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on these findings it appears that the students participating in this study were positive and had high expectations of the rewards they would receive when following a career in accounting. It is therefore not surprising that the great majority of respondents showed intentions of following a career in the field.
In order to establish whether the intrinsic and extrinsic rewards investigated in this study have a significant influence on the Intentions of students to follow a career in accounting, a multiple regression analysis was undertaken. The significant relationships identified are summarised in Figure 2.
Intrinsic rewards · Stimulating and flexible Hla · Stress H1b
Extrinsic rewards · Wealth and financial security H2a · Future prospects H2b · Community service and respect H2c
FIGURE 2: SUMMARY OF MOST SIGNIFICANT FINDINGS
The findings of this study showed that the rewards Future prospects and Stimulating and flexibility exerted a significant positive influence on Intentions, whereas Stress reported a negative influence. These identified relationships will be interpreted and recommendations made in the paragraphs that follow.
The results show that Future prospects exerted the greatest influence on Intentions. This implies that the more accounting students perceived a career in accounting as being likely to provide them with the opportunity to grow personally and professionally, to advance in their field of expertise and to follow their dream, the more likely they are to follow a career in accounting.
The following recommendations are put forward in this regard:
Ÿ Before pursuing a career in accounting, potential accounting students should research whether following such a career will indeed enable them to achieve their dream and give them the opportunity to grow personally and professionally. In many cases the dreams of individuals do not match reality, and these discrepancies could result in a dream not being realised. Through research students could prevent disappointments in the future.
Ÿ Accounting educators should guide students with regard to what to expect when pursuing a career in accounting. Accounting students should attend employability workshops when these are offered. Students would then know at an early stage in their studies what to expect from the accounting profession before entering the work place.
Ÿ Professional accountants and accounting clerks can share their experiences by giving lunch- hour talks to accounting students. They can guide students on how to achieve their goals and how to advance in the accounting field. This will enable students to know what is expected when entering the profession.
Hla p<0.001; H1bp<0.05 Intentions
H2b p<0.001; H2a and H2c = Not significant
INVESTIGATING THE INFLUENCE OF EXPECTED REWARDS ON THE CAREER INTENTIONS OF ACCOUNTING STUDENTS 768