Dennis F. Togo

Computer integration into the accounting curriculum: Learning benefits, problems, and guidelines

Abstract The successes and difficulties reported by accounting educators are used to identify learning benefits and problems associated with computer integration. Many of the learning benefits posited for computer use relate to characteristics inherent in computers. On the other hand, many of the problems created by computer integration generally result from assignments that do not facilitate the learning of accounting. The authors present three guidelines for computer use which rely on learning theory instead of the capabilities of the computer.

Gender Effects of Graphics Presentation

AbstractThis study examined the effects of presentation format on performance on mathematical test items for 114 accounting students. The characteristic of gender was believed to have a moderating effect on performance on these test items. Students were assigned either a graphical or a tabular format on four sets of data. Results indicated that males performed better than females, and individuals receiving the tabular format outperformed those receiving the graphics format. Presentation format must be considered in determining appropriate mathematical testing to prevent bias due to individual differences.

A spreadsheet approach to stochastic financial modeling

Abstract Accounting educators acknowledge that a drawback of spreadsheets is their singular estimate of results. Even though spreadsheets provide techniques for sensitivity analysis, their users are hampered in assessing uncertainty within a modeled relationship. The purpose of this article is to demonstrate that risk analysis can now be easily performed on spreadsheets using add-ins having statistical forecasting and simulation capabilities.

Quantitative information presentation and gender: an interaction effect

The authors investigated whether performance on mathematical test items would be influenced by an interaction between presentation format and gender. One hundred fourteen students in a management accounting course were randomly assigned either to a tabular format or to a graphics format. There were significant main effects for gender and presentation format; men outperformed women, and the subjects who received the tabular format outperformed the subjects who received the graphics format. A significant interaction supported the existence of a conditional relationship between performance on mathematical test items and presentation format. This relationship varied as a function of gender (symmetry permits the interchange of presentation format and gender). Simple effects for the interaction determined that the women who received the graphics presentation did not perform as well as their male counterparts, or as well as other women and men who received the tabular format. The results of this study indicate that presentation format is an important consideration in gender differences for mathematics performance.

Support Department Cost Allocations with a Matrix-Based Reciprocal Approach

The reciprocal method for allocating support department costs is preferred over the direct and step-down methods because it captures all support services provided to other departments. However, even as business organizations increase the number of support departments and their costs, the adoption of the reciprocal method has been hindered by mathematical difficulties in solving simultaneous equations. This paper illustrates spreadsheet matrix functions that remove the difficulties associated with the reciprocal method. The algebraic expressions for reciprocated costs commonly presented in accounting textbooks are used to form an equivalent matrix relationship. Then spreadsheet matrix functions easily compute reciprocated costs for support departments from the matrix relationship, and also allocate the reciprocated costs to other departments.

A curvilinear approach to teaching learning effects for cost estimation

Abstract Where learning induced improvement is present, the learning curve describes an empirical relationship between output quantities and labor hours consumed. Even though estimating the learning curve is an important aspect of cost estimation, most managerial and cost accounting textbooks do not perform an analysis of historical data in specifying the learning model and its learning rate to predict labor hours consumed. Most textbooks introduce the log-linear learning curve model and then use variations of it to predict labor hours for specified output quantities given a common learning rate. While the logarithmic linear transformation of the underlying mathematical power function can be taught with spreadsheets, the more direct and appealing curvilinear data analysis of the innate power function can be just as easily performed. The analysis of curvilinear data to formulate a power function for learning and to estimate a learning rate makes the student acutely aware that not all cost behavior is linear. The Akamai Missile Company case illustrates a realistic and enriching data analysis for learning curves and their impact on cost estimation.