（1991）Factors Influencing Software Piracy：Implications for Accountants.pdfVIP

Factors Influencing Software Piracy: Implications for Accountants Anne L. Christensen and Martha M. Eining SYNOPSIS Software companies in the United States lose an estimated $3 billion a year to the illegal copying of software, commonly referred to as software piracy. The risk of potential law- suits by software developers, the lack of documentation and support, and the risk of viruses make software piracy a costly behavior for companies and universities. Despite these costs , many individuals are still unaware of the ethical and legal aspects of soft- ware piracy. The purpose of this study is to provide an understanding of the factors Influ- encing software piracy behavior. This information should be beneficial to companies in developing software policies and guidelines and to educators as they introduce these topics in the classroom . Software piracy behavior is an ethical issue that will affect ac- countants in their own practices as well as their audit or consulting clients . This study first evaluated students knowledge of the copyright laws relating to com- puter software . Next, the theory of reasoned action , which considers attitudes toward specific actions and the evaluation of social pressures (subjective norms of reference groups) as the underlying causes of behavior, was used as a framework to determine other factors that might affect software piracy behavior. A survey was administered to undergraduate accounting students. Of the 139 students who owned computers, sev- enty-three percent reported engaging in software piracy. Students knowledge of the laws appeared to have litt