40
MEASURINGTHE PROBABILITY
TO CHOOSE ACCOUNTING AS AMAJOR INVIETNAM
NGUYEN THI BICH VAN, MBA; NGUYEN THI THU VAN, MA; NGUYEN MANH HOAI VU, MACC -
Van Lang University*
The objective of this paper is to investigate the influential factors affecting university and college
students’ decision to choose Accounting as a major. Based on prior studies, this paper determined the
corresponding factors and analysedthemwith a view to construct a new scale applicable to Vietnam. This
study applied the quantitative research methods, making use of the coefficient reliabitlity of Cronbach-
Alpha, the Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) method, and also the Binary Logistic Regression model to
determine the probability of this choice. The findings of this study would provide useful overviews for
education policy makers in finding out strategies to promote education in accountancy.
Keywords:
Factors choice accounting, decision, consumer behavior, accounting as major
Received: January 18
th
, 2017
Revised: February 22
nd
, 2018
Accepted for publication: February 28
th
, 2018
Introduction
Nowadays, the trend of increasing integration
and globalization has become prevalent,
especially in economy. As a result, Vietnamese
government has identified that the Accounting
– Auditing industry as the nation’s important
economic management tool. Thus, Vietnam
will need to focus more on the development
of the human resource in the industry, with a
view to rival developed countries within the
area, both quantitatively and qualitatively
(President of Vietnam, 2013). To the majority
of Vietnameses, the university degree is
considered a mandatory requirement to enter
the adult life, and education as a result becomes
a staple factor in determining people’s standing
in the society. Consequently, the current needs
for university level education is exceptionally
high. Every year, the matter of choosing the
correct university and major has always been a
concern for high school students as well as their
families. They usually feel confused before an
overwhelming amount of information about
courses and majors from the media and from
the various career consultations. Therefore,
the decision as to which major to study under
which university has always been their most
difficult decision.
Literature review and Hypothesises
The conceptual framework
Consumer behaviour is the decision process
and physical activity, which individuals engage
in when they evaluate, acquire, use or dispose
of goods and services (Loudon, D.L., 1988).
Another definition suggests that consumer
behaviour is the actions and decision processes
of people who purchase goods and services for
personal consumption (Kotler P., 2001; Blackwell
et al, 2006).
The aforementioned process happens since
the consumers begin to become conscious of
their purchasing needs, all the way to their final
decisions, initially or repeatedly. In details, the
consumer’s decision making process can be
divided into the following stages:
The hypothesises
H1. Personal Characteristics
Students tend to select accounting as a major
when they see the subject as interesting and
enjoyable (Saemann &Crooker, 1999; Mladenovic,
2000). Other studies indentified the factors to
which the decision was affected were the students’
skills and background in mathematics (Cohen &
Hanno, 1993), or the characteristics of the students,
their interests in the subject, as well as their
aspiration for their future career (Chapman, 1981;
Cabrera & La Nasa, 2000; Worthington & Higgs,
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