Raising one’s voice at accounting frauds in Brazil: an examination on the effect of the existence of multiple reporting channels on employee whistleblowing intention
um exame sobre o efeito da existência de múltiplos canais de denúncia na intenção de whistleblowing do empregado
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.18696/reunir.v14i1.1749Keywords:
Whistleblowing, Reporting channels, Accounting fraudAbstract
The objective of the study was to provide initial evidence for the Brazilian scenario about the whistleblowing intentions of employees, when multiple communication channels are available. The methodology used was a quasi-experiment, with the application of a questionnaire, which resulted in a final sample of 271 participants, mostly professionals in the accounting area. Respondents were exposed to a simulated scenario of accounting fraud, being asked to sequentially indicate their intention to report the observed fact, without indicating any channel, then to an anonymous channel and finally to a series of non-anonymous channels. Data analyses were performed using the Wilcoxon non-parametric test to compare related groups. The results show that 73% of the participants in the experiment intend to report the reported fraud and only 12% indicate their intention not to report. When participants are informed about the channels, the intention to report decreases, being 42% for the use of anonymous channels and 54% for the use of non-anonymous channels. The results do not reveal the prevalence of the intention to report to the anonymous channel in the case of the Brazilian employee, unlike in other countries. The effect of multiple whistleblowing channels on Brazilian employees' intention points to a preference for non-anonymous channels, with emphasis on the most direct line of subordination. The results suggest the need to improve internal reporting programs, with training for employees and management members (communicators and receivers), to enhance the effect of the reporting mechanism as a management tool
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