David Christensen 
Professor of Accounting | Southern Utah University
Cedar City, UT, UNITED STATES
Specializing in earned value project management, the history of accounting principles, and the profitability analysis of accounting
Biography
Dr. David Christensen is a professor of accounting at Southern Utah University. He has published over 70 refereed journal articles and made numerous presentations at academic and professional conferences.
Dr. Christensen served as a cost analyst for the United States Air Force at the Air Force Institute of Technology in Ohio. After retiring as a major, he began his second career at SUU as a professor of accounting in 1998.
Dr. Christensen earned a bachelor of science in biology from the University of Utah, a master of accounting from Utah State University, and a Ph.D. in business administration from the University of Nebraska.
Industry Expertise (4)
Accounting
Education/Learning
Writing and Editing
Management Consulting
Areas of Expertise (13)
Cost & Management Accounting
Accounting
Accounting Ethics
Accounting; Ethics Scandals and Moral Exemplars
Accounting; Profitabilty Analysis
Accounting; Theory of Constraints
Cost Accounting
Cost Analysis
Earned Value Project Management
History of Accounting Principles
Managerial Accounting
Theories and Methods of Accounting
Cost Estimation
Education (3)
University of Nebraska: Ph.D., Business Administration (Accounting)
Utah State University: M.A., Accounting
University of Utah: B.S., Biology
Accomplishments (6)
Best Session Paper (professional)
International Business and Economics Research Conference, 2009
Certificate of Merit (professional)
Institute of Management Accounting, 2009
Exemplary Use of Technology Faculty Award (professional)
Utah System of Higher Education, 2007
Driessnach Award for Distinguished Service (professional)
Project Management Institute, 2004
Outstanding Scholar (professional)
Southern Utah University, 2003
Certified Management Accountant
CMA, current
Affiliations (2)
- Institute of Management Accounting
- Certified Management Accountant
Links (2)
Languages (1)
- Thai
Media Appearances (1)
Accounting Program Receives National Rank with U.S. News
SUU News online
2015-02-11
Taking online classes can be taxing, but for Southern Utah University students graduating with their master’s of accountancy (MAcc) they know getting their degree online is adding up with the program's recent recognition from U.S. News as a Best Online Graduate Business Degree. Currently celebrating its 10th birthday, the graduate accounting program is adding up numbers that can’t be seen at any other online graduate program in the state, according to David Christensen, accounting department chair.
Articles (14)
Allocating Service Department Costs with Excel
Strategic FinanceDavid Christensen & Paul Schneider
2017-05-01
A note on using Microsoft Excel's iterative calculation option in the reciprocal method of service department cost allocation by breaking down the three methods for allocating service department costs: direct, sequential, and reciprocal.
Web of Deception
IMA Educational Case JournalDavid Christensen
2014-05-01
Escalating commitment to a failing project, the case of the A12 Stealth Bomber
Haliburton Whistleblower Tony Menendez: An Accountant with Moral Courage
Mountain Plains Journal of Business and EconomicsChristensen, D. and G. Calvasina
This case describes the experience of accounting whistleblower Tony Menendez.
Flight or Fight – A Case Study on Resolving Ethical Issues.
The Case JournalChristensen, D., P. Schneider, and J. Orton
Theoretical basis Students apply the new Institute of Management Accounting (IMA) ethics standard to “contribute to a positive ethical culture” and advice to “actively seek to resolve an ethical issue.”
A Note on Using Microsoft Excel’s Iterative Calculation Option in the Reciprocal Method of Service Department Cost Allocation
Strategic FinanceChristensen, D. and P. Schneider
While service departments generally aren’t involved in the direct production of goods or services, they play an integral role in enabling an organization’s operations. Yet often the prospect of allocating service department costs can lead to feelings of frustration or dread in accounting practitioners and students.
How Should I Advise My Client?
Journal of the International Academy for Case StudiesBoneck, R. and D. Christensen
The primary subject matter of this case concerns professional standards of tax advice.
James F. Alderson: White-hat Accountant with Moral Courage
Mountain Plains Journal of Business and EconomicsChristensen, D. and R. Boneck
The objective of this case study is to increase resolve to have moral courage by studying the whistleblowing experience of James Alderson.
For the Accounting Profession, Leadership Matters Regarding Ethical Climate Perceptions
Journal of Accounting, Ethics, and Public PolicyBarnes, J., D. Christensen, and T. Stillman
We tested the hypothesis advanced by Mannarelli (2006) and Early and Davenport (2010) that professional accounting organizations would benefit from a transformational leadership style.
Organizational Leadership And Subordinate Effect In The Certified Public Accounting Profession
Journal of Applied Business ResearchBarnes, J., D. Christensen, and T. Stillman
Using the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire (Bass and Avolio 2004), we test the correlation of transformational, transactional, and passive-avoidant leadership styles to subordinate perceptions of workplace efficiency, effectiveness, and satisfaction.
Escalating Commitment to a Failing Project: The Case of the A-12 Stealth Bomber
IMA Educational Case JournalChristensen, D., and R. Boneck
The A-12 was the Navy’s top aviation priority. The carrier-based stealth bomber was designed to replace the aging and crippled A-6 Intruder.
Small Things First Things – A Pedagogical Tool for Accounting Students
Mountain Plains Journal of Business and EconomicsChristensen, D., G. Powell, and D. Rees
Experiences early in life or career can shape character and set patterns of behavior.
Videos to Promote Ethical Decision Making: A Pedagogical Tool
Mountain Plains Journal of Business and EconomicsChristensen, D.
This paper provides a tool for developing the ethical decision-making skills of business students.
Four Questions for Analyzing the Right-Versus-Right Dilemmas of Managers
Journal of Business Case StudiesChristensen, D., and R. Boneck
Ethics dilemmas are different than moral temptations. The former involve right-versus-right problems. The latter are right-versus-wrong problems.
Spreadsheet Design: An Optimal Checklist for Accountants
American Journal of Business EducationBarnes, J., D.Tufte, and D. Christensen
Just as good grammar, punctuation, style, and content organization are important to well-written documents, basic fundamentals of spreadsheet design are essential to clear communication.
Courses (11)
ACCT 2010 Financial Accounting Principles
This course provides a thorough study of basic accounting principles. The accounting cycle is introduced using an appropriate mix of conceptual and procedural problems. A real-world problem using computer applications is also covered. This is a basic course, which aids in building a foundation for financial analysis and decision-making.
ACCT 2020 Managerial Accounting
A study of the accumulation and flow of managerial accounting information and its impact on decisions within a business entity. Emphasizes cost behavior, cost-volume profit analysis, and management’s use of quantitative tools for planning and control.
ACCT 3300 Cost Accounting
Analysis of costs in a business organization. Includes cost development in both service and manufacturing situations. Areas discussed include: job order costing, process costing, standard costing and variance analysis.
ACCT 4890 Internship
Internship
ACCT 6000 Foundations of Accounting
This course provides an accelerated overview of both the theories and methods of accounting in support of the common body of knowledge core required for all MBA students not having previous business coursework.
ACCT 6100 Advanced Management Accounting
This course reviews the development and use of management accounting information systems in planning and control activities. Using case studies of actual companies, its focus is on new management accounting practices adopted by the innovative companies around the world.
ACCT 6320 Advanced Cost Accounting
Topics include balanced scorecard, cost allocation, profitability analysis, process costing, quality, theory of constraints, capital budgeting, transfer pricing, and performance measurement.
ACCT 6600 Practice and Theory Seminar
Special accounting problems related to accounting practice and theory, with emphasis on conceptual analysis and historical development of generally accepted accounting principles. Readings cover current theory as well as current accounting issues. Problems requiring in-depth research into pronouncements issued by FASB and predecessor standing-setting bodies are used.
ACCT 6650 Accounting Ethics Seminar
This seminar is designed to help students develop the strength of their own characters by receiving ethics education in moral sensitivity, judgment, and motivation. Ethics philosophies, professional codes of conduct, and strategies for ensuring ethical behavior in the workplace are discussed using case studies of ethics scandals and moral exemplars.
ACCT 6700 Graduate Readings
Graduate readings
ACCT 6890 Accounting Internship
Internship
