Thesis in the Department of Accounting and Finance
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Item FORENSIC ACCOUNTING TECHNIQUES AND FINANCIAL MISCONDUCT AMONG FEDERAL UNIVERSITIES IN SOUTHWEST, NIGERIA(2023-07) ALEXANDER, TUNDE OGUNTUASEIn Nigeria, fraud is a widespread phenomenon in different sectors of the economy, including the federal universities. Although forensic accounting techniques have proven to be an effective means of combating financial misconduct in developed economies around the world, their effectiveness in handling financial misconduct in Nigerian tertiary institutions remains unknown. Hence, this study assessed the influence of forensic accounting techniques on fund misappropriation, investigated the relationship that exists between forensic accounting techniques and value for money practices, and determined the effect of forensic accounting techniques on creative accounting practices. It also evaluated the relationship that exists between forensic accounting techniques and procurement practices with a view to mitigating financial misconduct among Federal Universities in Southwest Nigeria. The study employed survey research design. Three hundred and sixty-four (364) respondents participated in the survey and data collected were analyzed using percentages, simple and multiple regression analysis. The results showed that three techniques of forensic accounting namely, SCCP (β = -0.075, t = -3.097; IF (β = -0.575, t = -18.427; LS (β = -0.072, t = -3.011) were statistically significant and inversely affected fund misappropriation, whereas ADE (β = 1.141, t = 36.776) showed a positive significant effect on fund misappropriation. This implies that forensic accounting techniques have largely influenced fund misappropriation among federal universities in the Southwest. The result also showed that forensic accounting techniques exhibited a positive significant linear relationship with value for money practices F (4,359) = 135.998, p < 0.05). Furthermore, the study revealed that forensic accounting techniques significantly impacted on creative accounting practices, SCCP (t=-3.007, p< 0.05), IF (t=-72.93, p < 0.05). LS (t=-3.011, p < 0.05), ADE (t=147.38, p < 0.05). It was also found that forensic accounting techniques showed a positive linear relationship with procurement practices F (4,359) = 49.145, p < 0.05). The implication is that when forensic accounting techniques are strengthened, they will prevent over billing and other sharp practices in procurement processes. The study concluded that forensic accounting techniques are veritable tools to combat financial misconduct. It is therefore recommended that forensic accounting techniques should be adopted to enhance their financial transparency and accountability among federal universities in Southwest Nigeria.