<p>The purpose of this study is to apply the qualitative research method of descriptive single-case study design to explore the phenomenon of fraud in companies in the state of Arkansas by conducting face-to-face interviews with mid-level officers, distributing questionnaires to upper-level officers, and reviewing company documentation in the retail, professional services, or manufacturing industries in Arkansas. The focus is to understand the phenomenon of fraud and company officers&rsquo; perceptions about tools for detecting and preventing fraud. Financial statement fraud tactics make up 9% of the fraud cases globally, which equates to a median loss of $1 million (Association of Certified Fraud Examiners, 2014). The research method involves the triangulation of data from interviewing mid-level company officers, distributing questionnaires to upper-level company officers, and reviewing organizational policy and procedure documents. Interviews will consist of at least 20&ndash;35 participants in a mid-level officer position to ascertain their perceptions about the fraud triangle as a tool and the Baldrige Criteria for Performance Excellence (BCPE) as a framework, a questionnaire will be distributed to upper-level officers to confirm/disconfirm themes, and company historical documents will be reviewed. Because officers are accountable for the accuracy of financial reporting and the ethical conduct of employees, establishing methods for detecting and preventing fraud averts fraudulent acts such as the embezzlement, false reporting, or bribery. </p>

<p> There is a lack of empirical research on leadership. The purpose of this study was to determine if a relationship exists between the three components of the theory of reasoned action (TRA): (a) behavioral intention, (b) integration attitude, and (c) subjective norms as they relate to the commitment of the corruption component of occupational fraud (OF). The rationale of this study was to evaluate whether the influences of executive management related to the intent to commit corruption. The three independent variables were behavioral intention, attitude, and subjective norms, and one dependent variable, corruption. The research questions examined the relationship between executive management&rsquo;s influences; behavioral intention, attitude, and subjective norms and the intention of committing corruption as well as the extent to which an executive manager&rsquo;s moral reasoning influences such an intention. The hypotheses in the study were not formulated to establish cause and effect relationships nor to assign groups. This quantitative, nonexperimental study was also intended to recognize patterns and trends from the data and statistics of the results. A Pearson Coefficient Correlation was utilized as an analysis tool to recognize statistically significant correlations. An online survey was administered in fall 2016 to 76 participants who are in the executive management role of finance and accounting departments from different U.S. organizations. All 76 participants were included in the TRA analysis. However, due to the additional reliability test administered by the University of Alabama Center for Ethical Study (UACSED), only 63 participants were selected in the Defining Issues Test 2 (DIT2) statistical analysis. TRA utilized a Pearson Coefficient Correlation analysis to determine if a relationship exists between the independent variables (behavioral intention, integration attitude, and subjective norms) and a single dependent variable (corruption). The Pearson Correlation results indicated a strong significant positive relationship for the following: (<i>r</i>76) = 0.795 for the relationship between executive management&rsquo;s attitude towards the intention of committing corruption, (<i>r</i>76) = 0.713 the relationship between executive management&rsquo;s subjective norms towards the intention of committing corruption, and (<i>r</i>76) = 0.874 for the relationship between executive management&rsquo;s intention of committing corruption. The DIT2 results also indicated strong moral reasoning, illustrating high moral judgment of executive management and low intention of committing corruption based on the Maintaining Norms Score of 34.76 and a Personal Interest score of 32.12. The findings from this study could be used as a theoretical foundation for further research and subsequently bridge the gap in OF literature.</p><p>

<p> Two experiments in this dissertation examine the effect of a leader&rsquo;s emotional intelligence and its interaction with other constructs on the subordinate&rsquo;s intention to whistleblow. Results from the primary experiment indicate that when the leader is not involved in the observed accounting fraud, the subordinate is more likely to whistleblow to the leader if the leader has high emotional intelligence or high group prototypicality. The relationship between leader emotional intelligence and subordinate whistleblowing intention is stronger when the leader has high group prototypicality and is mediated by the subordinate&rsquo;s perceived leader-member exchange, trust in the leader, and job satisfaction. These mediations are stronger as well when the leader has high group prototypicality. In addition to the primary experiment, a supplementary experiment where the leader is involved in the observed accounting fraud demonstrate that the subordinate is less likely to whistleblow on the leader to the anonymous whistleblowing hotline if the leader has high emotional intelligence. Moreover, the subordinate is more likely to whistleblow if the consequence of the action is framed as being positive to the company than being negative to the leader when the leader has high emotional intelligence. Findings of these two experiments have strong practical implications in terms of corporate governance, internal control, and human resource management.</p>