Assessment of sustainable development and knowledge of environmental management. Internal auditors' perspectives
| Published date | 01 July 2006 |
| Date | 01 July 2006 |
| Pages | 896-909 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/02635570610671542 |
| Author | Kuang‐Hsun Shih,Hsueh‐Ju Chen,Jason C.H. Chen |
| Subject Matter | Economics,Information & knowledge management,Management science & operations |
Assessment of sustainable
development and knowledge of
environmental management
Internal auditors’ perspectives
Kuang-Hsun Shih
Department of Banking and Finance, Chinese Culture University, Taipei,
Taiwan, Republic of China
Hsueh-Ju Chen
Department of Accounting, National Chung Hsing University, Taichung,
Taiwan, Republic of China, and
Jason C.H. Chen
Graduate School of Business, Gonzaga University, Spokane, Washington, USA
Abstract
Purpose – To examine whether there are differences with respect to internal auditors’ attitude
toward environmental protec tion, cognizance of environme ntal auditing and environmen tal
knowledge.
Design/methodology/approach – A questionnaire survey based research method is used and a
Mann-Whitney U-test as well as a T-test is applied on this data.
Findings – There is no difference between internal auditorsin the manufacturing industry and those
in the service industry with respect to environmental awareness and cognizance of environmental
auditing. Yet there is a significant difference with respect to knowledge of environmental protection.
Research limitations/implications – This study is limited to that of inter nal auditors’
perspectives.
Practical implications – Internal auditors are the “watch dogs” for firm s to implement
environmental management so that strengthening their environmental knowledge is required.
Originality/value – This study reveals internal auditors’ perception toward env ironmental
management in both high- and low-pollution industries that go beyond green auditing issues.
Keywords Sustainable development, Environmentalmanagement, Internal auditing
Paper type Research paper
Introduction
The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) has promulgated the
international ISO-14000 series of environmental management standards, the most
evident development being a complete “environmental management system.” This
ecological whirlwind has quickly grabbed the attention of business executives,
increasing the importance they attach to environmental awareness. Related studies
(Klassen and McLaughlin, 1996; Russo and Fouts, 1997; Andrews et al., 2002;
Govindarajulu and Daily, 2004) also point out, that the results of compa ny
environmental management are better than before, and indeed help increase the
financial performance of the companies. Sufficient integration among environm ental
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IMDS
106,6
896
Industrial Management & Data
Systems
Vol. 106 No. 6, 2006
pp. 896-909
qEmerald Group Publishing Limited
0263-5577
DOI 10.1108/02635570610671542
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