Ethical Standards for Management Accountants

I would like to preserve your ability to be creative with this project, so you may pursue any “subtopics” and take your research paper in a variety of different directions, but please write about the following topic: “Ethical Standards for Management Accountants.” You will find that the database resources through the GWU Library provide great help when researching and acquiring full-text journal articles. If you have difficulty, contact the GWU Library and ask for Natalie Edwards.
The research paper should be constructed in Word. The paper should be 6-8 (double-spaced) pages long, excluding pages associated with title pages or bibliography. In other words the body of the paper should be no less than 6 and no more than 8 pages (1 inch margins – 12 pt. font – Times New Roman or Arial) in length.
The paper should be documented using an APA (in-text parenthethetical) documentation style, with the following additional requirements: no executive summary, abstract, or outline. A paperback reference for APA would be nice to have, although there are online sources of information about APA. I was put in a strange situation recently when a student told me that (although the documentation seemed to be flawed) their source came from a handout from a

past class (which one?) or some particular online source (where?). So, let me say that the best source of information for documentation guidelines is:
Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 6th edition
OR – For FREE (!!) at:
http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/01/
For in-text or bibliographical APA formats also see…
http://www.cod.edu/library/research/citenet.htm

Please use one of the resources above for additional information about the APA Documentation style.
The paper should be substantially based on at least three articles from professional journals (five would be better). Professional journals in accounting, for example, would include Accounting Horizons, Journal of Accounting Research, Strategic Finance, The Journal of Accountancy, or something comparable. You can also use other professional journals, such as the Journal of Marketing, the Journal of Marketing Management, the Journal of Management Information Systems, or the Journal of Information Systems. Either one, two, or three of your journal articles could come from professional journals in other disciplines such as these. The three principal journal articles referenced in the paper should be copied and turned in with the paper. In addition, feel free to include other research sources. You should have a minimum of five sources in total, but you may include as many as you wish. The objective of the paper, apart from the obvious coverage of the topic area, should be to INTEGRATE the information provided in the research sources. You should not go through a page and a half or two pages continuously citing the same source. In most classes, the assigned paper is longer. I would rather sacrifice some length and emphasize a good SYNTHESIS of the sources into a well-written, coherent document. There is a writing lab at the GWU main campus which offers extremely valuable advice. It is well staffed and well run. I would think that anyone would benefit from the services they provide.
Please include the following statement on the title page – “This paper has been
specifically prepared for this class. It has not been submitted for credit in a previous class and will not be submitted for credit in any future class, either in whole or in part.” Your signature should follow the statement. Remember that if the words of the author are used exactly, quote and include a parenthetical reference. If the words of the author are paraphrased, do not quote but include a

parenthetical reference. Send the paper as a WORD file attached to an email within the class.
Spelling and punctuation are PARTICULARLY IMPORTANT. If you have one or two spelling or grammar errors, I’ll chalk it up to being human – no problem. If you have 5 or more spelling or grammar errors, your grade will suffer one or more (probably more) letter grade deductions. By the time you get to graduate school, you should have several other people (pick them carefully!) proofread your paper before you hand it in . If you are concerned about the propriety of your topic, please feel free to e-mail me or call me at home.