Mirror, tell me if there is anyone in accounting academia more intellectually humble than I am
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.14392/asaa.2026190104Keywords:
Intellectual humility, Researcher characteristics, Brazilian accounting academiaAbstract
Objective: This study sought to identify characteristics that differentiate intellectual humility among accounting researchers in Brazil.
Methods: The study was conducted using a survey of 226 researchers affiliated with Graduate Programs in Accounting. Initially, construct validation was performed באמצעות Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) and Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA). Subsequently, nonparametric tests for group differences were applied, comparing intellectual humility with variables such as age, gender, teaching experience, information consumption, academic success, and Machiavellianism.
Results: The findings indicate that age and teaching experience differentiate levels of intellectual humility, suggesting that maturity and professional experience foster openness to revising one’s beliefs. In contrast, gender, information consumption, and academic success do not appear to be relevant in shaping intellectual humility among accounting researchers, suggesting the influence of other factors. Additionally, higher levels of Machiavellianism are associated with lower levels of intellectual humility, raising sensitive concerns and revealing potential barriers to scientific development.
Contributions: By introducing the debate on epistemic virtues into accounting research, the study contributes by indicating that intellectual humility may be associated with scientific integrity, the mitigation of unethical conduct, and the promotion of collaborative knowledge construction. Furthermore, it highlights the relevance of considering intellectual humility as a formative value in accounting academia, suggesting its potential to foster more dialogical, critical, and collaborative practices, although such implications should be interpreted with caution.
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