The Role of Accountants in the Federal Tax Process: An Empirical Investigation.

Abstract The article provides information on the study, The Role of Accountants in the Federal Tax Process: An Empirical Investigation, by Edward C. Spede. The purpose of this research was to examine the role of accountants as information providers in the federal tax process. The concepts of role theory were used as a theoretical basis for the study. Hypotheses regarding differences among groups and satisfaction within groups were formulated and tested using the Kruskal-Wallis One-Way Analysis of Variance, Mann-Whitney U, and Wilcoxon Matched Pairs tests. The results of the tests indicate that all three groups, government personnel, practitioners, and educators, desire a greater frequency of participation by the accounting profession in all segments of the federal tax process. Government personnel indicate a desire for a lower level of participation than that desired by practitioners and academicians. Informational qualities of the accountants' presentation were also examined. Accountants' input was perceived to be deficient in fourteen of the fifteen traits tested. Comments made on the returned questionnaires and in the personal interviews support the conclusions drawn from the statistical analysis.