Contentious interactions may arise between a tax professional and client upon a disagreement over a tax position. In an increasingly competitive tax return preparation market, these contentious interactions represent a significant threat to tax practitioners' client satisfaction and retention objectives. I conduct an experiment in which I examine the effect of three factors on tax clients' (1) likelihood to accept the advice of the tax accountant and (2) likelihood to switch tax accountants upon receiving professional advice counter to their preferred tax position. The three factors are: (1) clients' antagonistic narcissism; (2) clients' relationship with the accountant; and (3) how the advice is framed by the tax accountant. The results are based on a sample of 93 taxpayers. First, this study examines how clients' measured levels of narcissistic antagonism (hereafter, antagonism) impacts their reaction to "being told no" by their tax professional. Results indicate that upon the receipt of advice contrary to their preferences, highly antagonistic clients are more likely to (1) engage in a contentious interaction with their professional and (2) switch to a new tax professional. Supplemental path analyses document that individuals with high levels of antagonism cognitively react to instances of "being told no" by simultaneously devaluing their professionals' credibility and role as a client advocate, leading to these aggressive behaviors. This study also examines how the social closeness of the professional-client relationship influences the argue and switch decisions. Multivariate analysis indicates that social closeness is significantly related to the argue and switch decision. However, univariate results do not show significant relationship between social closeness and each of the decisions individually. That is, I find partial support for the professional publications and AICPA recommendations that tax practitioners should develop personal relationships with their clients to improve client satisfaction and likelihood of retention. Clients are marginally more likely to retain their current tax professional for future years when they feel they have a personal relationship with their tax practitioner, as opposed to those in a purely professional relationship. Finally, this dissertation considers the manner in which a tax professional frames his/her advice that is counter to a client's preferences. Results indicate that contrary advice that focuses on the potential downsides of an aggressive tax position (e.g., IRS audits and penalties) significantly dissuades client argument with the professional and significantly deters switching to a new tax accountant as compared to advice that is framed as being in the clients' "best interest."
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:unt.edu/info:ark/67531/metadc1808447 |
| Date | 05 1900 |
| Creators | Kaszak, Steven E |
| Contributors | Iyer, Govind S., Reckers, Phil, Eutsler, Jared, Pavur, Robert J. |
| Publisher | University of North Texas |
| Source Sets | University of North Texas |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis or Dissertation |
| Format | vi, 68 pages, Text |
| Rights | Public, Kaszak, Steven E, Copyright, Copyright is held by the author, unless otherwise noted. All rights Reserved. |
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