraud, and management fraud including financial statement fraud (Albrecht et al, 2012). Prevention is the most economical approach to managing fraud but limited research has been conducted on the best technique for preventing fraud besides rule-based-strategies. Sufficient research has however been done on other control measures such as auditing. Lack of empirical findings on fraud prevention strategies is therefore the research problem with focus on in-house data forensic and developing an understanding on the factors affecting in house data forensic is the research’s purpose. Alignment of the research problem, purpose The research problem and purpose can be explored through qualitative research methods and case study design. Many factors identify suitability of the selected method and design and the scope of data to be explored is the primary. In-house data forensic involves scientific investigations on an organization’s internal data and offers bases for detecting potential frauds and preventing their occurrence. Quantitative and qualitative data could be collected and explored for the study but qualitative approach offers a better alternative for a more in depth meaning for resolving the identified problem and meeting the study’s purpose. One of the characteristics of qualitative research is its flexibility that allows for adequate alternatives to exploration. Its methodology allows for development of designs, procedures, and data collection strategies within research processes, a property that maximizes data utility because suitable and adequate data is collected for research. The research method also focuses data interpretation and therefore relies on few variables for specific purpose. It is therefore able to overcome limitation of data on variables and develop meaning on a problem. Another feature of the qualitative approach, based on Academic Conferences, is its objective of a comprehensive and informed description of a subject. The aim of the study, being an understanding of in-house data forensic therefore identify this property’s significance because a complete definition of the forensic approach and description of its features and factors around it will inform of its potential challenges and optimal application in fraud prevention. A qualitative researcher do not need much information prior to research and this not only identify ease of implementation but establishes a strength in research fields that have not been explored and therefore lack sufficient background information. The researcher is also able to approach the study from a neutral perspective because of lack of pre-emption (Academic Conferences, 2010). Flexibility is also strength of the method, also though it is also a characteristic feature. Selected research design can be reviewed at any stage of the research process to facilitate the objectives. Flexibility also allows the method to adjust to challenges that may emerge during a research process or dynamism among research subject. While a rigid approach may accept compromised data from participants, the flexible approach allows a researcher to re-strategize and ensure accuracy of collected data. The method however faces weakness that undermines its application. Its analysis is subjective and leads to vulnerability to the researcher’s personal opinion. Results of data analysis and conclusions in the research method may therefore fail to represent reality. Qualitative research method also suffers from generalizability problems. Its characteristic small sample size and the associated low level of reliability means that the collected data cannot be inferred to the target population and this undermines the general objective of scientific research. The method’s inability to generalize its findings also limits its objective of knowledge development. Limiting research objectives to sub populations however overcomes this weakness. Data analysis software also exists to reduce the level of subjectivity of the methods’ data analysis. The methods strengths are therefore significant while its weaknesses can be managed to address the study’s research problem and meet the objective (Rubin and Babbie, 2009). Case study design is also suitable for the study because of its much strength that will facilitate the objective. The design is fundamental to answering the how and why questions to a phenomenon and therefore aids the scope of the study whose focus is to develop an understanding of factors around in house data forensics. The design will therefore develop data on how the factors affect the data forensics and rationale behind the effects to facilitate development of models for fraud prevention. Case study design is also appropriate in studies that lack theoretical frameworks or conceptual foundations for developing research methodology and informed research questions. It is therefore appropriate for the research whose literature review identifies lack of previous research on the topic. Failure by the study’s literature review to identify a theoretical framework for a methodology also undermines other designs that could have been inappropriate. The nature of the problem, which identifies psychological factors around the data forensics method also mean that dynamism and factors to the forensic approach establishes suitability of the case study design. The design also offers a learning forum for the researcher instead of demanding the researcher’s knowledge towards informing the audience (Bozeman and Milkers, 1993). It however has a number of limitations with its equivocal feature forming a basis to bias and loss of credibility. Open approach from lack of background information and theory means uncertainty in data to be collected and the researcher my lack a basis for extracting the truth. It, however, does not establish causal relationship and this may limit the general research objective of developing knowledge on fraud prevention. Exploring a relationship between in house data forensics and factors affecting the forensics, and success in fraud prevention would for example resolve the research’s problem but the causal effect limitation of case study would be a barrier. Case study design is also time consuming and considers many data, an element that may make it too expensive for the study. Financial constraints can however be met through donor funding (Bozeman and Milkers, 1993). Justification of qualitative research method for the study Alternative methods to qualitative approach are quantitative research design and mixed research design and even though qualitative design has challenges, which are manageable, scopes and weaknesses of mixed research methods and quantitative research methods justifies the choice of qualitative method for the study. Mixed research method is intensive and demands knowledge of qualitative and quantitative research designs for implementations. The high demand is also likely to impose need for extra resources while a qualitative method would suffice the research’s needs. Implementing a mixed research design, according to Biber and Leavy, would require a simultaneous implementation of quantitative and qualitative methods through research design, data collection process, and data analysis process and the qualitative methods would be redundant for the scope of the research (Biber and Leavy, 2008). The diverse scope of mixed research methods also requires longer time for implementation because of the involved activities. Quantitative research methods’ major weakness, which would be significant to the study, is the inability to develop meanings for observed relationships and variations. The methods would therefore identify significant factors to in-house data forensics but fail to explain the relationships between the factors and the forensics approach. The lack of meaning would therefore add little value to the overall objective of reducing fraud (Biber and Leavy, 2008). Justification case study design for the study Features of case study design and its advantages justify its selection for the study. Weaknesses among other research designs, which are more significant than the observed and manageable weaknesses of case study, further justify the selection. A consideration of phenomenology design, for example, has far-reaching weakness. May and Holmes argue that its focus on research participants’ experience makes the participants vulnerable to adverse consequences of the study. Ethical issues such as beneficence and autonomy are therefore more significant in phenomenology design, making it complex. Phenomenology design may also lack the capacity to explore data comprehensively, a factor that may undermine analysis and lead to incredible conclusions and recommendations on a problem. There is also a high probability of misrepresentation in the design because the data source is subjective and hard to verify. Findings from the design undermines also lack generalizability and this benefits over case study design (May and Holmes, 2012; Lenz, 2010). Ethnography is another alternative design, qualitative research design, which could be used instead of case study but its diverse weaknesses undermines its potential use besides its general scope that focuses on social factors. The design is therefore not compatible with the scope of the research. Ethnography is further susceptible data distortion as occurrence under investigation captures the researcher’s attention. Ethnography also focuses on subsections of a subject of study and may lead to information loss and inability to resolve the study’s research problem and meet the purpose. The design is further limited to descriptive data and may not succeed in developing an understanding on the factors affecting study subject, in house data forensics, and effects of the factors on the subject. Like phenomenology design, ethnography is likely to raise ethical concerns and towards complexities such as ethical approval and measures to safeguard stakeholders’ interests. It is also difficult to recruit participants into an ethnographic study and the design is often oblivious of observable information on the study topic (May and Holmes, 2012). Similarly, action research has more weakness, in general and in relative to the scope of the research study, to justify application of case study design. One of action research’s weaknesses is the researcher’s extreme level of involvement in the research process and limited level of objectivity, factors that undermine dependability on the design’s findings. The design is also more demanding relative to case study and this is likely to impose resource strain. It is also vulnerable to the researcher’s interest (May and Holmes, May and Holmes, 2012; Lenz, 2010).). Conclusion The research paper identifies lack of sufficient knowledge on the best fraud prevention techniques and focuses on investigating in-house data forensics and factors affecting it. Qualitative research method and case study designs are proposed for implementing the study and their scopes that match the study’s scope and their advantages establishes their suitability for the research. Choices of the method and the design are also justified by weaknesses of alternative methods, quantitative research methods, and mixed research methods, and weaknesses of alternative designs such as ethnography, phenomenology, and action research. References Academic Conferences. (2010). Proceedings of the 9th European conference on research methods in business management. Madrid: Academic Conferences Limited. Albrecht, W.S., Albrecht, C.C., Albrecht, C.O., & Zimbelman, M. (2012) Fraud Examination 4th ed., Mason, OH, South-Western Cengage Learning. Biber, S. and Leavy, P. (2008). Handbook of emergent methods. New York, NY: Guilford Press. Bozeman, B. and Milkers, J. (1993). Evaluating R&D impacts: Methods and practice. New York, NY: Springer. Lenz, E. (2010). Measurement in nursing and health research. New York, NY: Springer Publishing Company. May, A. and Holmes, S. (2012). Introduction to nursing research: Developing research awareness. Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press. Rubin, A. and Babbie, E. (2009). Essential research methods for social work. Belmont, CA: Cengage Learning. Read More