Actions on suspicion of white-collar crime in business organizations: An empirical study of intended responses by Chief financial officers

Abstract

The most economically disadvantaged members of society are not the only ones committing crime. Members of the privileged socioeconomic class are also engaged in criminal behavior. The types of crime may differ from those of the lower classes and include lawyers helping criminal clients launder their money, executives bribing public officials to achieve public contracts, and accountants manipulating balance sheets to avoid taxes. Another important difference between the two types of offenders is that the elite criminal is much less likely to be apprehended or punished due to his or her social status (Brightman, 2009). The term white-collar crime expresses different concepts depending on perspective and context. In this research, white-collar crime is defined as financial crime committed by white-collar criminals. Thus, the definition includes characteristics of the crime as well as the criminal. Financial crime generally describes a variety of crimes against property, involving the unlawful conversion of property belonging to another to one's own personal use and benefit, more often than not involving fraud but also bribery, corruption, money laundering, embezzlement, insider trading, tax violations, cyber attacks, and the like (Henning, 2009). Criminal gain for personal benefit seems to be one of the core characteristics of financial crime. financial officer (CFO) react when suspicion of white-collar crime emerges? Results from a survey of CFOs in Norway are applied to answer this research question.