Description
reported job satisfaction and career choices
revealed by a postal survey of accountants from
the Queensland Division of the Institute of
Chartered Accountants in Australia. Of
particular interest are levels of satisfaction with
remuneration and promotion. Two moderating
factors of career age and firm size are also
considered. Consistent with prior research,
female accountants reported dissatisfaction with
their opportunities for promotion.
Accounting Research Journal
Job Satisfaction Dimensions in Public Accounting Practice
Kathleen Herbohn
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Kathleen Herbohn, (2005),"J ob Satisfaction Dimensions in Public Accounting Practice", Accounting Research J ournal, Vol.
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Job Satisfaction Dimensions in Public Accounting Practice
63
Job Satisfaction Dimensions in Public
Accounting Practice
Kathleen Herbohn
UQ Business School
The University of Queensland
Abstract
This paper investigates gender differences in
reported job satisfaction and career choices
revealed by a postal survey of accountants from
the Queensland Division of the Institute of
Chartered Accountants in Australia. Of
particular interest are levels of satisfaction with
remuneration and promotion. Two moderating
factors of career age and firm size are also
considered. Consistent with prior research,
female accountants reported dissatisfaction with
their opportunities for promotion. However,
unlike prior research there was no evidence of a
gender effect in remuneration levels, and in
reported satisfaction with remuneration. Nor
were there differences in satisfaction across age
bands, and public accounting firms of different
size. The link between satisfaction levels of
female accountants and their career choices of
leaving their current employer, moving to part-
time employment, or leaving the accounting
profession was also investigated. Consistent
with a large body of organisational and
accounting research, low levels of job
satisfaction were associated with higher
turnover intentions for female accountants.
1. Introduction
In recent years that has been much discussion
about gender effects and the so-called “glass
ceiling” for women in public accounting and
elsewhere (e.g. Hooks and Cheramy, 1989,
Pillsbury, Capozzoli and Ciampa, 1989, Reed,
Kratchman and Strawser, 1994). Gender issues
Key words: job satisfaction; turnover intentions, public
accounting practice
Acknowledgments: The author gratefully acknowledges
the assistance of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in
Australia for allowing access to their Queensland
membership. The research assistance of Anne Schuback
and Matthew Mullen is also appreciated.
are subject to high levels of scrutiny within the
accounting profession because men and women
are recruited to the profession in almost equal
numbers, yet only a small proportion of women
reach the higher levels of the profession such as
senior manager and partner. There appears to be
an inability to retain as many partners and
managers as desirable (e.g. Pillsbury et al., 1989;
Ferguson and Wine, 1993; Schwartz, 1996).
There is concern that women comprise a
significant proportion of those leaving the
profession, with the issue described as the
“corporate flight of women managers” (Hooks
and Chermay, 1994).
A large body of research exists on the barriers
that not only inhibit female accountants’ career
progression, but may also lead to their turnover.
The variables considered include family
obligations, negative stereotypes of women,
poor career planning, lack of mentors, and
unwillingness to confirm to organisational
norms. One finding to emerge from this
literature is that the motivation of women
accountants toward career advancement and
rewards is different to men (Kelsall and Leung,
1995; Dann, 1995; Hoddinott and Jarratt, 1998;
Morley, Bellamy, Jackson and O’Neill, 2002).
Women tend to place less emphasis on status,
financial reward and position. They place greater
emphasis on gaining recognition from others,
achieving a balanced lifestyle, and job
satisfaction. This paper investigates job
satisfaction as a key career expectation of female
accountants in public accounting practice in
Queensland, and explores potential career
outcomes associated with reported levels of
satisfaction. The career outcomes include not
only turnover intentions, but also alternate career
choices such as moving to part-time
employment or leaving the profession altogether.
Irrespective of any gender effects, an
investigation of job satisfaction of accountants
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ACCOUNTING RESEARCH JOURNAL VOLUME 18 NO 2 (2005)
64
in public practice is an important end in itself.
It is desirable from a behaviouralist view and it
is important for employers because of its direct
and indirect links with work motivation and
job-related performance.
1
Consequently, the
first objective of this paper is to add to the
existing knowledge of the career expectations
of public accountants in Australia through an
investigation of their levels of job satisfaction.
The second objective is to investigate possible
differences in job satisfaction between male
and female accountants. To date, there has only
been one Australian study of gender differences
in job satisfaction by Morley et al. (2002). The
current study will add to the small pool of
existing research. Of particular interest are
differences in the levels of job satisfaction for
documented areas of gender difference. These
areas include lower levels of remuneration for
women in the Australian accounting profession
(Morley, Bellamy, Jackson, and O’Neill, 2003),
and lower levels of representation in
management level positions (Kelsall and
Leung, 1995; Hoddinott and Jarratt, 1998).
Two moderating factors are age and firm
size. There is evidence that career expectations
change as accountants mature. This is
particularly the case for women who have been
found to exhibit more willingness to seek to
balance career and personal life at mid-career
age (30 to 49 years) (Kelsall and Leung, 1995,
Dalton, Hill and Ramsay, 1997; Hoddinott and
Jarratt, 1998, Morley et al., 2002). The third
objective of this paper is to examine the levels
of job satisfaction of accountants of early-
career age, mid-career age and advanced-career
across gender. An additional influence
considered is the prevailing work environment
in larger public accounting firms. This has been
highlighted as a factor in reducing satisfaction
levels for female accountants of mid-career age
1 The identified relations between job satisfaction and
work motivation and job-related performance are
complex and are not necessarily direct. While
satisfaction may be correlated with employees’
behaviour, it does not automatically follow that
satisfaction causes the behaviour (Lawler and Porter,
1969). It can be argued however, that even if
satisfaction proves not to be part of the causal chain, it
remains an important construct. Its correlation with
behaviour may make it a useful symptom of or clue to
organisational dysfunction, or it may affect work-related
behaviour indirectly (Balzer et al., 1990).
(Kelsall and Leung, 1995; Dalton et al., 1997).
To date, there has been no investigation of job
satisfaction for male and female accountants
across career ages that controls for firm size.
Consequently, the fourth objective of the paper
is to undertake such an investigation.
Finally, prior research suggests that job
satisfaction is a major career expectation of
women. It follows that job satisfaction plays an
important role in motivating female
accountants’ career choices. The fifth objective
of this paper is to examine the possible
outcomes that result from different levels of
satisfaction amongst female accountants,
including turnover intentions, and alternative
courses of action such as seeking part-time
employment or leaving the profession all
together.
The remainder of the paper is organised as
follows. Section two outlines the research
questions. The research method is discussed in
section three, the results and discussion of
results are contained in section four and
concluding comments follow in section five.
2. Gender and Job Satisfaction
There have not been many studies of the
levels of job satisfaction amongst Australian
public accountants. The supervisory factors
affecting job satisfaction amongst junior-level
accountants at non-Big Five and Big Five firms
have been by investigated Clabaugh, Monroe
and Soutar (2000). No significant differences in
satisfaction levels were found. Also, Stedham,
Yamamura, Taylor and Nelson (2002) have
undertaken a comparative study of the relation
between the levels of job satisfaction and
organisational factors for accountants in
Australia and the U.S.A. The organisational
factors considered include autonomy, feedback
on performance and access to job-related
information. Despite the cultural similarities
between Australia and U.S.A., significant
differences were found in how the
organisational variables related to the
satisfaction dimensions.
There has only been one Australian study by
Morley, et al. (2002) that has investigated
gender differences among accountants in their
level of current job satisfaction. They drew on
prior U.S. research that argued if gender-
specific barriers to women’s career progression
exist, they could be expected to contribute to
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Job Satisfaction Dimensions in Public Accounting Practice
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lower levels of job satisfaction among females
relative to males (e.g. Albrecht, Brown and
Field, 1981; Dean, Ferris and Konstans, 1988).
Morley’s et al. (2002) survey of a random
sample of members of CPA Australia revealed
gender differences in attitudes to promotion,
levels of ambition and career planning,
particularly amongst males and females of mid-
career age. Of relevance to this study was the
finding that ‘men were more satisfied with their
jobs than women, with most (82%) being
satisfied or very satisfied compared with just
over half (57%) of women’ (Morley et al.,
2002, p. 68).
Gender differences in reported job
satisfaction levels of Queensland public
accountant are investigated in the first research
question. The rationale of prior research is
adopted. That is, gender-specific barriers to
career advancement may be reflected in
reported lower levels of job satisfaction
amongst female accountants relative to male
accountants. The research question is stated as
follows.
Research question 1:
Do women report lower levels of satisfaction
than men in public accounting practice?
Job satisfaction is a multi-dimensional
construct. If only overall satisfaction is
assessed, which may be positive (negative), the
aspects of the job that are perceived as negative
(positive) are ignored. Two dimensions of
potential dissatisfaction for women in public
accounting are the ‘gender imbalance’
(Hoddinott and Jarratt, 1998) and gender
differences in remuneration (Morley, et al.,
2003). The so-called ‘gender imbalance’
describes the lack of female accountants in
senior positions within accounting firms in
Australia. Ferguson and Wines (1993), Kelsall
and Leung (1995), Hoddinott and Jarratt (1998)
and O’Neill, Bellamy, Jackson and Morley
(1998) have documented it in independent
studies. For example, Hoddinnott and Jarratt
(1998) examined the career progression of
females in public accounting practice in New
South Wales. They found that the gender
balance between males and females was at
equilibrium when both entered the profession at
20-22 year of age at the junior or trainee level.
However, this changed as males and females
progressed to managers, seniors and principals.
They observed the participation rate for women
at these senior levels ‘averages just 23% and
for men 77%. Further at the level of principal
the percentage of women is only 11%,
compared with men at 89%’ (Hoddinott and
Jarratt, 1998, p. 62). The second research
question considers this issue further and is
stated as follows:
Research question 2:
Do women report lower levels of satisfaction
with promotion opportunities than men in
public accounting practice?
Significant differences in the remuneration
received by male and female accountants
appointed at the same level have been widely
documented. Hoddinott and Jarratt (1998) and
O’Neill et al. (1998) have compared the
remuneration levels of male and female
accountants and found that on average women
earn less than their male counterparts. For
example, at the levels of managers/seniors and
principals in the study by Hoddinott and Jarratt
(1998), men received on average over 30 per
cent higher salaries than women. More
sophisticated analysis has also been undertaken
by O’Neill et al. (1998) and Morley et al.
(2003). These studies identified gender effects
in accountants’ remuneration even after
controlling for the length of experience, level
of responsibility and the type of work done.
2
Morley et al. (2003, p. 33) concluded that their
findings provided ‘evidence of discrimination
against women in deciding on individuals’
salaries.’ It follows that the documented gender
difference in remuneration levels would lead to
less satisfaction with remuneration amongst
female accountants than males. This is
considered in the third research question.
Research question 3:
Do women report lower levels of satisfaction
with remuneration than men in public
accounting practice?
The career expectations of accountants
change with age. As accountants move from an
early career phase (under 30 years old), to mid-
career (30 to 49 years) career choices are
required on career progression versus quality of
2 Morley et al. (2003) found this effect in all but the
taxation and information technology areas of
specialisation.
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ACCOUNTING RESEARCH JOURNAL VOLUME 18 NO 2 (2005)
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life considerations (Kelsall and Leung, 1995;
Dalton et al., 1997; Hoddinott and Jarratt,
1998; Morley et al., 2002). Women in
particular face pressures from the trade-off
between work and non-work obligations at this
stage in their careers. It has been documented
that in response to these pressures, women on
average, are more inclined than men to forgo
career success if it threatens personal happiness
and balance in their life (Kelsall and Leung,
1995; Hoddinott and Jarratt, 1998; Morley et
al., 2002).
Only one study has considered the levels of
job satisfaction for male and female
accountants across career stages. In their survey
of CPA Australia members, Morley et al.
(2002) found that inter alia, although job
satisfaction scores increased with age, men
were on average more satisfied than women.
This was particularly the case in the 30 plus age
group. Variation in the levels of job satisfaction
and career stage for male and female
accountants is investigated in the fourth
research question of this paper. The career
stages considered are early-career (under 30
years), mid-career (30 to 49 years) and
advanced-career (50 years or more).
3
Research Question 4:
Are there differences in the reported levels of
satisfaction for accountants of early, mid or
advanced career age?
The prevailing work environment of
accounting firms has been identified as a
significant factor in the ability to balance work
and non-work commitments. In particular,
women in mid-career have been identified as
more dissatisfied with the large firm
environment (Big Six/Big Five
4
), and more
likely to move into smaller accounting
practices (Kelsall and Leung, 1995; Dalton et
al., 1997). A major contributing factor is the
smaller firm work environment that provides
them with the opportunity to balance work and
non-work commitments. For example, smaller
firms have been characterised largely on the
basis of anecdotal evidence as less stressful,
with greater work diversity, more job
3 These career stages are drawn from Morley et al.
(2002).
4 At the time most of this research was undertaken, it was
a Big Six/Big Five public accounting firm environment.
flexibility, and greater job security (Gaertner
and Ruhe, 1981; Ardoin, 1986; Patten, 1995).
In contrast, large accounting firms are
described as highly competitive, with
accountants driven by extreme work pressure
manifesting in long working hours and
extensive travel commitments (Dalton et al.,
1997). The competitive, long hours and highly
stressful conditions are not conducive to
balancing work and non-work commitments.
There has not been an investigation of the
levels of job satisfaction for male and female
accountants across career stages that controls
for firm size.
5
Prior research suggests that
women of mid-career age (30 to 49 years) are
more likely to report lower levels of job
satisfaction than male accountants when
employed in large accounting firms
6
(Kelsall
and Leung, 1995; Dalton et al., 1997). This
issue is investigated further in the fifth research
question.
Research Question 5:
Are there differences in the reported levels of
satisfaction on various dimensions of the job
for accountants of early, mid or advanced
career age after firm size is taken into account?
The approach adopted in this paper has been
that reported job satisfaction levels provide
preliminary insights into how the career
expectations of female accountants in public
practice are being met. A flow on question is
what are the likely career outcomes for female
accountants who are dissatisfied with their job
in general or with a dimension of the job such
as promotion opportunities or remuneration?
Of concern to the profession is the loss of
women accountants, particularly those of mid-
5 Morley et al. (2002) did control for the impact of firm
size and respondent’s age on reported job satisfaction
levels. However, their main focus was on gender
differences in satisfaction and they did not explore any
firm size effects.
6 A distinction is drawn in this paper between small firms
and large firms on the basis of the number of partners.
Small firms are defined as having less than 15 partners
and large firms as having 15 or more partners. This
measure of size was developed in consultation with staff
from the Membership Services section of the Institute of
Chartered Accountants in Australia (ICAA), who are
allowed access to their membership for this study.
Further details of sample selection are provided in
section three.
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Job Satisfaction Dimensions in Public Accounting Practice
67
career age who have well-developed skills
bases. A desire to leave may manifest in an
intention to move to another firm, but a survey
of female chartered accountants in Victoria by
Kelsall and Leung (1995) has found that it may
also result in a move to part-time employment,
or from the accounting profession entirely. This
issue has not previously been investigated for
Australian accountants, and it is considered in
this paper. Specifically, the sixth research
question is concerned with what dimensions of
job satisfaction are more closely associated
with the formation of intentions to pursue
different career choices amongst female
accountants. The choices investigated include
moving to another firm, moving to part-time
employment or leaving the accounting
profession. It is stated as follows.
Research Question 6:
Are women accountants who are less satisfied
with the job in general, or aspects of the job
more likely to express an intention to leave
their current employment, to move to part-time
employment or to leave the accounting
profession?
3. Research Method
This section outlines the development of the
questionnaire used to collect the data, the
survey sample, and the sampling process.
3.1 Questionnaire Development
A six-page questionnaire was pre-tested on
employees from two public accounting firms,
one large and one small, to control for
ambiguity in questions, length, and relevance.
It contained two sections on career choices and
job satisfaction, and a third section collected
demographic data.
7
Section one contained the Job Descriptive
Index (JDI) designed by Smith, Kendall and
Hulen (1969). It is a cummulative-point,
adjective check list scale constructed to
measure five separate aspects of employees’
satisfaction that include work on present job,
7 The current investigation was part of a larger study by
Herbohn (2004) of the impact of mentoring on the
career processes of accountants. As a result, the
questionnaire also collected information relevant to
mentoring experiences. However, only the sections of
the questionnaire relevant to job satisfaction are
discussed in this paper.
present pay, opportunities for promotion,
supervision, and co-workers. To investigate the
possible gender differences in overall job
satisfaction levels, the job in general (JIG) scale
developed by Smith et. al (1987) was also
included in the questionnaire. The JIG scale
uses the same response format as the JDI and
measures a respondent’s overall evaluation of
their job as a weighting of all the components
of job satisfaction relevant to them (Smith et al.
1987).
8
Section two contained a measure of turnover
intentions based on the Intention To Quit (ITQ)
index developed by Jackofsky (1982).
9
The
modified ITQ comprises three questions on a
five point Likert scale relating to a respondent’s
intention to quit over the short-term, ranging
from ‘before long’ (item 1), through ‘soon’
(item 2) to ‘within the next several months’
(item 3). Responses to the three questions were
averaged to provide an overall estimate of a
respondent’s intention to quit their current
employment (Dean, Ferris and Konstans,
1988). The estimated reliability of the modified
ITQ scale was high, with a Cronbach
coefficient alpha of 0.94.
The second section also included a question
on a five point Likert scale on the possible
career choices by participants who were
considering leaving their current positions. The
options are drawn from the Kelsall and Leung
(1995) study of the career paths of female
chartered accountants in Victoria. They were
wait and see if the situation gets better, move to
another firm, do something different, and move
to part-time employment.
3.2 Sample and Sampling Process
The survey sample comprised 400 accountants
who were employed in public practice on a full-
time basis in large and small firms. They were
drawn from the membership of the Queensland
Division of the Institute of Chartered
Accountants in Australia (ICAA). Access to
8 Balzer et al. (1990) note that the JIG scale was
constructed to reflect the global, long-term evaluation of
the job. It is intended to reflect not only the five principal
facets and the importance of each to the individual, but
also their interactions and the contributions of other long-
term situation and individual factors that make a person
satisfied or dissatisfied with their job.
9 A more detailed discussion of the modification is
contained in Herbohn (2004).
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ACCOUNTING RESEARCH JOURNAL VOLUME 18 NO 2 (2005)
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these members was conditional upon approval
of the survey instrument, sample size and
distribution technique by the ICAA’s
Membership Services. Upon approval, staff
from ICAA Membership Services randomly
selected the survey sample from their member
mailing list and distributed the survey kit. The
survey kit comprised a covering letter, a copy of
the survey instrument and a reply paid
envelope. Staff at the ICAA pre-numbered each
of the reply paid envelopes, which were
addressed to the researcher, thus ensuring
confidentiality for any responses made.
10
A total of 191 responses were received, after
staff from the ICAA Membership Services
followed up non-responses with a second mail-
out. Thirty incomplete questionnaires were
excluded to give a total of 161 usable responses.
This represented a response rate of 40.25 per
cent. Late responses were used as a proxy for
non-respondents to test whether the survey
responses were representative of the total
population (Oppenheim, 1966). No statistically
significant differences were found between the
mean variables of late responses and the
remaining responses, indicating that non-
response bias was not significant.
4. Results
The respondent population comprised 99 males
(62%) and 62 females (39%). The average age
was 33 years and the mean annual base salary
was $51,928. The primary areas of
responsibility of respondents included taxation
55 (34%), management advisory services 24
(15%), information system services 24 (15%),
auditing 16 (9%), insolvency 8 (5%) and a
combination of more than one of these areas 34
(21%). The organisation level categories
included 45 graduates/accountants (28%), 38
managers (24%), 11 senior managers/associates
(7%), 44 partners (27%) and 23 others
(consultancy-based employment – 14%).
Responses were drawn from large public
accounting firms (56 responses) and smaller
public accounting firms with less than 15
partners (105 responses).
Accountants who participated in the survey
reported generally high levels of satisfaction
10 Aggregated survey data was made available by the
author to respondents and the ICAA upon request.
with their job in general and with aspects of
their job measured by the Job Descriptive
Index (JDI). These results are summarised in
Table 1. Although it is not possible to define an
absolute level of job satisfaction above which
respondents can be identified as satisfied,
Balzer et al. (1990) suggest that in practice
there is a limited range on each JDI scale that
characterises people who feel neither good nor
bad about their job. A score of 27 out of a
possible score of 54 on each JDI scale has been
identified as this middle range. Consequently,
‘scores well above 27 (i.e. 32 or above)
indicate satisfaction, while those well below 27
(i.e. 22 or below) indicate dissatisfaction’
(Balzer et al., 1990, p. 23). On this basis, the
mean scores reported in Table 1 indicate that
accountants in Queensland public practice on
average are satisfied with their job in general,
the type of work, present remuneration,
promotional opportunities, supervision
received, and co-workers.
An analysis-of-variance (ANOVA) was
used to test the significance of the impact of
gender on reported satisfaction levels with job
dimensions, while controlling for the impact of
age, organisational level, size of employer and
area of specialisation (Puri, 2002). The results
are reported in Table 1.
The mean satisfaction levels of women in
Queensland public accounting practice are
lower for their job in general and on every
aspect of job satisfaction except for
remuneration. However, only the reported
satisfaction of women with opportunities for
promotion is statistically significantly lower
than the satisfaction of men with this aspect of
the job (F=6.612; p=0.024).
11
In general, the
results reported in Table 1 are not consistent
with the rationale underlying the first research
11 The controlled for variables were insignificant with two
exceptions. First, age, organisational level, and area of
specialisation were significant in the ANOVA with
satisfaction regarding remuneration levels as the
dependent variable. This indicates significant differences
in satisfaction with remuneration across age,
organisational level and specialisation. Second,
organisation level was significant in the ANOVA with
satisfaction regarding opportunities for promotion, which
suggests significant differences in satisfaction with
promotion opportunities across organisational levels.
These results are discussed in more detail in sections 4.1
and 4.2.
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Table 1
Reported job satisfaction levels of respondents with the job in general and
different dimensions of the job
Panel A: Reported job satisfaction for all respondents
Job satisfaction dimensions:
1
Mean Min. Max. SD
Work on present job 34.99 3 52 9.61
Present pay 37.02 4 54 12.64
Opportunities for promotion 31.01 2 54 15.98
Supervision 38.46 4 54 12.58
People on the present job 41.94 9 54 10.34
Job in general (JIG) 42.59 2 54 10.29
Panel B: ANOVA for gender impact on job satisfaction dimensions
2
Mean JDI score Gender
Job satisfaction dimensions: Males Females F P
Work on present job 35.61 34.03 2.601 0.131
Present pay 36.37 37.94 0.149 0.706
Opportunities for promotion 33.10 28.14 6.612 0.024*
Supervision 38.69 38.12 0.106 0.751
People on the present job 41.07 42.02 0.008 0.929
Job in general (JIG) 42.73 42.42 0.438 0.519
1. Job satisfaction dimensions were measured using the Job Descriptive Index (JDI) and Job In General (JIG) index.
Responses are scored to produce an aggregate score on each aspect of satisfaction from 0 to 54. The higher the score,
the more satisfied a respondent is with the aspect of their job. The scoring worked as follows. Respondents indicated
agreement or disagreement with each phrase or adjective relating to the five aspects of job satisfaction by marking a
‘yes’, ‘no’, or ‘cannot decide’. A ‘yes’ response to a positive adjective or phrase such as ‘challenging’ receives a score
of three, while a ‘no’ response to a positive adjective or phrase receives a score of zero. A ‘yes’ response to a negative
item such as ‘boring’ receives a score of zero, and a no response to a negative item receives a score of three. Each
‘cannot decide’ response is assigned a score of one.
2. An ANOVA was used to test for a gender effect for reported job satisfaction levels while controlling for age,
organisational level, size of employer and area of specialisation. The F tests reported are for the significance of the
impact of gender on the reported satisfaction levels with aspects of the job.
3. *Significance at 0.01 < x ! 0.05 level.
question that gender-specific barriers to
women’s career progression contributes to
significantly lower job satisfaction levels. The
second and third research questions consider
reported satisfaction with promotion
opportunities and remuneration. The results in
Table 1 are consistent with the predicted lower
satisfaction of women with promotional
opportunities, but not remuneration. Each of
these dimensions of satisfaction – promotion and
remuneration – is explored in turn.
4.1 Satisfaction with opportunities for
promotion
Low representation of women in senior
management positions within the accounting
profession is well documented. The lack of
career progression of female accountants to
senior levels occurs despite relatively equal
numbers of males and females entering the
profession at the graduate/trainee accountant
level. The career progression of respondents
within the randomly selected sample of public
accountants in this study is summarised in Table
2. Only 27 per cent of women surveyed had
reached senior management levels (senior
manager, associate, manager or principal)
compared to 47 per cent of male respondents.
This difference in career progression across
gender was statistically significant (?
2
= 5.560;
p=0.018).
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Table 2
Reported satisfaction levels with opportunities for promotion across gender
and organisational level
Panel A: Gender distribution across organisational levels
Females Males
Number % Number %
Non-senior management
1
35 73 48 53
Senior management
2
13 27 42 47
48 100 90 100
Excluding: ‘other’
3
14 9
Total 62 99
?
2
= 5.560*
(0.018)
Panel B: Satisfaction with promotion opportunities of accountants across organisational level
Mean JDI score on promotion
opportunities for the whole sample
4
Organisational level:
Graduate/accountant 29.86
Manager 33.00
Senior Manager /Associate 34.32
Partner /Principal 34.58
Other
3
24.43
1. Non-senior management = graduate/accountant and manager.
2. Senior management = senior manager/associate and partner/principal.
3. ‘Other’ includes consultancy-based employment on either a full-time or part-time basis.
4. Satisfaction with opportunities for promotion was measured using the Job Descriptive Index (JDI).
5. *Significance at 0.01 < x ! 0.05 level.
The second research question considers
whether this apparent gender difference in
career progression is reflected in reported
satisfaction levels. As previously shown in
Table 1, gender had a significant impact on
satisfaction with opportunities for promotion
(F=6.612; p=0.024) after controlling for the
impact of other confounding variables
including age, organisational level, area of
specialisation and firm size. That is, the mean
satisfaction with promotion reported by women
(JDI score of 28.14) was significantly lower
than the mean satisfaction levels reported by
men (mean JDI score of 33.10), after
controlling for relevant demographic and work
related factors. These results are consistent with
the predictions of the second research question.
The ANOVA also showed that respondents’
organisational level had a significant main
effect on satisfaction with promotional
opportunities (F=4.613; p=0.017).12 In fact,
organisational level accounted for a greater
amount of variation in satisfaction with
promotion (partial eta squared statistic=0.606)
than did gender (partial eta squared
statistic=0.355).
The impact of organisational level on
satisfaction with career progression is
considered further in Table 2. The mean
satisfaction score for respondents in the ‘other’
category – consultancy based employment on
either a full-time or part-time basis – was the
lowest for any organisational level (i.e. mean
score of 24.43 out of a possible 54). A mean
12 The F tests for controlled variables were not reported in
Table 1 because the focus of the testing was on gender
effects.
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score of 24.43 suggests dissatisfaction amongst
respondents with opportunities for career
progression when compared with Balzer’s et al.
(1990) dissatisfaction benchmark of a JDI score
of less than 27. The mean satisfaction scores
for respondents at the level of manager, senior
manager/associate, and partner/principal were
all above the benchmark of 32, which indicates
satisfaction (Balzer et al., 1990). Accountants
at the entry level of graduate/accountant had a
mean JDI score of 29.86. This suggests that
they are neither satisfied nor dissatisfied with
the opportunities for promotion.
4.2 Satisfaction with remuneration levels
Differences in remuneration levels between
male and female accountants have been
documented in previous research. As
background for an investigation of satisfaction
with remuneration, the remuneration levels of
Queensland accountants were assessed for
gender differences. The results are reported in
Table 3. The mean base salary of men was
$58,507 per annum compared to $42,059 per
annum for women in Queensland public
accounting practice. Males dominated the
higher remuneration bands. Twenty-four
percent of men surveyed earned greater than
$70,000 per annum (base salary) compared to
only 4 per cent of women. The difference in
remuneration levels across gender was
statistically significant.
These results need to be interpreted with
caution. There is the potential for other
variables that may account for the level of
remuneration to confound any gender effect.
Other variables that have been found to have an
influence on remuneration include the
organisational level attained (Nolan and
Brown, 1983; Morley et al., 2003), the size of
the employing organisation (Nolan and Brown,
1983), the area of specialisation (Morley et al.,
2003) and the age of the respondent (Hoddinott
and Harratt, 1998, Morley et al., 2001). An
ANOVA was used to test for a gender impact
on the annual base salary of accountants after
controlling for respondents’ age, organisational
level attained, size of employing firm, and area
of specialisation. The F tests are reported in
Table 3.
Gender was not significant as a main effect
on annual base salary, nor was it significant in
any interactions with the controlled for factors.
Firm size also did not have a significant impact.
Instead, organisational level, age and area of
specialisation had significant main impacts on
the level of remuneration reported by
respondents.
13
To explore this further, the mean
salaries of respondents are considered across
organisational level, age and area of
specialisation in Table 4.
From Table 4, the mean base salary of
accountants increased with organisational level
from $36,147 at the graduate accountant level
to $84,444 at the level of partner/sole
practitioner. The positive correlation between
remuneration and organisational level was
statistically significant (r
s
=0.342, p=0.000).
The average level of remuneration also
increased with age. Early career accountants on
average earned $42,591 while accountants of
advanced career reported a mean base salary of
$102,286. The positive relation between
remuneration and age was significant
(r
s
=0.380, p=0.000). Accountants with a
specialisation in insolvency reported the
highest levels of remuneration, with a mean
base salary of $64,116. In contrast, accountants
who specialised in more than one area reported
the lowest base salary of $44,926.
These results suggest that the initial gender
difference in remuneration levels - the
significantly higher average remuneration
levels of males compared to females – may
actually be due differences in the distribution
of males and females across organisation level,
age and area of specialisation. For example, a
significantly larger proportion of males
surveyed had reached senior management
levels compared to female accountants
(?
2
=5.560, p=0.018). This would mean that
men on average earn more due to their
organisational position. The majority of female
respondents were clustered in the early career
age band (i.e. 67%), while the majority of
males were located in the mid-career age group
(53%) (?
2
=13.374, p=0.001). Since
remuneration levels increased with career age,
males would on average report larger annual
base salaries than female respondents by virtue
of their age. Finally, a gender related effect
13 Age accounted for most of the variation in annual salary
(partial eta squared = 0.941), followed by organisational
level (partial eta squared = 0.803), and then area of
specialisation (partial eta squared = 0.795).
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Table 3
Remuneration levels across gender, organisational levels, age, specialisation
and size of employing firm
Panel A: Remuneration levels across gender
Females Males
Number % Number %
Remuneration bands:
Less than $30,000 11 21 2 3
$30,000-49,999 28 54 41 52
$50,000-69,999 11 21 15 19
$70,000-99,999 1 2 15 19
$100,000-149,999 1 2 2 3
$150,000-249,999 --- --- 2 3
More than $250,000 --- --- 1 1
52 100 78 100
Females Males
Mean annual base salary $42,059 $58,507
t-statistic 2.861
(0.005)*
Panel B: ANOVA for gender impact on remuneration levels
F P
Dependent variable: Annual base salary
Factors:
Gender 0.002 0.962
Organisational level 14.925 0.000**
Age 6.546 0.001**
Area of specialisation 8.550 0.002*
Size of employing firm 1.212 0.294
1. An ANOVA was used to test for a gender effect for annual base salaries while controlling for age, organisational level,
size of employer and area of specialisation. The F tests reported are for the significance of the impact of gender on the
annual base salaries of respondents.
2. Thirty-two of the respondents (10 females, 21 males) left the section of the questionnaire requiring remuneration details
blank.
3. Satisfaction with remuneration was measured using the Job Descriptive Index (JDI).
4. **Significance at x ! 0.001 level.
*Significance at 0.001 < x ! 0.005 level.
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Table 4
Remuneration levels across organisational levels, age and area of
specialisation
Factor
Males Females
Mean annual
base salary
No. % No. %
Organisational level:
Graduate/accountant $36,147 22 28 21 40
Manager $51,862 21 27 13 25
Senior Manager /Associate $58,375 5 7 3 6
Partner /Principal $84,444 23 29 4 8
Other
1
$38,108 7 9 11 21
78 100 52 100
r
s
= 0.342
(0.000)***
?
2
= 5.560
(0.018)*
Males Females
Mean annual
base salary
No. % No. %
Age bands:
Early career ( 49 years) $102,286 6 1 1 2
78 100 52 100
r
s
= 0.380
(0.000)***
?
2
= 13.374
(0.001)***
Males Females
Mean annual
base salary
No. % No. %
Area of specialisation:
Insolvency $64,116 6 8 2 4
Management and Advisory Services $55,676 11 14 6 12
Information systems $55,041 8 10 11 21
Taxation $52,679 30 38 14 26
Auditing $47,633 9 12 6 12
> one of the above $44,929 14 18 13 25
78 100 52 100
?
2
= 7.882
(0.163)
1. ‘Other’ includes consultancy-based employment on either a full-time or part-time basis.
2. Thirty-two of the respondents (10 females, 21 males) left the section of the questionnaire requiring remuneration details
blank.
3. Spearman rank correlations were run between the factor under consideration and annual base salaries. The correlation
coefficient is reported with its significance in parentheses.
4. Chi-square test for differences in distribution of males and females across factors under consideration are reported, with
significance levels in parentheses.
5. * * * Significance at x ! 0.001 level; * * Significance at 0.001 < x < 0.01 level; * Significance at 0.01! x ! 0.05 level.
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for the area of specialisation is not clear. There
was a slightly larger proportion of males than
females engaged in the more highly
remunerated areas of insolvency (8% compared
to 4%), and management advisory services
(14% compared to 12%). However, the
proportion of males to females across different
specialisations was not significant (?
2
=7.882,
p=0.163).
The third research question was informed by
prior evidence that there are differences in the
remuneration of males and females after
controlling for experience, level of
responsibility and type of work done (e.g.
Morley et al. 2003). On this basis it was
predicted that women would report lower
satisfaction levels with remuneration. The
results of this paper are not consistent with this
prediction on two counts. First, there was no
evidence of a significant gender difference in
remuneration levels of Queensland public
accountants after controlling for demographic
and work environment factors.
Second, from Table 1 there was no
significant gender impact on satisfaction with
remuneration levels (F=0.149; p=0.706) in an
ANOVA that controlled for age, organisational
level, area of specialisation and firm size.
Instead, respondents’ satisfaction with their
remuneration was significantly effected by age
(F=4.129; p=0.004), organisational level
(F=3.277; p=0.046), and area of specialisation
(F=2.530; p=0.082). Reported satisfaction with
remuneration across age, organisational level
and specialisation is explored further in
Table 5.
From Table 5, respondents’ satisfaction with
remuneration increased with organisational
level. The mean JDI score for remuneration
was 34.73 at the graduate level, which rose to
38.84 amongst partners and sole practitioners.
Table 5
Reported satisfaction with remuneration across age, organisational level,
and area of specialisation
Factor Mean Satisfaction with remuneration (JDI)
1
Organisational level:
Graduate/accountant 34.73
Manager 36.76
Senior Manager /Associate 36.73
Partner /Principal 38.84
Other
2
38.35
Age bands:
Early career (< 30 years) 35.97
Mid-career (30-49 years) 37.01
Advanced-career (> 49 years) 43.09
Area of specialisation:
Insolvency 34.00
Management & Advisory Services 38.52
Information systems 36.08
Taxation 35.56
Auditing 38.67
> one of the above 38.91
1. Satisfaction with remuneration was measured using the Job Descriptive Index (JDI). Responses are scored to produce
an aggregate score on each aspect of satisfaction from 0 to 54. The higher the score, the more satisfied a respondent is
with the aspect of their job.
2. ‘Other’ includes consultancy-based employment on either a full-time or part-time basis.
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Table 6
Job satisfaction levels of accountants across career age groups and gender
Panel A: Distribution of survey sample across career age bands
Males Females Total
No % No. % No. %
Career age groups:
Early career (< 30 years) 32 32 37 60 69 43
Mid-career (30-49 years) 57 58 24 38 81 50
Advanced-career (> 49 years) 10 10 1 2 11 7
99 100 62 100 161 100
Panel B: Mean reported satisfaction levels across gender and career age bands
Mean score on job satisfaction dimension
Early-career age Mid-career age Advanced-career age
Male Female Male Female Male Female
Satisfaction dimensions:
1
Work on present job 38.20 32.23 34.98 36.00 42.00 21.00
Present pay 35.23 36.59 35.45 40.58 45.00 24.00
Opportunities for promotion 36.65 31.50 29.40 22.10 38.60 34.00
Supervision 40.13 36.17 36.27 42.43 44.70 18.00
People on the present job 39.81 40.62 42.13 45.22 49.00 20.00
Job in general (JIG) 40.97 42.19 42.84 43.21 47.80 32.00
1. Job satisfaction dimensions were measured using the Job Descriptive Index (JDI) and general job satisfaction was
measured using the Job in General (JIG) index.
Satisfaction levels with remuneration also
increased with respondents’ age. The average
JDI satisfaction score was 35.97 for early-
career age respondents, which increased to an
average score of 43.09 for advanced-career age
accountants. There is no clear pattern in
satisfaction levels across areas of specialisation.
For example, accountants working in
insolvency reported the lowest satisfaction with
remuneration levels (mean score 34.00),
despite on average earning the highest annual
salaries. Similarly, accountants specialising in
information systems earned the third highest
level of remuneration, but reported the second
lowest satisfaction levels with remuneration
(mean score of 36.08).
4.3 The Impact of Accountants’ Career
Stage
A documented awareness of female
accountants, particularly of 30 plus years of age,
to choices between career progression and
quality of life may lead to lower satisfaction
levels compared to males. The fourth research
question considers this issue. Sixty per cent of
female respondents were of early career age (<
30 years), followed by 38 per cent at mid-career
age (30-49 years). The majority of male
respondents (58%) were of mid-career age, and
then early career age (32%). In the advanced
career age group (49+ years), there was only one
female respondent compared to 10 male
respondents (10%). Table 6 presents a summary
of these demographic details. ANOVAs with
the five dimensions of job satisfaction as the
dependent variable in each case, did not find
career age to be significant.
14
Nor, was age
significant in any interactions with other
variables including gender, organisational
level, area of specialisation and firm size. In
terms of the fourth research question, there is
no evidence of differences in job satisfaction
14 The one exception was that satisfaction with
remuneration was significantly impacted by age. This
result was previously explored in section 4.2.
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between males and females accountants from
different age groups.
This result is not consistent with prior
evidence that job satisfaction increases with
age, and that men are more satisfied than
women, particularly in the over 30 years age
groups (Morley et al., 2002). Although age was
not significant for reported satisfaction levels in
this study, Table 6 reports satisfaction levels
across age and gender for completeness.
General job satisfaction job increased with
age for men who reported mean Job-In-General
(JIG) scores of 40.97, 42.84 and 47.80
respectively for early-career, mid-career and
advanced-career age bands. Satisfaction also
increased with age for women, who reported
mean JIG scores of 42.19 for early career age
and 43.21 for mid-career age. Since there was
only one female respondent of advanced career
age it is not possible to generalise about this age
group. There was also a general upward trend in
reported satisfaction with the specific job
dimensions of work on present job,
remuneration, supervision, and colleagues as the
age of respondents increased. This trend was
evident for men and women accountants. For the
remaining job satisfaction dimension of
opportunities for promotion, men and women of
mid-career age reported lower satisfaction levels
(mean scores of 29.40 and 22.10 respectively)
than either early-career age (mean scores of
36.65 and 31.50 respectively) or advanced career
age respondents (mean scores of 38.60 and 34
respectively) of the same gender.
4.4 The Impact of Employing Firm Size
The prevailing work environment within
firms of different size may be related to
gender differences in job satisfaction
amongst accountants of a particular age group.
Specifically, women of mid-career age have
been identified as less satisfied than men in the
same age band due to the difficulties of
balancing work and non-work commitments
within a large firm environment. The fifth
research question considers this issue.
The survey comprised 105 accountants
employed in small firms (i.e. firms with less
than 15 partners), of whom 57 per cent were of
mid-career age, 36 per cent were of early-
career age, and 7 per cent were of advanced-
career age. In contrast, more respondents from
large firms with more than 15 partners were of
early-career age (55%), while the remainder
were of mid-career age (38%) and advanced-
career age (7%). Sample details are reported in
Table 7.
ANOVAs with the five dimensions of job
satisfaction as the dependent variable in each
case did not find show firm size to be
significant. Nor, was firm size significant in
any interactions with other variables including
age and gender. In terms of the fifth research
question, there is no evidence of differences in
the satisfaction of accountants from firms of
different size, irrespective of their career stage
and gender.
Although firm size is not significant for
reported satisfaction levels in this study,
satisfaction levels across firm size, for men and
women in the mid-career age group are reported
in Table 7 for completeness. Mean satisfaction
scores for women of mid-career age employed
in large firms were actually higher than for men
on general job satisfaction, remuneration,
supervision and colleagues. Only satisfaction
levels with the work and promotional
opportunities were lower. Within small firms,
mid-career aged women were more satisfied
than men with their job in general, remuneration,
supervision, colleagues and also the type of
work. They were only less satisfied with the
available opportunities for promotion.
4.5 Job Satisfaction and Career Outcomes
For Female Accountants
Female accountants on average emphasise job
satisfaction over status and financial reward
(Dalton et al., 1995; Kelsall and Leung, 1995;
Hoddinott and Jarratt, 1998). An interesting
issue that has not previously been investigated is
whether job satisfaction levels are related to
alternate career choices. This issue is considered
in the sixth research question.
The associations between reported job
satisfaction levels of female accountants in
Queensland public practice and their potential
career choices are summarised in Table 8.
General job satisfaction and satisfaction with the
nature of work, and the quality of supervision
were significantly associated with lower
turnover intentions as measured by the modified
Intention To Quit (ITQ) index. Higher scores for
these aspects of job satisfaction were also
significantly associated with a higher reported
intention to wait to see if the situation improved.
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Job Satisfaction Dimensions in Public Accounting Practice
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Table 7
Job satisfaction levels reported by male and female accountants of different
age groups employed in firms of different size
Panel A: Distribution of respondents across age bands within large and small firms
Small firms
(< 15 partners)
Large firms
(? 15 partners)
No. % No. %
Career age group:
Early-career age 38 36 31 55
Mid-career age 60 57 21 38
Advanced-career age 7 7 4 7
105 100.0 56 100.0
Panel B: Job satisfaction levels for males and females of mid-career age employed in large and
small firms
Small firms
(< 15 partners)
Large firms
(? 15 partners)
Males Females Males Females
JDI dimensions:
1
Work on present job 42.18 42.75 44.44 45.50
Present pay 33.23 36.20 39.12 35.00
Opportunities for promotion 36.37 40.80 33.41 39.50
Supervision 28.77 21.41 30.67 25.00
People on the present job 36.67 42.12 35.65 43.75
Job in general (JIG) 40.95 45.05 44.82 46.00
1. Job satisfaction dimensions were measured using the Job Descriptive Index (JDI) and Job In General (JIG) index.
Responses are scored to produce an aggregate score on each aspect of satisfaction from 0 to 54.
It is not surprising that this career choice
identified by Kelsall and Leung (1995) is
associated with the same dimensions of job
satisfaction as the ITQ index because an
expressed intention to wait for the situation to
improve is really an indicator of turnover
intentions. The second career alternative ‘move
to another firm’ is also a measure of turnover
intentions. However, only low levels of general
job satisfaction were significantly associated
with the intention to pursue this career
alternative. For the remaining career choices of
‘move to part-time employment’ and ‘do
something different to accounting’, no
significant association was found with any
dimension of job satisfaction for women in
Queensland public accounting practice.
5. Discussion and Concluding
Comments
Accountants employed within Queensland
public accounting firms are on average
generally satisfied with their jobs. Their mean
responses also suggest satisfaction with specific
dimensions of the job including the nature of
their work, remuneration levels, quality of
supervision, and colleagues.
Female accountants reported lower
satisfaction levels with their job in general,
type of work, colleagues, quality of
supervision, and opportunities for promotion
than did their males counterparts. However,
only satisfaction with promotions was
significantly lower amongst females. On this
basis, there is little evidence of gender
differences in satisfaction that might be
symptomatic of gender-specific barriers to
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ACCOUNTING RESEARCH JOURNAL VOLUME 18 NO 2 (2005)
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career progression and ultimately the retention
of women within public practice.
These results contrast with the only other
Australian study of gender differences in the
job satisfaction of accountants. Morley et al.
(2002) found that females are significantly less
satisfied than males with aspects of their
careers that included the opportunity for
development of skills, the extent of control
over their own work, the organisational culture,
the flexibility and control they had over their
working hours, interpersonal relations with
other staff, support to develop both
professionally and personally, development of
skills which will assist in future career
progression elsewhere, and their current
employers’ procedures for promotion and
opportunities for equal promotion.
A contributing factor to the inconsistency
between the current study and Morley et al.
(2002) may be the different survey sample
sizes. In the current study, 400 public
accountants in only one Australian state were
surveyed, with ultimately 161 useable
responses received. In contrast, Morley et al.
(2002) surveyed 3000 public accountants
Australia-wide from many sectors including
public practice, industry and government, with
a total of 1,181 usable responses received.
Table 8
Association between reported job satisfaction levels of female accountants
and potential career choices
Potential career choice
1
ITQ
2
Wait and see if
the situation
gets better
Move to
another firm
Move to
part-time
employment
Do
something
different to
accounting
JDI dimensions:
3
Work on present
job
-0.413
(0.001)**
-0.266
(0.047)*
-0.162
(0.233)
-0.195
(0.150)
-0.118
(0.387)
Present pay -0.195
(0.130)
-0.117
(0.389)
0.055
(0.688)
0.124
(0.363)
0.051
(0.709)
Opportunities for
promotion
-0.003
(0.985)
-0.028
(0.839)
-0.113
(0.418)
-0.120
(0.388)
-0.015
(0.915)
Supervision -0.489
(0.000)***
-0.315
(0.019)*
0.176
(0.200)
-0.084
(0.543)
-0.180
(0.189)
People on the
present job
-0.190
(0.143)
-0.163
(0.234)
0.023
(0.870)
-0.020
(0.885)
-0.130
(0.343)
Job in general
(JIG)
-0.482
(0.000)***
-0.400
(0.002)**
0.136
(0.018)*
-0.073
(0.592)
-0.063
(0.643)
1. The career alternatives are drawn from the study of Kelsall and Leung (1995). A five-point Likert scale was used for
career alternatives that ranged from 1=strongly agree to 5=strongly disagree. A low score on the scale of 1-5 indicates a
higher likelihood of the respondent aspiring to the particular career choice.
2. The ITQ index is drawn from Jackofsky (1982), and uses a five-point Likert scale that ranged from 1=strongly agree to
5=strongly disagree. Since the ITQ contained items concerned with a respondent leaving their current position, the
lower the score, the lower the turnover intentions of the respondent.
3. Job satisfaction dimensions were measured using the Job Descriptive Index (JDI) and Job In General (JIG) index.
Responses are scored to produce an aggregate score on each aspect of satisfaction from 0 to 54. The higher the score,
the more satisfied a respondent is with the aspect of their job.
4. Spearman rank correlation coefficients are reported with significance levels shown in parentheses directly below.
5. * Significance at 0.01 < x ! 0.05 level.
** Significance at 0.001 ! x ! 0.01
*** Significance at x < 0.001
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Future research using a large sample of
accountants would be useful to bring clarity to
the mixed evidence on gender differences in
satisfaction.
5.1 Satisfaction with Promotion and
Remuneration
The one area of significant gender difference
identified amongst Queensland public
accountants related to opportunities for
promotion. Women reported significantly
lower satisfaction with promotion opportunities
than men, after controlling for age,
organisational level, firm size and area of
specialisation. Morley et al. (2002) similarly
found that females were less satisfied than
males with promotion procedures and the
availability of equal promotion opportunities.
15
The emerging evidence from Morley et al.
(2002) and the current study suggests a
potential problem with the advancement
opportunities available to women within the
Australian accounting profession. It is an issue
that warrants further research. Ideally, this
would involve the collection of primary data
relating to promotion opportunities rather than
reported perceptions via surveys of
accountants. However, data access will be
difficult given the sensitive and confidential
nature of the required data.
While gender was a significant main effect
on satisfaction with promotion opportunities, a
respondent’s organisational level was also
important. Dissatisfaction with promotion was
concentrated amongst accountants in
consultancy-based employment on either a
part-time or full-time basis. A potential reason
for the dissatisfaction of respondents engaged
in consulting may be that this group comprises
accountants who have been unable to progress
to senior management levels and have
consequently left to start their own consultancy.
The group may also include females who have
sought part-time employment to balance work
15 Morley et al. (2002) used a Likert scale of ‘1=very
dissatisfied’ to ‘5=very satisfied’ to measure satisfaction
levels. The mean scores on promotion procedures and
equal promotion opportunities for women were 2.90 and
3.21 respectively. For men, the mean score for
satisfaction on promotion procedures was 3.16 and the
mean score on equal promotion opportunities was 3.53.
The differences were statistically significant at less than
0.001.
and non-work commitments. There is some
support for this since a larger proportion of
female respondents were engaged in consulting
(i.e. 23%) relative to males (9%).
Unfortunately, a limitation of the survey
methodology used in this study is that it is not
possible to explore these potential reasons
further. It is an interesting area for future
investigation.
Another potential area for gender differences
in satisfaction relates to remuneration. Based
on the annual salaries reported by survey
respondents, on average female accountants
earned significantly less than males. However,
the gender effect dissipated when other
variables that influence remuneration were
controlled for in the analysis. In fact, annual
salaries increased with respondents’ age and
organisational level, and there were differences
in remuneration for accountants in different
specialisations. It follows that gender
differences in remuneration levels were due to
the distribution of male and female accountants
across age bands, organisational levels and
specialisations. For example, on average males
earned more because a larger proportion of
them were employed in senior positions and a
larger proportion of them were of mid-career
age and advanced-career age relative to
females. Also, a larger proportion of males than
females were engaged in the more highly
remunerated areas of insolvency, and
management advisory services.
The lack of evidence of disparity in
remuneration between male and female
accountants in Queensland public practice
contrasts with the results of prior research.
Morley et al. (2003) found a significant and
separate gender difference in the remuneration
of Australian accountants after taking into
account the impact of organisational position,
job function, experience, firm size,
interruptions to career (number of parental
leave absences), work fraction (part-time, full-
time), and sector. The issue of gender bias in
remuneration packages is important, and in
light of the mixed results from the current study
and Morley et al. (2003), future research on
this issue is worthwhile.
Male and female accountants in Queensland
public practice reported comparable levels of
satisfaction with their remuneration. This is
consistent with the inability to identify a gender
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ACCOUNTING RESEARCH JOURNAL VOLUME 18 NO 2 (2005)
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bias in remuneration. Rather than gender,
respondents’ organisational level, age and area
of specialisation significantly impacted on
satisfaction with remuneration. Satisfaction
increased as accountants progressed through
organisational levels and as they became older.
Also, accountants engaged in insolvency were
least satisfied with current remuneration levels
compared to accountants specialising in
auditing who were most satisfied. Interestingly,
Morley’s et al. (2002) investigation of
satisfaction with job aspects also revealed no
significant difference between the satisfaction
levels of men and women with their
remuneration package. Similar to the current
study in which the mean satisfaction score of
women with remuneration (37.94 out of 54)
was actually higher than the mean score for
men (36.37 out of 54), Morley et al. (2002)
found that women reported higher mean
satisfaction scores with remuneration (3.44 out
of 5) than men (3.39 out of 5). However, the
differences in both studies were not significant.
5.2 Career Age and Firm Size
Average job satisfaction amongst accountants
increases with age (Hoddinott and Jarratt,
1998; Morley et al., 2002). A similar upward
trend in satisfaction with the job in general and
the dimensions of the nature of work,
remuneration, quality of supervision and
colleagues was found amongst Queensland
public accountants. However unlike prior
research, the general increase in satisfaction as
accountants mature was not significantly
greater for men than for women.
A sensitivity of female accountants,
particularly of mid-career age (30 to 49 years),
to the trade-offs between work commitments
versus non-work obligations and quality of life
has been previously documented. In the current
study, it was expected to manifest itself in
lower reported satisfaction for women
compared with men. No evidence was found to
support this proposition even amongst
accountants of mid-career age. The lack of
significant results may reflect the small survey
sample. For example, there were only 54 male
respondents and only 24 female respondents of
mid-career age. Future research using a larger
sample of public accountants of mid-career age
would be valuable.
There is Australian and U.S. evidence that
the prevailing work environment of large
public accounting firms is not conducive to
balancing work and non-work commitments.
Women of mid-career age who are more likely
to have family commitments, have been
identified as more dissatisfied with the large
firm environment and thus more likely to move
to smaller firms (Kelsall and Leung, 1995;
Dalton et al., 1997). The current study is the
first direct investigation of this issue. No
evidence was found to support gender
differences in satisfaction levels for
Queensland accountants working in large firms
compared to small firms. Firm size had no
significant impact on reported satisfaction
levels as an independent variable, or in any
interaction with age and gender.
A possible factor in the insignificant results
is the firm size category of large and small.
16
It
may have been more informative to use a Big
Three/Big Four and non-Big Three/Big Four
size variable. Another contributing factor may
be the small survey sample size. An interesting
area for future research would be to collect data
on the potential influence of the prevailing
work environment in large Big Three public
accounting firms from a large survey sample.
Semi-structured interviews with men and
women, particularly of mid-career age, could
supplement the survey results. The interview
data would provide in-depth insights that are
not possible from postal surveys, and would
also alleviate size classification issues.
5.3 Career Outcomes
Prior research has focussed on the issue of
whether there are gender differences in job
satisfaction (Reed et al., 1994; Morley et al.,
2002). The rationale has been that such
differences are a reflection of underlying issues
including gender-barriers to career progression
and an inability to retain women in public
practice. The current study extended this
research in a new direction by investigating the
consequences, if any, of different levels of
satisfaction for the alternate career choices
considered by females. There is a large body of
evidence from organisational and accounting
16 This size categorisation was selected in consultation
with staff from ICAA Membership Services, who
assisted in the distribution of the survey.
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research that low job satisfaction levels are
associated with high turnover intentions (e.g.
Reed et al., 1994; Bullen and Flamholtz, 1985;
Albrecht et al., 1981). Thus, one obvious career
choice to investigate was turnover intentions.
Females in Queensland public accounting
practice who reported low levels of satisfaction
with their job in general and the dimensions of
work and supervision were significantly more
likely to express an intention to quit, and not
remain in their current position to see if their
situation improved.
Prior research by Kelall and Leung (1995)
documented frustration amongst women
accountants because of their inability to
advance to senior positions in the same
proportion as men. One identified consequence
was that on average these females become
dissatisfied and leave the accounting profession
altogether. In the current study, women were
found to be less satisfied than men with the
opportunities for advancement. However, no
significant association was found between
females’ reported satisfaction with promotion
opportunities and an intention to leave the
accounting profession to try something
different. Further, low satisfaction levels with
promotion opportunities were not associated
with an intention to quit or to move to part-time
employment.
These results pose an interesting question
for future consideration. Why is there no
apparent flow-on from female accountants’
dissatisfaction with promotion opportunities to
their career choices? Does this reflect what
researchers such as Morley et al. (2002) have
described as attitudinal barriers to women’s
career progression in accounting? They found
female accountants to be less ambitious and
less inclined to plan for career success than
their male counterparts. An interesting issue is
whether such gender attitudinal differences
contribute to an apparent lack of intention of
dissatisfied females to proactively seek to
change their situation by leaving their employer
or even leaving the accounting profession.
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doc_859305574.pdf
reported job satisfaction and career choices
revealed by a postal survey of accountants from
the Queensland Division of the Institute of
Chartered Accountants in Australia. Of
particular interest are levels of satisfaction with
remuneration and promotion. Two moderating
factors of career age and firm size are also
considered. Consistent with prior research,
female accountants reported dissatisfaction with
their opportunities for promotion.
Accounting Research Journal
Job Satisfaction Dimensions in Public Accounting Practice
Kathleen Herbohn
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To cite this document:
Kathleen Herbohn, (2005),"J ob Satisfaction Dimensions in Public Accounting Practice", Accounting Research J ournal, Vol.
18 Iss 2 pp. 63 - 82
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Job Satisfaction Dimensions in Public Accounting Practice
63
Job Satisfaction Dimensions in Public
Accounting Practice
Kathleen Herbohn
UQ Business School
The University of Queensland
Abstract
This paper investigates gender differences in
reported job satisfaction and career choices
revealed by a postal survey of accountants from
the Queensland Division of the Institute of
Chartered Accountants in Australia. Of
particular interest are levels of satisfaction with
remuneration and promotion. Two moderating
factors of career age and firm size are also
considered. Consistent with prior research,
female accountants reported dissatisfaction with
their opportunities for promotion. However,
unlike prior research there was no evidence of a
gender effect in remuneration levels, and in
reported satisfaction with remuneration. Nor
were there differences in satisfaction across age
bands, and public accounting firms of different
size. The link between satisfaction levels of
female accountants and their career choices of
leaving their current employer, moving to part-
time employment, or leaving the accounting
profession was also investigated. Consistent
with a large body of organisational and
accounting research, low levels of job
satisfaction were associated with higher
turnover intentions for female accountants.
1. Introduction
In recent years that has been much discussion
about gender effects and the so-called “glass
ceiling” for women in public accounting and
elsewhere (e.g. Hooks and Cheramy, 1989,
Pillsbury, Capozzoli and Ciampa, 1989, Reed,
Kratchman and Strawser, 1994). Gender issues
Key words: job satisfaction; turnover intentions, public
accounting practice
Acknowledgments: The author gratefully acknowledges
the assistance of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in
Australia for allowing access to their Queensland
membership. The research assistance of Anne Schuback
and Matthew Mullen is also appreciated.
are subject to high levels of scrutiny within the
accounting profession because men and women
are recruited to the profession in almost equal
numbers, yet only a small proportion of women
reach the higher levels of the profession such as
senior manager and partner. There appears to be
an inability to retain as many partners and
managers as desirable (e.g. Pillsbury et al., 1989;
Ferguson and Wine, 1993; Schwartz, 1996).
There is concern that women comprise a
significant proportion of those leaving the
profession, with the issue described as the
“corporate flight of women managers” (Hooks
and Chermay, 1994).
A large body of research exists on the barriers
that not only inhibit female accountants’ career
progression, but may also lead to their turnover.
The variables considered include family
obligations, negative stereotypes of women,
poor career planning, lack of mentors, and
unwillingness to confirm to organisational
norms. One finding to emerge from this
literature is that the motivation of women
accountants toward career advancement and
rewards is different to men (Kelsall and Leung,
1995; Dann, 1995; Hoddinott and Jarratt, 1998;
Morley, Bellamy, Jackson and O’Neill, 2002).
Women tend to place less emphasis on status,
financial reward and position. They place greater
emphasis on gaining recognition from others,
achieving a balanced lifestyle, and job
satisfaction. This paper investigates job
satisfaction as a key career expectation of female
accountants in public accounting practice in
Queensland, and explores potential career
outcomes associated with reported levels of
satisfaction. The career outcomes include not
only turnover intentions, but also alternate career
choices such as moving to part-time
employment or leaving the profession altogether.
Irrespective of any gender effects, an
investigation of job satisfaction of accountants
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ACCOUNTING RESEARCH JOURNAL VOLUME 18 NO 2 (2005)
64
in public practice is an important end in itself.
It is desirable from a behaviouralist view and it
is important for employers because of its direct
and indirect links with work motivation and
job-related performance.
1
Consequently, the
first objective of this paper is to add to the
existing knowledge of the career expectations
of public accountants in Australia through an
investigation of their levels of job satisfaction.
The second objective is to investigate possible
differences in job satisfaction between male
and female accountants. To date, there has only
been one Australian study of gender differences
in job satisfaction by Morley et al. (2002). The
current study will add to the small pool of
existing research. Of particular interest are
differences in the levels of job satisfaction for
documented areas of gender difference. These
areas include lower levels of remuneration for
women in the Australian accounting profession
(Morley, Bellamy, Jackson, and O’Neill, 2003),
and lower levels of representation in
management level positions (Kelsall and
Leung, 1995; Hoddinott and Jarratt, 1998).
Two moderating factors are age and firm
size. There is evidence that career expectations
change as accountants mature. This is
particularly the case for women who have been
found to exhibit more willingness to seek to
balance career and personal life at mid-career
age (30 to 49 years) (Kelsall and Leung, 1995,
Dalton, Hill and Ramsay, 1997; Hoddinott and
Jarratt, 1998, Morley et al., 2002). The third
objective of this paper is to examine the levels
of job satisfaction of accountants of early-
career age, mid-career age and advanced-career
across gender. An additional influence
considered is the prevailing work environment
in larger public accounting firms. This has been
highlighted as a factor in reducing satisfaction
levels for female accountants of mid-career age
1 The identified relations between job satisfaction and
work motivation and job-related performance are
complex and are not necessarily direct. While
satisfaction may be correlated with employees’
behaviour, it does not automatically follow that
satisfaction causes the behaviour (Lawler and Porter,
1969). It can be argued however, that even if
satisfaction proves not to be part of the causal chain, it
remains an important construct. Its correlation with
behaviour may make it a useful symptom of or clue to
organisational dysfunction, or it may affect work-related
behaviour indirectly (Balzer et al., 1990).
(Kelsall and Leung, 1995; Dalton et al., 1997).
To date, there has been no investigation of job
satisfaction for male and female accountants
across career ages that controls for firm size.
Consequently, the fourth objective of the paper
is to undertake such an investigation.
Finally, prior research suggests that job
satisfaction is a major career expectation of
women. It follows that job satisfaction plays an
important role in motivating female
accountants’ career choices. The fifth objective
of this paper is to examine the possible
outcomes that result from different levels of
satisfaction amongst female accountants,
including turnover intentions, and alternative
courses of action such as seeking part-time
employment or leaving the profession all
together.
The remainder of the paper is organised as
follows. Section two outlines the research
questions. The research method is discussed in
section three, the results and discussion of
results are contained in section four and
concluding comments follow in section five.
2. Gender and Job Satisfaction
There have not been many studies of the
levels of job satisfaction amongst Australian
public accountants. The supervisory factors
affecting job satisfaction amongst junior-level
accountants at non-Big Five and Big Five firms
have been by investigated Clabaugh, Monroe
and Soutar (2000). No significant differences in
satisfaction levels were found. Also, Stedham,
Yamamura, Taylor and Nelson (2002) have
undertaken a comparative study of the relation
between the levels of job satisfaction and
organisational factors for accountants in
Australia and the U.S.A. The organisational
factors considered include autonomy, feedback
on performance and access to job-related
information. Despite the cultural similarities
between Australia and U.S.A., significant
differences were found in how the
organisational variables related to the
satisfaction dimensions.
There has only been one Australian study by
Morley, et al. (2002) that has investigated
gender differences among accountants in their
level of current job satisfaction. They drew on
prior U.S. research that argued if gender-
specific barriers to women’s career progression
exist, they could be expected to contribute to
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Job Satisfaction Dimensions in Public Accounting Practice
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lower levels of job satisfaction among females
relative to males (e.g. Albrecht, Brown and
Field, 1981; Dean, Ferris and Konstans, 1988).
Morley’s et al. (2002) survey of a random
sample of members of CPA Australia revealed
gender differences in attitudes to promotion,
levels of ambition and career planning,
particularly amongst males and females of mid-
career age. Of relevance to this study was the
finding that ‘men were more satisfied with their
jobs than women, with most (82%) being
satisfied or very satisfied compared with just
over half (57%) of women’ (Morley et al.,
2002, p. 68).
Gender differences in reported job
satisfaction levels of Queensland public
accountant are investigated in the first research
question. The rationale of prior research is
adopted. That is, gender-specific barriers to
career advancement may be reflected in
reported lower levels of job satisfaction
amongst female accountants relative to male
accountants. The research question is stated as
follows.
Research question 1:
Do women report lower levels of satisfaction
than men in public accounting practice?
Job satisfaction is a multi-dimensional
construct. If only overall satisfaction is
assessed, which may be positive (negative), the
aspects of the job that are perceived as negative
(positive) are ignored. Two dimensions of
potential dissatisfaction for women in public
accounting are the ‘gender imbalance’
(Hoddinott and Jarratt, 1998) and gender
differences in remuneration (Morley, et al.,
2003). The so-called ‘gender imbalance’
describes the lack of female accountants in
senior positions within accounting firms in
Australia. Ferguson and Wines (1993), Kelsall
and Leung (1995), Hoddinott and Jarratt (1998)
and O’Neill, Bellamy, Jackson and Morley
(1998) have documented it in independent
studies. For example, Hoddinnott and Jarratt
(1998) examined the career progression of
females in public accounting practice in New
South Wales. They found that the gender
balance between males and females was at
equilibrium when both entered the profession at
20-22 year of age at the junior or trainee level.
However, this changed as males and females
progressed to managers, seniors and principals.
They observed the participation rate for women
at these senior levels ‘averages just 23% and
for men 77%. Further at the level of principal
the percentage of women is only 11%,
compared with men at 89%’ (Hoddinott and
Jarratt, 1998, p. 62). The second research
question considers this issue further and is
stated as follows:
Research question 2:
Do women report lower levels of satisfaction
with promotion opportunities than men in
public accounting practice?
Significant differences in the remuneration
received by male and female accountants
appointed at the same level have been widely
documented. Hoddinott and Jarratt (1998) and
O’Neill et al. (1998) have compared the
remuneration levels of male and female
accountants and found that on average women
earn less than their male counterparts. For
example, at the levels of managers/seniors and
principals in the study by Hoddinott and Jarratt
(1998), men received on average over 30 per
cent higher salaries than women. More
sophisticated analysis has also been undertaken
by O’Neill et al. (1998) and Morley et al.
(2003). These studies identified gender effects
in accountants’ remuneration even after
controlling for the length of experience, level
of responsibility and the type of work done.
2
Morley et al. (2003, p. 33) concluded that their
findings provided ‘evidence of discrimination
against women in deciding on individuals’
salaries.’ It follows that the documented gender
difference in remuneration levels would lead to
less satisfaction with remuneration amongst
female accountants than males. This is
considered in the third research question.
Research question 3:
Do women report lower levels of satisfaction
with remuneration than men in public
accounting practice?
The career expectations of accountants
change with age. As accountants move from an
early career phase (under 30 years old), to mid-
career (30 to 49 years) career choices are
required on career progression versus quality of
2 Morley et al. (2003) found this effect in all but the
taxation and information technology areas of
specialisation.
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life considerations (Kelsall and Leung, 1995;
Dalton et al., 1997; Hoddinott and Jarratt,
1998; Morley et al., 2002). Women in
particular face pressures from the trade-off
between work and non-work obligations at this
stage in their careers. It has been documented
that in response to these pressures, women on
average, are more inclined than men to forgo
career success if it threatens personal happiness
and balance in their life (Kelsall and Leung,
1995; Hoddinott and Jarratt, 1998; Morley et
al., 2002).
Only one study has considered the levels of
job satisfaction for male and female
accountants across career stages. In their survey
of CPA Australia members, Morley et al.
(2002) found that inter alia, although job
satisfaction scores increased with age, men
were on average more satisfied than women.
This was particularly the case in the 30 plus age
group. Variation in the levels of job satisfaction
and career stage for male and female
accountants is investigated in the fourth
research question of this paper. The career
stages considered are early-career (under 30
years), mid-career (30 to 49 years) and
advanced-career (50 years or more).
3
Research Question 4:
Are there differences in the reported levels of
satisfaction for accountants of early, mid or
advanced career age?
The prevailing work environment of
accounting firms has been identified as a
significant factor in the ability to balance work
and non-work commitments. In particular,
women in mid-career have been identified as
more dissatisfied with the large firm
environment (Big Six/Big Five
4
), and more
likely to move into smaller accounting
practices (Kelsall and Leung, 1995; Dalton et
al., 1997). A major contributing factor is the
smaller firm work environment that provides
them with the opportunity to balance work and
non-work commitments. For example, smaller
firms have been characterised largely on the
basis of anecdotal evidence as less stressful,
with greater work diversity, more job
3 These career stages are drawn from Morley et al.
(2002).
4 At the time most of this research was undertaken, it was
a Big Six/Big Five public accounting firm environment.
flexibility, and greater job security (Gaertner
and Ruhe, 1981; Ardoin, 1986; Patten, 1995).
In contrast, large accounting firms are
described as highly competitive, with
accountants driven by extreme work pressure
manifesting in long working hours and
extensive travel commitments (Dalton et al.,
1997). The competitive, long hours and highly
stressful conditions are not conducive to
balancing work and non-work commitments.
There has not been an investigation of the
levels of job satisfaction for male and female
accountants across career stages that controls
for firm size.
5
Prior research suggests that
women of mid-career age (30 to 49 years) are
more likely to report lower levels of job
satisfaction than male accountants when
employed in large accounting firms
6
(Kelsall
and Leung, 1995; Dalton et al., 1997). This
issue is investigated further in the fifth research
question.
Research Question 5:
Are there differences in the reported levels of
satisfaction on various dimensions of the job
for accountants of early, mid or advanced
career age after firm size is taken into account?
The approach adopted in this paper has been
that reported job satisfaction levels provide
preliminary insights into how the career
expectations of female accountants in public
practice are being met. A flow on question is
what are the likely career outcomes for female
accountants who are dissatisfied with their job
in general or with a dimension of the job such
as promotion opportunities or remuneration?
Of concern to the profession is the loss of
women accountants, particularly those of mid-
5 Morley et al. (2002) did control for the impact of firm
size and respondent’s age on reported job satisfaction
levels. However, their main focus was on gender
differences in satisfaction and they did not explore any
firm size effects.
6 A distinction is drawn in this paper between small firms
and large firms on the basis of the number of partners.
Small firms are defined as having less than 15 partners
and large firms as having 15 or more partners. This
measure of size was developed in consultation with staff
from the Membership Services section of the Institute of
Chartered Accountants in Australia (ICAA), who are
allowed access to their membership for this study.
Further details of sample selection are provided in
section three.
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Job Satisfaction Dimensions in Public Accounting Practice
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career age who have well-developed skills
bases. A desire to leave may manifest in an
intention to move to another firm, but a survey
of female chartered accountants in Victoria by
Kelsall and Leung (1995) has found that it may
also result in a move to part-time employment,
or from the accounting profession entirely. This
issue has not previously been investigated for
Australian accountants, and it is considered in
this paper. Specifically, the sixth research
question is concerned with what dimensions of
job satisfaction are more closely associated
with the formation of intentions to pursue
different career choices amongst female
accountants. The choices investigated include
moving to another firm, moving to part-time
employment or leaving the accounting
profession. It is stated as follows.
Research Question 6:
Are women accountants who are less satisfied
with the job in general, or aspects of the job
more likely to express an intention to leave
their current employment, to move to part-time
employment or to leave the accounting
profession?
3. Research Method
This section outlines the development of the
questionnaire used to collect the data, the
survey sample, and the sampling process.
3.1 Questionnaire Development
A six-page questionnaire was pre-tested on
employees from two public accounting firms,
one large and one small, to control for
ambiguity in questions, length, and relevance.
It contained two sections on career choices and
job satisfaction, and a third section collected
demographic data.
7
Section one contained the Job Descriptive
Index (JDI) designed by Smith, Kendall and
Hulen (1969). It is a cummulative-point,
adjective check list scale constructed to
measure five separate aspects of employees’
satisfaction that include work on present job,
7 The current investigation was part of a larger study by
Herbohn (2004) of the impact of mentoring on the
career processes of accountants. As a result, the
questionnaire also collected information relevant to
mentoring experiences. However, only the sections of
the questionnaire relevant to job satisfaction are
discussed in this paper.
present pay, opportunities for promotion,
supervision, and co-workers. To investigate the
possible gender differences in overall job
satisfaction levels, the job in general (JIG) scale
developed by Smith et. al (1987) was also
included in the questionnaire. The JIG scale
uses the same response format as the JDI and
measures a respondent’s overall evaluation of
their job as a weighting of all the components
of job satisfaction relevant to them (Smith et al.
1987).
8
Section two contained a measure of turnover
intentions based on the Intention To Quit (ITQ)
index developed by Jackofsky (1982).
9
The
modified ITQ comprises three questions on a
five point Likert scale relating to a respondent’s
intention to quit over the short-term, ranging
from ‘before long’ (item 1), through ‘soon’
(item 2) to ‘within the next several months’
(item 3). Responses to the three questions were
averaged to provide an overall estimate of a
respondent’s intention to quit their current
employment (Dean, Ferris and Konstans,
1988). The estimated reliability of the modified
ITQ scale was high, with a Cronbach
coefficient alpha of 0.94.
The second section also included a question
on a five point Likert scale on the possible
career choices by participants who were
considering leaving their current positions. The
options are drawn from the Kelsall and Leung
(1995) study of the career paths of female
chartered accountants in Victoria. They were
wait and see if the situation gets better, move to
another firm, do something different, and move
to part-time employment.
3.2 Sample and Sampling Process
The survey sample comprised 400 accountants
who were employed in public practice on a full-
time basis in large and small firms. They were
drawn from the membership of the Queensland
Division of the Institute of Chartered
Accountants in Australia (ICAA). Access to
8 Balzer et al. (1990) note that the JIG scale was
constructed to reflect the global, long-term evaluation of
the job. It is intended to reflect not only the five principal
facets and the importance of each to the individual, but
also their interactions and the contributions of other long-
term situation and individual factors that make a person
satisfied or dissatisfied with their job.
9 A more detailed discussion of the modification is
contained in Herbohn (2004).
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these members was conditional upon approval
of the survey instrument, sample size and
distribution technique by the ICAA’s
Membership Services. Upon approval, staff
from ICAA Membership Services randomly
selected the survey sample from their member
mailing list and distributed the survey kit. The
survey kit comprised a covering letter, a copy of
the survey instrument and a reply paid
envelope. Staff at the ICAA pre-numbered each
of the reply paid envelopes, which were
addressed to the researcher, thus ensuring
confidentiality for any responses made.
10
A total of 191 responses were received, after
staff from the ICAA Membership Services
followed up non-responses with a second mail-
out. Thirty incomplete questionnaires were
excluded to give a total of 161 usable responses.
This represented a response rate of 40.25 per
cent. Late responses were used as a proxy for
non-respondents to test whether the survey
responses were representative of the total
population (Oppenheim, 1966). No statistically
significant differences were found between the
mean variables of late responses and the
remaining responses, indicating that non-
response bias was not significant.
4. Results
The respondent population comprised 99 males
(62%) and 62 females (39%). The average age
was 33 years and the mean annual base salary
was $51,928. The primary areas of
responsibility of respondents included taxation
55 (34%), management advisory services 24
(15%), information system services 24 (15%),
auditing 16 (9%), insolvency 8 (5%) and a
combination of more than one of these areas 34
(21%). The organisation level categories
included 45 graduates/accountants (28%), 38
managers (24%), 11 senior managers/associates
(7%), 44 partners (27%) and 23 others
(consultancy-based employment – 14%).
Responses were drawn from large public
accounting firms (56 responses) and smaller
public accounting firms with less than 15
partners (105 responses).
Accountants who participated in the survey
reported generally high levels of satisfaction
10 Aggregated survey data was made available by the
author to respondents and the ICAA upon request.
with their job in general and with aspects of
their job measured by the Job Descriptive
Index (JDI). These results are summarised in
Table 1. Although it is not possible to define an
absolute level of job satisfaction above which
respondents can be identified as satisfied,
Balzer et al. (1990) suggest that in practice
there is a limited range on each JDI scale that
characterises people who feel neither good nor
bad about their job. A score of 27 out of a
possible score of 54 on each JDI scale has been
identified as this middle range. Consequently,
‘scores well above 27 (i.e. 32 or above)
indicate satisfaction, while those well below 27
(i.e. 22 or below) indicate dissatisfaction’
(Balzer et al., 1990, p. 23). On this basis, the
mean scores reported in Table 1 indicate that
accountants in Queensland public practice on
average are satisfied with their job in general,
the type of work, present remuneration,
promotional opportunities, supervision
received, and co-workers.
An analysis-of-variance (ANOVA) was
used to test the significance of the impact of
gender on reported satisfaction levels with job
dimensions, while controlling for the impact of
age, organisational level, size of employer and
area of specialisation (Puri, 2002). The results
are reported in Table 1.
The mean satisfaction levels of women in
Queensland public accounting practice are
lower for their job in general and on every
aspect of job satisfaction except for
remuneration. However, only the reported
satisfaction of women with opportunities for
promotion is statistically significantly lower
than the satisfaction of men with this aspect of
the job (F=6.612; p=0.024).
11
In general, the
results reported in Table 1 are not consistent
with the rationale underlying the first research
11 The controlled for variables were insignificant with two
exceptions. First, age, organisational level, and area of
specialisation were significant in the ANOVA with
satisfaction regarding remuneration levels as the
dependent variable. This indicates significant differences
in satisfaction with remuneration across age,
organisational level and specialisation. Second,
organisation level was significant in the ANOVA with
satisfaction regarding opportunities for promotion, which
suggests significant differences in satisfaction with
promotion opportunities across organisational levels.
These results are discussed in more detail in sections 4.1
and 4.2.
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Table 1
Reported job satisfaction levels of respondents with the job in general and
different dimensions of the job
Panel A: Reported job satisfaction for all respondents
Job satisfaction dimensions:
1
Mean Min. Max. SD
Work on present job 34.99 3 52 9.61
Present pay 37.02 4 54 12.64
Opportunities for promotion 31.01 2 54 15.98
Supervision 38.46 4 54 12.58
People on the present job 41.94 9 54 10.34
Job in general (JIG) 42.59 2 54 10.29
Panel B: ANOVA for gender impact on job satisfaction dimensions
2
Mean JDI score Gender
Job satisfaction dimensions: Males Females F P
Work on present job 35.61 34.03 2.601 0.131
Present pay 36.37 37.94 0.149 0.706
Opportunities for promotion 33.10 28.14 6.612 0.024*
Supervision 38.69 38.12 0.106 0.751
People on the present job 41.07 42.02 0.008 0.929
Job in general (JIG) 42.73 42.42 0.438 0.519
1. Job satisfaction dimensions were measured using the Job Descriptive Index (JDI) and Job In General (JIG) index.
Responses are scored to produce an aggregate score on each aspect of satisfaction from 0 to 54. The higher the score,
the more satisfied a respondent is with the aspect of their job. The scoring worked as follows. Respondents indicated
agreement or disagreement with each phrase or adjective relating to the five aspects of job satisfaction by marking a
‘yes’, ‘no’, or ‘cannot decide’. A ‘yes’ response to a positive adjective or phrase such as ‘challenging’ receives a score
of three, while a ‘no’ response to a positive adjective or phrase receives a score of zero. A ‘yes’ response to a negative
item such as ‘boring’ receives a score of zero, and a no response to a negative item receives a score of three. Each
‘cannot decide’ response is assigned a score of one.
2. An ANOVA was used to test for a gender effect for reported job satisfaction levels while controlling for age,
organisational level, size of employer and area of specialisation. The F tests reported are for the significance of the
impact of gender on the reported satisfaction levels with aspects of the job.
3. *Significance at 0.01 < x ! 0.05 level.
question that gender-specific barriers to
women’s career progression contributes to
significantly lower job satisfaction levels. The
second and third research questions consider
reported satisfaction with promotion
opportunities and remuneration. The results in
Table 1 are consistent with the predicted lower
satisfaction of women with promotional
opportunities, but not remuneration. Each of
these dimensions of satisfaction – promotion and
remuneration – is explored in turn.
4.1 Satisfaction with opportunities for
promotion
Low representation of women in senior
management positions within the accounting
profession is well documented. The lack of
career progression of female accountants to
senior levels occurs despite relatively equal
numbers of males and females entering the
profession at the graduate/trainee accountant
level. The career progression of respondents
within the randomly selected sample of public
accountants in this study is summarised in Table
2. Only 27 per cent of women surveyed had
reached senior management levels (senior
manager, associate, manager or principal)
compared to 47 per cent of male respondents.
This difference in career progression across
gender was statistically significant (?
2
= 5.560;
p=0.018).
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Table 2
Reported satisfaction levels with opportunities for promotion across gender
and organisational level
Panel A: Gender distribution across organisational levels
Females Males
Number % Number %
Non-senior management
1
35 73 48 53
Senior management
2
13 27 42 47
48 100 90 100
Excluding: ‘other’
3
14 9
Total 62 99
?
2
= 5.560*
(0.018)
Panel B: Satisfaction with promotion opportunities of accountants across organisational level
Mean JDI score on promotion
opportunities for the whole sample
4
Organisational level:
Graduate/accountant 29.86
Manager 33.00
Senior Manager /Associate 34.32
Partner /Principal 34.58
Other
3
24.43
1. Non-senior management = graduate/accountant and manager.
2. Senior management = senior manager/associate and partner/principal.
3. ‘Other’ includes consultancy-based employment on either a full-time or part-time basis.
4. Satisfaction with opportunities for promotion was measured using the Job Descriptive Index (JDI).
5. *Significance at 0.01 < x ! 0.05 level.
The second research question considers
whether this apparent gender difference in
career progression is reflected in reported
satisfaction levels. As previously shown in
Table 1, gender had a significant impact on
satisfaction with opportunities for promotion
(F=6.612; p=0.024) after controlling for the
impact of other confounding variables
including age, organisational level, area of
specialisation and firm size. That is, the mean
satisfaction with promotion reported by women
(JDI score of 28.14) was significantly lower
than the mean satisfaction levels reported by
men (mean JDI score of 33.10), after
controlling for relevant demographic and work
related factors. These results are consistent with
the predictions of the second research question.
The ANOVA also showed that respondents’
organisational level had a significant main
effect on satisfaction with promotional
opportunities (F=4.613; p=0.017).12 In fact,
organisational level accounted for a greater
amount of variation in satisfaction with
promotion (partial eta squared statistic=0.606)
than did gender (partial eta squared
statistic=0.355).
The impact of organisational level on
satisfaction with career progression is
considered further in Table 2. The mean
satisfaction score for respondents in the ‘other’
category – consultancy based employment on
either a full-time or part-time basis – was the
lowest for any organisational level (i.e. mean
score of 24.43 out of a possible 54). A mean
12 The F tests for controlled variables were not reported in
Table 1 because the focus of the testing was on gender
effects.
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score of 24.43 suggests dissatisfaction amongst
respondents with opportunities for career
progression when compared with Balzer’s et al.
(1990) dissatisfaction benchmark of a JDI score
of less than 27. The mean satisfaction scores
for respondents at the level of manager, senior
manager/associate, and partner/principal were
all above the benchmark of 32, which indicates
satisfaction (Balzer et al., 1990). Accountants
at the entry level of graduate/accountant had a
mean JDI score of 29.86. This suggests that
they are neither satisfied nor dissatisfied with
the opportunities for promotion.
4.2 Satisfaction with remuneration levels
Differences in remuneration levels between
male and female accountants have been
documented in previous research. As
background for an investigation of satisfaction
with remuneration, the remuneration levels of
Queensland accountants were assessed for
gender differences. The results are reported in
Table 3. The mean base salary of men was
$58,507 per annum compared to $42,059 per
annum for women in Queensland public
accounting practice. Males dominated the
higher remuneration bands. Twenty-four
percent of men surveyed earned greater than
$70,000 per annum (base salary) compared to
only 4 per cent of women. The difference in
remuneration levels across gender was
statistically significant.
These results need to be interpreted with
caution. There is the potential for other
variables that may account for the level of
remuneration to confound any gender effect.
Other variables that have been found to have an
influence on remuneration include the
organisational level attained (Nolan and
Brown, 1983; Morley et al., 2003), the size of
the employing organisation (Nolan and Brown,
1983), the area of specialisation (Morley et al.,
2003) and the age of the respondent (Hoddinott
and Harratt, 1998, Morley et al., 2001). An
ANOVA was used to test for a gender impact
on the annual base salary of accountants after
controlling for respondents’ age, organisational
level attained, size of employing firm, and area
of specialisation. The F tests are reported in
Table 3.
Gender was not significant as a main effect
on annual base salary, nor was it significant in
any interactions with the controlled for factors.
Firm size also did not have a significant impact.
Instead, organisational level, age and area of
specialisation had significant main impacts on
the level of remuneration reported by
respondents.
13
To explore this further, the mean
salaries of respondents are considered across
organisational level, age and area of
specialisation in Table 4.
From Table 4, the mean base salary of
accountants increased with organisational level
from $36,147 at the graduate accountant level
to $84,444 at the level of partner/sole
practitioner. The positive correlation between
remuneration and organisational level was
statistically significant (r
s
=0.342, p=0.000).
The average level of remuneration also
increased with age. Early career accountants on
average earned $42,591 while accountants of
advanced career reported a mean base salary of
$102,286. The positive relation between
remuneration and age was significant
(r
s
=0.380, p=0.000). Accountants with a
specialisation in insolvency reported the
highest levels of remuneration, with a mean
base salary of $64,116. In contrast, accountants
who specialised in more than one area reported
the lowest base salary of $44,926.
These results suggest that the initial gender
difference in remuneration levels - the
significantly higher average remuneration
levels of males compared to females – may
actually be due differences in the distribution
of males and females across organisation level,
age and area of specialisation. For example, a
significantly larger proportion of males
surveyed had reached senior management
levels compared to female accountants
(?
2
=5.560, p=0.018). This would mean that
men on average earn more due to their
organisational position. The majority of female
respondents were clustered in the early career
age band (i.e. 67%), while the majority of
males were located in the mid-career age group
(53%) (?
2
=13.374, p=0.001). Since
remuneration levels increased with career age,
males would on average report larger annual
base salaries than female respondents by virtue
of their age. Finally, a gender related effect
13 Age accounted for most of the variation in annual salary
(partial eta squared = 0.941), followed by organisational
level (partial eta squared = 0.803), and then area of
specialisation (partial eta squared = 0.795).
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Table 3
Remuneration levels across gender, organisational levels, age, specialisation
and size of employing firm
Panel A: Remuneration levels across gender
Females Males
Number % Number %
Remuneration bands:
Less than $30,000 11 21 2 3
$30,000-49,999 28 54 41 52
$50,000-69,999 11 21 15 19
$70,000-99,999 1 2 15 19
$100,000-149,999 1 2 2 3
$150,000-249,999 --- --- 2 3
More than $250,000 --- --- 1 1
52 100 78 100
Females Males
Mean annual base salary $42,059 $58,507
t-statistic 2.861
(0.005)*
Panel B: ANOVA for gender impact on remuneration levels
F P
Dependent variable: Annual base salary
Factors:
Gender 0.002 0.962
Organisational level 14.925 0.000**
Age 6.546 0.001**
Area of specialisation 8.550 0.002*
Size of employing firm 1.212 0.294
1. An ANOVA was used to test for a gender effect for annual base salaries while controlling for age, organisational level,
size of employer and area of specialisation. The F tests reported are for the significance of the impact of gender on the
annual base salaries of respondents.
2. Thirty-two of the respondents (10 females, 21 males) left the section of the questionnaire requiring remuneration details
blank.
3. Satisfaction with remuneration was measured using the Job Descriptive Index (JDI).
4. **Significance at x ! 0.001 level.
*Significance at 0.001 < x ! 0.005 level.
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Table 4
Remuneration levels across organisational levels, age and area of
specialisation
Factor
Males Females
Mean annual
base salary
No. % No. %
Organisational level:
Graduate/accountant $36,147 22 28 21 40
Manager $51,862 21 27 13 25
Senior Manager /Associate $58,375 5 7 3 6
Partner /Principal $84,444 23 29 4 8
Other
1
$38,108 7 9 11 21
78 100 52 100
r
s
= 0.342
(0.000)***
?
2
= 5.560
(0.018)*
Males Females
Mean annual
base salary
No. % No. %
Age bands:
Early career ( 49 years) $102,286 6 1 1 2
78 100 52 100
r
s
= 0.380
(0.000)***
?
2
= 13.374
(0.001)***
Males Females
Mean annual
base salary
No. % No. %
Area of specialisation:
Insolvency $64,116 6 8 2 4
Management and Advisory Services $55,676 11 14 6 12
Information systems $55,041 8 10 11 21
Taxation $52,679 30 38 14 26
Auditing $47,633 9 12 6 12
> one of the above $44,929 14 18 13 25
78 100 52 100
?
2
= 7.882
(0.163)
1. ‘Other’ includes consultancy-based employment on either a full-time or part-time basis.
2. Thirty-two of the respondents (10 females, 21 males) left the section of the questionnaire requiring remuneration details
blank.
3. Spearman rank correlations were run between the factor under consideration and annual base salaries. The correlation
coefficient is reported with its significance in parentheses.
4. Chi-square test for differences in distribution of males and females across factors under consideration are reported, with
significance levels in parentheses.
5. * * * Significance at x ! 0.001 level; * * Significance at 0.001 < x < 0.01 level; * Significance at 0.01! x ! 0.05 level.
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for the area of specialisation is not clear. There
was a slightly larger proportion of males than
females engaged in the more highly
remunerated areas of insolvency (8% compared
to 4%), and management advisory services
(14% compared to 12%). However, the
proportion of males to females across different
specialisations was not significant (?
2
=7.882,
p=0.163).
The third research question was informed by
prior evidence that there are differences in the
remuneration of males and females after
controlling for experience, level of
responsibility and type of work done (e.g.
Morley et al. 2003). On this basis it was
predicted that women would report lower
satisfaction levels with remuneration. The
results of this paper are not consistent with this
prediction on two counts. First, there was no
evidence of a significant gender difference in
remuneration levels of Queensland public
accountants after controlling for demographic
and work environment factors.
Second, from Table 1 there was no
significant gender impact on satisfaction with
remuneration levels (F=0.149; p=0.706) in an
ANOVA that controlled for age, organisational
level, area of specialisation and firm size.
Instead, respondents’ satisfaction with their
remuneration was significantly effected by age
(F=4.129; p=0.004), organisational level
(F=3.277; p=0.046), and area of specialisation
(F=2.530; p=0.082). Reported satisfaction with
remuneration across age, organisational level
and specialisation is explored further in
Table 5.
From Table 5, respondents’ satisfaction with
remuneration increased with organisational
level. The mean JDI score for remuneration
was 34.73 at the graduate level, which rose to
38.84 amongst partners and sole practitioners.
Table 5
Reported satisfaction with remuneration across age, organisational level,
and area of specialisation
Factor Mean Satisfaction with remuneration (JDI)
1
Organisational level:
Graduate/accountant 34.73
Manager 36.76
Senior Manager /Associate 36.73
Partner /Principal 38.84
Other
2
38.35
Age bands:
Early career (< 30 years) 35.97
Mid-career (30-49 years) 37.01
Advanced-career (> 49 years) 43.09
Area of specialisation:
Insolvency 34.00
Management & Advisory Services 38.52
Information systems 36.08
Taxation 35.56
Auditing 38.67
> one of the above 38.91
1. Satisfaction with remuneration was measured using the Job Descriptive Index (JDI). Responses are scored to produce
an aggregate score on each aspect of satisfaction from 0 to 54. The higher the score, the more satisfied a respondent is
with the aspect of their job.
2. ‘Other’ includes consultancy-based employment on either a full-time or part-time basis.
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Table 6
Job satisfaction levels of accountants across career age groups and gender
Panel A: Distribution of survey sample across career age bands
Males Females Total
No % No. % No. %
Career age groups:
Early career (< 30 years) 32 32 37 60 69 43
Mid-career (30-49 years) 57 58 24 38 81 50
Advanced-career (> 49 years) 10 10 1 2 11 7
99 100 62 100 161 100
Panel B: Mean reported satisfaction levels across gender and career age bands
Mean score on job satisfaction dimension
Early-career age Mid-career age Advanced-career age
Male Female Male Female Male Female
Satisfaction dimensions:
1
Work on present job 38.20 32.23 34.98 36.00 42.00 21.00
Present pay 35.23 36.59 35.45 40.58 45.00 24.00
Opportunities for promotion 36.65 31.50 29.40 22.10 38.60 34.00
Supervision 40.13 36.17 36.27 42.43 44.70 18.00
People on the present job 39.81 40.62 42.13 45.22 49.00 20.00
Job in general (JIG) 40.97 42.19 42.84 43.21 47.80 32.00
1. Job satisfaction dimensions were measured using the Job Descriptive Index (JDI) and general job satisfaction was
measured using the Job in General (JIG) index.
Satisfaction levels with remuneration also
increased with respondents’ age. The average
JDI satisfaction score was 35.97 for early-
career age respondents, which increased to an
average score of 43.09 for advanced-career age
accountants. There is no clear pattern in
satisfaction levels across areas of specialisation.
For example, accountants working in
insolvency reported the lowest satisfaction with
remuneration levels (mean score 34.00),
despite on average earning the highest annual
salaries. Similarly, accountants specialising in
information systems earned the third highest
level of remuneration, but reported the second
lowest satisfaction levels with remuneration
(mean score of 36.08).
4.3 The Impact of Accountants’ Career
Stage
A documented awareness of female
accountants, particularly of 30 plus years of age,
to choices between career progression and
quality of life may lead to lower satisfaction
levels compared to males. The fourth research
question considers this issue. Sixty per cent of
female respondents were of early career age (<
30 years), followed by 38 per cent at mid-career
age (30-49 years). The majority of male
respondents (58%) were of mid-career age, and
then early career age (32%). In the advanced
career age group (49+ years), there was only one
female respondent compared to 10 male
respondents (10%). Table 6 presents a summary
of these demographic details. ANOVAs with
the five dimensions of job satisfaction as the
dependent variable in each case, did not find
career age to be significant.
14
Nor, was age
significant in any interactions with other
variables including gender, organisational
level, area of specialisation and firm size. In
terms of the fourth research question, there is
no evidence of differences in job satisfaction
14 The one exception was that satisfaction with
remuneration was significantly impacted by age. This
result was previously explored in section 4.2.
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between males and females accountants from
different age groups.
This result is not consistent with prior
evidence that job satisfaction increases with
age, and that men are more satisfied than
women, particularly in the over 30 years age
groups (Morley et al., 2002). Although age was
not significant for reported satisfaction levels in
this study, Table 6 reports satisfaction levels
across age and gender for completeness.
General job satisfaction job increased with
age for men who reported mean Job-In-General
(JIG) scores of 40.97, 42.84 and 47.80
respectively for early-career, mid-career and
advanced-career age bands. Satisfaction also
increased with age for women, who reported
mean JIG scores of 42.19 for early career age
and 43.21 for mid-career age. Since there was
only one female respondent of advanced career
age it is not possible to generalise about this age
group. There was also a general upward trend in
reported satisfaction with the specific job
dimensions of work on present job,
remuneration, supervision, and colleagues as the
age of respondents increased. This trend was
evident for men and women accountants. For the
remaining job satisfaction dimension of
opportunities for promotion, men and women of
mid-career age reported lower satisfaction levels
(mean scores of 29.40 and 22.10 respectively)
than either early-career age (mean scores of
36.65 and 31.50 respectively) or advanced career
age respondents (mean scores of 38.60 and 34
respectively) of the same gender.
4.4 The Impact of Employing Firm Size
The prevailing work environment within
firms of different size may be related to
gender differences in job satisfaction
amongst accountants of a particular age group.
Specifically, women of mid-career age have
been identified as less satisfied than men in the
same age band due to the difficulties of
balancing work and non-work commitments
within a large firm environment. The fifth
research question considers this issue.
The survey comprised 105 accountants
employed in small firms (i.e. firms with less
than 15 partners), of whom 57 per cent were of
mid-career age, 36 per cent were of early-
career age, and 7 per cent were of advanced-
career age. In contrast, more respondents from
large firms with more than 15 partners were of
early-career age (55%), while the remainder
were of mid-career age (38%) and advanced-
career age (7%). Sample details are reported in
Table 7.
ANOVAs with the five dimensions of job
satisfaction as the dependent variable in each
case did not find show firm size to be
significant. Nor, was firm size significant in
any interactions with other variables including
age and gender. In terms of the fifth research
question, there is no evidence of differences in
the satisfaction of accountants from firms of
different size, irrespective of their career stage
and gender.
Although firm size is not significant for
reported satisfaction levels in this study,
satisfaction levels across firm size, for men and
women in the mid-career age group are reported
in Table 7 for completeness. Mean satisfaction
scores for women of mid-career age employed
in large firms were actually higher than for men
on general job satisfaction, remuneration,
supervision and colleagues. Only satisfaction
levels with the work and promotional
opportunities were lower. Within small firms,
mid-career aged women were more satisfied
than men with their job in general, remuneration,
supervision, colleagues and also the type of
work. They were only less satisfied with the
available opportunities for promotion.
4.5 Job Satisfaction and Career Outcomes
For Female Accountants
Female accountants on average emphasise job
satisfaction over status and financial reward
(Dalton et al., 1995; Kelsall and Leung, 1995;
Hoddinott and Jarratt, 1998). An interesting
issue that has not previously been investigated is
whether job satisfaction levels are related to
alternate career choices. This issue is considered
in the sixth research question.
The associations between reported job
satisfaction levels of female accountants in
Queensland public practice and their potential
career choices are summarised in Table 8.
General job satisfaction and satisfaction with the
nature of work, and the quality of supervision
were significantly associated with lower
turnover intentions as measured by the modified
Intention To Quit (ITQ) index. Higher scores for
these aspects of job satisfaction were also
significantly associated with a higher reported
intention to wait to see if the situation improved.
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Table 7
Job satisfaction levels reported by male and female accountants of different
age groups employed in firms of different size
Panel A: Distribution of respondents across age bands within large and small firms
Small firms
(< 15 partners)
Large firms
(? 15 partners)
No. % No. %
Career age group:
Early-career age 38 36 31 55
Mid-career age 60 57 21 38
Advanced-career age 7 7 4 7
105 100.0 56 100.0
Panel B: Job satisfaction levels for males and females of mid-career age employed in large and
small firms
Small firms
(< 15 partners)
Large firms
(? 15 partners)
Males Females Males Females
JDI dimensions:
1
Work on present job 42.18 42.75 44.44 45.50
Present pay 33.23 36.20 39.12 35.00
Opportunities for promotion 36.37 40.80 33.41 39.50
Supervision 28.77 21.41 30.67 25.00
People on the present job 36.67 42.12 35.65 43.75
Job in general (JIG) 40.95 45.05 44.82 46.00
1. Job satisfaction dimensions were measured using the Job Descriptive Index (JDI) and Job In General (JIG) index.
Responses are scored to produce an aggregate score on each aspect of satisfaction from 0 to 54.
It is not surprising that this career choice
identified by Kelsall and Leung (1995) is
associated with the same dimensions of job
satisfaction as the ITQ index because an
expressed intention to wait for the situation to
improve is really an indicator of turnover
intentions. The second career alternative ‘move
to another firm’ is also a measure of turnover
intentions. However, only low levels of general
job satisfaction were significantly associated
with the intention to pursue this career
alternative. For the remaining career choices of
‘move to part-time employment’ and ‘do
something different to accounting’, no
significant association was found with any
dimension of job satisfaction for women in
Queensland public accounting practice.
5. Discussion and Concluding
Comments
Accountants employed within Queensland
public accounting firms are on average
generally satisfied with their jobs. Their mean
responses also suggest satisfaction with specific
dimensions of the job including the nature of
their work, remuneration levels, quality of
supervision, and colleagues.
Female accountants reported lower
satisfaction levels with their job in general,
type of work, colleagues, quality of
supervision, and opportunities for promotion
than did their males counterparts. However,
only satisfaction with promotions was
significantly lower amongst females. On this
basis, there is little evidence of gender
differences in satisfaction that might be
symptomatic of gender-specific barriers to
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career progression and ultimately the retention
of women within public practice.
These results contrast with the only other
Australian study of gender differences in the
job satisfaction of accountants. Morley et al.
(2002) found that females are significantly less
satisfied than males with aspects of their
careers that included the opportunity for
development of skills, the extent of control
over their own work, the organisational culture,
the flexibility and control they had over their
working hours, interpersonal relations with
other staff, support to develop both
professionally and personally, development of
skills which will assist in future career
progression elsewhere, and their current
employers’ procedures for promotion and
opportunities for equal promotion.
A contributing factor to the inconsistency
between the current study and Morley et al.
(2002) may be the different survey sample
sizes. In the current study, 400 public
accountants in only one Australian state were
surveyed, with ultimately 161 useable
responses received. In contrast, Morley et al.
(2002) surveyed 3000 public accountants
Australia-wide from many sectors including
public practice, industry and government, with
a total of 1,181 usable responses received.
Table 8
Association between reported job satisfaction levels of female accountants
and potential career choices
Potential career choice
1
ITQ
2
Wait and see if
the situation
gets better
Move to
another firm
Move to
part-time
employment
Do
something
different to
accounting
JDI dimensions:
3
Work on present
job
-0.413
(0.001)**
-0.266
(0.047)*
-0.162
(0.233)
-0.195
(0.150)
-0.118
(0.387)
Present pay -0.195
(0.130)
-0.117
(0.389)
0.055
(0.688)
0.124
(0.363)
0.051
(0.709)
Opportunities for
promotion
-0.003
(0.985)
-0.028
(0.839)
-0.113
(0.418)
-0.120
(0.388)
-0.015
(0.915)
Supervision -0.489
(0.000)***
-0.315
(0.019)*
0.176
(0.200)
-0.084
(0.543)
-0.180
(0.189)
People on the
present job
-0.190
(0.143)
-0.163
(0.234)
0.023
(0.870)
-0.020
(0.885)
-0.130
(0.343)
Job in general
(JIG)
-0.482
(0.000)***
-0.400
(0.002)**
0.136
(0.018)*
-0.073
(0.592)
-0.063
(0.643)
1. The career alternatives are drawn from the study of Kelsall and Leung (1995). A five-point Likert scale was used for
career alternatives that ranged from 1=strongly agree to 5=strongly disagree. A low score on the scale of 1-5 indicates a
higher likelihood of the respondent aspiring to the particular career choice.
2. The ITQ index is drawn from Jackofsky (1982), and uses a five-point Likert scale that ranged from 1=strongly agree to
5=strongly disagree. Since the ITQ contained items concerned with a respondent leaving their current position, the
lower the score, the lower the turnover intentions of the respondent.
3. Job satisfaction dimensions were measured using the Job Descriptive Index (JDI) and Job In General (JIG) index.
Responses are scored to produce an aggregate score on each aspect of satisfaction from 0 to 54. The higher the score,
the more satisfied a respondent is with the aspect of their job.
4. Spearman rank correlation coefficients are reported with significance levels shown in parentheses directly below.
5. * Significance at 0.01 < x ! 0.05 level.
** Significance at 0.001 ! x ! 0.01
*** Significance at x < 0.001
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Future research using a large sample of
accountants would be useful to bring clarity to
the mixed evidence on gender differences in
satisfaction.
5.1 Satisfaction with Promotion and
Remuneration
The one area of significant gender difference
identified amongst Queensland public
accountants related to opportunities for
promotion. Women reported significantly
lower satisfaction with promotion opportunities
than men, after controlling for age,
organisational level, firm size and area of
specialisation. Morley et al. (2002) similarly
found that females were less satisfied than
males with promotion procedures and the
availability of equal promotion opportunities.
15
The emerging evidence from Morley et al.
(2002) and the current study suggests a
potential problem with the advancement
opportunities available to women within the
Australian accounting profession. It is an issue
that warrants further research. Ideally, this
would involve the collection of primary data
relating to promotion opportunities rather than
reported perceptions via surveys of
accountants. However, data access will be
difficult given the sensitive and confidential
nature of the required data.
While gender was a significant main effect
on satisfaction with promotion opportunities, a
respondent’s organisational level was also
important. Dissatisfaction with promotion was
concentrated amongst accountants in
consultancy-based employment on either a
part-time or full-time basis. A potential reason
for the dissatisfaction of respondents engaged
in consulting may be that this group comprises
accountants who have been unable to progress
to senior management levels and have
consequently left to start their own consultancy.
The group may also include females who have
sought part-time employment to balance work
15 Morley et al. (2002) used a Likert scale of ‘1=very
dissatisfied’ to ‘5=very satisfied’ to measure satisfaction
levels. The mean scores on promotion procedures and
equal promotion opportunities for women were 2.90 and
3.21 respectively. For men, the mean score for
satisfaction on promotion procedures was 3.16 and the
mean score on equal promotion opportunities was 3.53.
The differences were statistically significant at less than
0.001.
and non-work commitments. There is some
support for this since a larger proportion of
female respondents were engaged in consulting
(i.e. 23%) relative to males (9%).
Unfortunately, a limitation of the survey
methodology used in this study is that it is not
possible to explore these potential reasons
further. It is an interesting area for future
investigation.
Another potential area for gender differences
in satisfaction relates to remuneration. Based
on the annual salaries reported by survey
respondents, on average female accountants
earned significantly less than males. However,
the gender effect dissipated when other
variables that influence remuneration were
controlled for in the analysis. In fact, annual
salaries increased with respondents’ age and
organisational level, and there were differences
in remuneration for accountants in different
specialisations. It follows that gender
differences in remuneration levels were due to
the distribution of male and female accountants
across age bands, organisational levels and
specialisations. For example, on average males
earned more because a larger proportion of
them were employed in senior positions and a
larger proportion of them were of mid-career
age and advanced-career age relative to
females. Also, a larger proportion of males than
females were engaged in the more highly
remunerated areas of insolvency, and
management advisory services.
The lack of evidence of disparity in
remuneration between male and female
accountants in Queensland public practice
contrasts with the results of prior research.
Morley et al. (2003) found a significant and
separate gender difference in the remuneration
of Australian accountants after taking into
account the impact of organisational position,
job function, experience, firm size,
interruptions to career (number of parental
leave absences), work fraction (part-time, full-
time), and sector. The issue of gender bias in
remuneration packages is important, and in
light of the mixed results from the current study
and Morley et al. (2003), future research on
this issue is worthwhile.
Male and female accountants in Queensland
public practice reported comparable levels of
satisfaction with their remuneration. This is
consistent with the inability to identify a gender
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bias in remuneration. Rather than gender,
respondents’ organisational level, age and area
of specialisation significantly impacted on
satisfaction with remuneration. Satisfaction
increased as accountants progressed through
organisational levels and as they became older.
Also, accountants engaged in insolvency were
least satisfied with current remuneration levels
compared to accountants specialising in
auditing who were most satisfied. Interestingly,
Morley’s et al. (2002) investigation of
satisfaction with job aspects also revealed no
significant difference between the satisfaction
levels of men and women with their
remuneration package. Similar to the current
study in which the mean satisfaction score of
women with remuneration (37.94 out of 54)
was actually higher than the mean score for
men (36.37 out of 54), Morley et al. (2002)
found that women reported higher mean
satisfaction scores with remuneration (3.44 out
of 5) than men (3.39 out of 5). However, the
differences in both studies were not significant.
5.2 Career Age and Firm Size
Average job satisfaction amongst accountants
increases with age (Hoddinott and Jarratt,
1998; Morley et al., 2002). A similar upward
trend in satisfaction with the job in general and
the dimensions of the nature of work,
remuneration, quality of supervision and
colleagues was found amongst Queensland
public accountants. However unlike prior
research, the general increase in satisfaction as
accountants mature was not significantly
greater for men than for women.
A sensitivity of female accountants,
particularly of mid-career age (30 to 49 years),
to the trade-offs between work commitments
versus non-work obligations and quality of life
has been previously documented. In the current
study, it was expected to manifest itself in
lower reported satisfaction for women
compared with men. No evidence was found to
support this proposition even amongst
accountants of mid-career age. The lack of
significant results may reflect the small survey
sample. For example, there were only 54 male
respondents and only 24 female respondents of
mid-career age. Future research using a larger
sample of public accountants of mid-career age
would be valuable.
There is Australian and U.S. evidence that
the prevailing work environment of large
public accounting firms is not conducive to
balancing work and non-work commitments.
Women of mid-career age who are more likely
to have family commitments, have been
identified as more dissatisfied with the large
firm environment and thus more likely to move
to smaller firms (Kelsall and Leung, 1995;
Dalton et al., 1997). The current study is the
first direct investigation of this issue. No
evidence was found to support gender
differences in satisfaction levels for
Queensland accountants working in large firms
compared to small firms. Firm size had no
significant impact on reported satisfaction
levels as an independent variable, or in any
interaction with age and gender.
A possible factor in the insignificant results
is the firm size category of large and small.
16
It
may have been more informative to use a Big
Three/Big Four and non-Big Three/Big Four
size variable. Another contributing factor may
be the small survey sample size. An interesting
area for future research would be to collect data
on the potential influence of the prevailing
work environment in large Big Three public
accounting firms from a large survey sample.
Semi-structured interviews with men and
women, particularly of mid-career age, could
supplement the survey results. The interview
data would provide in-depth insights that are
not possible from postal surveys, and would
also alleviate size classification issues.
5.3 Career Outcomes
Prior research has focussed on the issue of
whether there are gender differences in job
satisfaction (Reed et al., 1994; Morley et al.,
2002). The rationale has been that such
differences are a reflection of underlying issues
including gender-barriers to career progression
and an inability to retain women in public
practice. The current study extended this
research in a new direction by investigating the
consequences, if any, of different levels of
satisfaction for the alternate career choices
considered by females. There is a large body of
evidence from organisational and accounting
16 This size categorisation was selected in consultation
with staff from ICAA Membership Services, who
assisted in the distribution of the survey.
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research that low job satisfaction levels are
associated with high turnover intentions (e.g.
Reed et al., 1994; Bullen and Flamholtz, 1985;
Albrecht et al., 1981). Thus, one obvious career
choice to investigate was turnover intentions.
Females in Queensland public accounting
practice who reported low levels of satisfaction
with their job in general and the dimensions of
work and supervision were significantly more
likely to express an intention to quit, and not
remain in their current position to see if their
situation improved.
Prior research by Kelall and Leung (1995)
documented frustration amongst women
accountants because of their inability to
advance to senior positions in the same
proportion as men. One identified consequence
was that on average these females become
dissatisfied and leave the accounting profession
altogether. In the current study, women were
found to be less satisfied than men with the
opportunities for advancement. However, no
significant association was found between
females’ reported satisfaction with promotion
opportunities and an intention to leave the
accounting profession to try something
different. Further, low satisfaction levels with
promotion opportunities were not associated
with an intention to quit or to move to part-time
employment.
These results pose an interesting question
for future consideration. Why is there no
apparent flow-on from female accountants’
dissatisfaction with promotion opportunities to
their career choices? Does this reflect what
researchers such as Morley et al. (2002) have
described as attitudinal barriers to women’s
career progression in accounting? They found
female accountants to be less ambitious and
less inclined to plan for career success than
their male counterparts. An interesting issue is
whether such gender attitudinal differences
contribute to an apparent lack of intention of
dissatisfied females to proactively seek to
change their situation by leaving their employer
or even leaving the accounting profession.
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