Students’ perceptions of the accounting profession : a

work values approach

TOURNA GERMANOU, Eleni, HASSALL, Trevor and TOURNAS, Yanni
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TOURNA GERMANOU, Eleni, HASSALL, Trevor and TOURNAS, Yanni (2009).
Students’ perceptions of the accounting profession : a work values approach. Asian
Review of Accounting, 17 (2), 136-148.

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 Students’ Perceptions
of Accounting Profession: Work Value Approach

Eleni Germanoua, Trevor Hassalla

and Yanni Tournasb
a
Sheffield Hallam University, School of Business and Finance, City Campus, Howard Street,
effield, S1 1WB, U.K.
b
City University of New York, New York, USA,

Abstract
Purpose – This study introduces a new theoretical framework to examine similarities and
differences between accounting major Malaysian and English students. It concerns attributes
and outcomes associated with the accounting profession, and the relationship between
students’ perceptions and intentions to pursue an accounting career.
Design/methodology/approach – A survey research approach has been adopted to
investigate students’ perceptions regarding the accounting profession. The data for this study
were collected via questionnaires completed by Malaysian exchange students visiting a
university in England and students of a major university in England. The results of the
questionnaire were then quantitatively analyzed.
Findings – The results indicate that both groups hold positive perceptions of the accounting
profession and there is a significant correlation between students’ perceptions and their
intention to pursue a career in the profession. The study also identifies that Malaysian and
English students hold differing perceptions concerning the accounting profession’s attributes
and outcomes.
Originality/value – This is one of the first accounting education papers using the work value
theory to investigate perceptions regarding the accounting profession by Malaysian students
of Chinese ethnicity and compare these perceptions with the perceptions of students of a
major university in England of English ethnicity.

Keywords: Perception of the accounting profession; work values; accounting career choice.
Paper type Research paper


Corresponding author. Tel.: +1212 220 8209,
E-mail address: ytournas@bmcc.cuny.edu

1
1. Introduction

Technology, globalisation, new business relationships and the multidisciplinary economic

environment have changed the accounting profession (hereafter AP) (Walker, 2004). The AP
today requires a new type of professional accountant with diverse knowledge, skills and
competences quite different from those in previous decades. Yet stereotypes of accountants
and the perceptions of, and attitudes towards, the AP, have not changed. In recent years there
has been a continual decline in enrolments in accounting programmes. The AP has lost its
ability to attract top students resulting in concerns about the future of the AP (Albrecht and
Sack, 2001; Marriott and Marriott, 2003; Byrne and Willis, 2005). Several accounting
academics argue that the perceptions students hold about the AP influence them toward
pursuing an accounting career (Horowitz and Riley, 1990; Cohen and Hanno, 1993; Felton et.
al., 1995 ). Hofstede (1998) has argued that students from countries with different cultural and
stage of economic development backgrounds have different perceptions of the profession that
may affect their career choice.
There is a scarcity of empirical investigations utilising relevant theoretical frameworks and
systematically developed instruments to measure this perception of the AP. This is the first
research to investigate differences between accounting students from different countries
concerning their perceptions of the AP. The theory of work values is used to examine the
potential students’ perceptions of attributes and outcomes associated with the AP.
This paper, involving students from Malaysia and England, has the following objectives:
 to explore Malaysian and English accounting students’ perceptions concerning
attributes and outcomes associated with the AP;
 to identify similarities and differences in the perceptions between the two groups;
 to investigate Malaysian and English students’ overall perception of the AP; and
 to examine the relationships between students’ perceptions and their intention to
pursue an accounting career.
The remainder of this work is structured with an exploration of prior research on the
perception of the AP, an outline of the theoretical framework and hypotheses for the study,
followed by the research methods used. The results of the statistical analysis are examined and
conclusions drawn.

2. Prior Research

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Cory (1992), Fisher and Murphy (1995), and Pollock et al. (2002) have argued that the
perception of the AP is a fundamental factor in students’ selection of accounting as an
academic major and as a career. Hermanson and Hermanson (1995) investigated top business
students’ perceptions of the AP and found that the nature of accounting work, its work
environment and associated lack of creativity, were the most important negative perceptions
that influenced their decision not to major in accounting. Other US studies found that students
perceive accounting work as highly precise and thorough, deterring interest and discouraging
creative individuals from pursuing an accounting major (Saeman and Crooker, 1999; Coate et
al., 2003). Chen, et al., (2008) found that student perceptions about accounting change over
time during their education, the perceptions being differentially associated with benefits and
costs. Byrne and Willis (2005) investigated the perceptions of Irish secondary school students,
reporting a negative view of the nature of accounting employment, perceiving it as boring,
definite, precise and compliance-driven. In contrast, Hartwell et al. (2005) reported more
positive views of accounting, claiming that students believed an accounting degree would be
useful to individuals who wanted challenging work and aspired to be president or CEO of a
large company. Sugahara and Boland (2006) found that Japanese accounting students hold
more positive perceptions of their proposed profession compared to those of non-accounting
business students. Sugahara et al. (2008) found that differences in students’ creativity and
procedural images of the AP may have influenced students’ choice of an accounting major in
Australia.
Pollock et al. (2002) investigated high school counsellors’ perceptions of the profession and
found it perceived as uninteresting, stressful, time-consuming and not particularly rewarding
financially. Barsky and Catanach (2001) noted that many students and their parents do not
understand how the role of accountants has changed from advisor on micro accounting
matters to a consultant on broad-based management issues.
On balance, these accounting studies mostly demonstrate negative perceptions, using different
constructs and measures - such as the characteristics of accountants and of the accounting job,
stereotypes of accountants, costs and benefits, perceived skills required, and intentions to
pursue the accounting profession - often without any theoretical justification (Fisher and
Murphy, 1995; Mladenovic, 2000; Chen et al., 2008). It appears that what is missing from the
research is the measurement of the perception of the accounting profession based on a
commonly accepted theoretical framework.

3
Many researchers in the field of vocational decision making in other disciplines, advocate the
use of work values as a theoretical framework (e.g., Brown, 1995; Kinnier, 1995; Rokeach,
1973, 1977; Super, 1990; Super and Sverko, 1995).
Work values are regarded as broad tendencies to prefer certain job characteristics, outcomes or
features of work environments (Lofquist and Dawis, 1971; Super, 1973; Pryor, 1983;
Hofstede, 1998), or as desirable modes of vocational behaviour (Meglino and Ravlin, 1998).
Dose (1997, p.2) summarised and defined work values as: “......standards or criteria for
choosing goals or guiding actions relating to work or the work environment ....that
are....relatively enduring and stable over time”. This paper uses the theory of work values
(Super, 1973) to measure accounting students’ perceptions concerning attributes and outcomes
that are associated with the AP.
Several vocational studies have identified different attributes/work values that influence
individuals when selecting their ideal job. Work values researchers have concluded that the
number and type of relevant attributes is associated with the specific population under
research (Pryor, 1983; Elizur et al., 1991; Hofstede, 1998).
Zytowski (1970), outlined a range of relevant attributes/work values. Subsequent researchers
have identified a set of general categories to classify the attributes/work values (Elizur et al.,
1991; Ros et al., 1999). Ros et al. (1999), classifies the attributes/work values into four
distinct general categories: extrinsic, intrinsic, prestige (or image) and social (or altruistic).
In the present study these categories have been selected to measure perceptions associated
with the AP, based on prior accounting research of perceptions (Hartwell et al., 2005; Byrne
and Willis, 2005; Sugahara and Boland, 2006; Tan and Laswad, 2006) and on the theory of
work values. These attributes are outlined in Table 1, within each of the four categories.

Table 1 Attributes, description, and categories of attributes

Attributes Description Category

Economic A concern for obtaining large salary and other financial
Extrinsic
Benefits rewards from one’s work.

Job security A concern for being able to maintain one’s job. Extrinsic
A concern for the kind of physical environment in which
Work conditions Extrinsic
one works.
Advancement/
A concern for promoting oneself. Prestige
Promotion
Decision making A concern for making decisions. Prestige

4
 Attributes Description Category
Social status A concern for recognition and status in the eyes of others. Prestige
Interesting nature of
A concern for doing something interesting. Intrinsic
job
Personal growth A concern for learning new things. Intrinsic

Achievement A concern for accomplishing something important. Intrinsic

A concern for being free from imposed constraints in the
Autonomy Intrinsic
work environment.
Self esteem A concern for doing something worthwhile. Intrinsic
Contribution to
A concern for assisting others and contributing to society. Social
society
A concern for friendship and understanding from those with
Work with others Social
whom one works.

3. Hypotheses

It has been suggested by previous authors that students’ perceptions about the accounting
profession may differ based on cultural or ethnic origins. To measure students’ perceptions of
the AP and to identify similarities and differences between two ethnic groups, the following
null hypotheses were proposed:

H1-H4 There is no statistically significant difference between Malaysian and English

accounting students in their perception of the AP associated with:

H1: the extrinsic category of attributes.

H2: the intrinsic category of attributes.

H3: the prestige category of attributes.

H4: the social category of attributes.

H5: There is no statistically significant difference in the overall perception of the AP between
Malaysian and English accounting students.

H6: There is no statistically significant relationship between students’ intention to pursue an

accounting career and their overall perception of the AP.

H7: There will not be a significant positive relationship between students’ intention to pursue
the AP and the different categories.

4. Research Method

5
4.1 Data collection

The data for this study were collected via questionnaires that were administered to two
different groups of accounting major students attending their final year of study. The data
collection was anonymous. The students participating in the study were given class time to
complete the questionnaires and these were collected immediately upon completion. The first
group consisted of full time students who identified themselves as being of Chinese ethnicity
attending the Tunku Abdul Rahman College (TARC) on exchange during their summer visit
at a major university in England. The questionnaire was also administered to another group of
full time students attending a major university in England, and who identified as being of
English ethnicity. Of the total 357 questionnaires collected, 224 were usable. The unusable
questionnaires were completed by students who identified themselves as belonging to another
ethnicity, or the questionnaires were incomplete. The gender, ethnic and age structure of the
sample population is shown in the following tabulation.

Table 2: Structure of Gender, Ethnicity and Age of Sample

English Malaysian
Students Students Total

Number 87 137 224

Male 41 78 119

Female 46 59 105

Average Age (Min-Max) 21.1 (20-25) 21.6 (21-27) 21.4 (20-27)

4.2 The instrument

The instrument used in this study to measure the students’ perceptions and intention was
developed by Tourna et al for business students (2006).

The instrument is divided into two sections, as follows:

Part I gathered students’ demographic information, i.e., gender, age, ethnicity and family
status.

Part II asked students to indicate on a five point Likert scale, from “Disagree Strongly” to
“Agree Strongly”, the degree to which they related to fifty-two items-perceptions concerning

6
attributes and outcomes associated with the accounting profession (Accounting Perception
Scale, hereafter APS). An additional five items assessed students’ intentions to follow the
accounting profession as a career (Accounting Intention Scale, hereafter AIS).

4.3 Measures

Intention to pursue a career in the AP was measured using the AIS scale. The variable of
intention was created using the sum of scores for the five items related to the students’
intention to pursue a career in accountancy. The range of possible scores for this, and all
following measures, was 1 to 5, midpoint 3. The Cronbach  for the present sample was 0.91.
The four categories were operationalised as the perceptions that students held for the AP’s
attributes and outcomes as follows:
 Extrinsic category - of a material nature - mean value of 13 item scores. Cronbach 
for the present sample was 0.77.
 Intrinsic category- feelings that are produced inherently by the accounting job itself -
mean value of 23 item scores. Cronbach  for the present sample was 0.84.
 Prestige category - of a prestige (image) nature - mean value 12 item scores. Cronbach
 for the present sample was 0.83.
 Social category - a social/affective nature - mean value of 4 item scores. Cronbach 
for the present sample was 0.69.
The overall perception was created using the mean value of scores for the 52 items (APS)
related to students’ perceptions associated with extrinsic, intrinsic, prestige and social
attributes and outcomes of the AP. Cronbach  for the present sample was 0.91.

5. Results

5.1 Descriptive analysis of questionnaires

The analysis of questionnaires suggests that there is positive intention to pursue a career in
accounting and a positive overall perception of the AP for the entire sample, and for each
ethnic group separately.

TABLE 3 SOMEWHERE HERE

The results (Table 3) indicate that the mean scores for overall perception for the total sample
(3.42), for Malaysian students (3.43) and for English students (3.42) are significantly greater

7
than the mid point of the scale 3.00 (p<0.000). However, 16% and 15% of Malaysian and
English students respectively, indicated a neutral to negative overall perception of the
profession, and 33% and 28% of Malaysian and English students respectively, indicated a
neutral to negative intention to follow a career in the AP.
Furthermore, these descriptive statistics show that the four general categories, and the
perceptions about all attributes associated with the AP, are above the midpoint of the scales
excepting work conditions and autonomy for both ethnic groups. However, the mean scores
of variables between the two groups are highly variable.
5.2 Similarities and differences between groups

To examine whether these differences between the two groups are statistically significant, a
series of t-tests was performed. The results (Table 4) show no statistically significant
differences in overall perception, or in the three categories extrinsic, intrinsic and prestige,
between accounting students from Malaysia and England. However, there is a statistically
significant difference in the score of the social category. Therefore the hypotheses H1, H2, H3
and H5 are not supported, whereas the hypothesis H4 is fully supported.

TABLE 4 SOMEWHERE HERE

Regarding differences between the two ethnic groups in the scores of thirteen attributes, the
patterns of the results accord with the literature (Auyeung and Sands, 1997; Tan and Laswad,
2006). Statistically significant differences were identified between the two groups concerning
the scores of the attributes ‘economic benefits’, ‘job security’, ‘achievement’, ‘nature of
accounting job’ and ‘contribution to society’. English students perceive that the AP provides
the opportunity for economic rewards, and offers valuable achievement and contribution to
businesses and to society. Malaysian students associate the AP more with job security,
indicating more positive perceptions for the interesting nature of the accounting job, than did
the English students.

5.3 Relationships between accounting vocational constructs

Hypothesis H6 regarding students’ intentions to pursue an accounting career and their overall
perception of the AP, was tested using Pearson product-moment correlation coefficient
(Pearson’s r). The results (Tables 5a, 5b, 5c), show a medium positive correlation between
intention and perception for the total sample. A large positive correlation was found between

8
intention and perception for the Malaysian sample, and a medium positive correlation for the
English sample. Therefore hypothesis H6 is not supported.

TABLES 5a, 5b, 5c SOMEWHERE HERE

Hypothesis H7 regarding students’ intentions and the extrinsic, intrinsic, prestige and social
categories, was also tested using Pearson’s r. The results (Table 5a), indicate a large positive
correlation between intention and the intrinsic category, a medium positive correlation
between intention and the prestige and social categories, and a small positive correlation
between intention and the extrinsic category for the total sample. The results for Malaysian
students (Table 5b) show a strong positive relationship between intention and the intrinsic
category, a medium positive relationship between intention and the prestige and extrinsic
categories, and a small positive relationship between intention and social category for the
Malaysian sample. The results for English students (Table 5c) show a medium positive
correlation between intention and the intrinsic and the social categories for the English
sample. There were no statistically significant relationships between English students’
intention and the extrinsic and prestige categories. Therefore hypothesis H7 is partially
supported.

TABLE 5d SOMEWHERE HERE

The results for English students (Table 5d) support a strong positive correlation between their
intentions and the nature of the accounting job, and a medium positive correlation between
intentions and personal growth, achievement, self esteem, work with others and contribution
to society attributes. The results for Malaysian students (Table 5d) indicate a strong positive
correlation between intention and self esteem, and a medium positive correlation between
intention and economic benefits, the nature of the accounting job, achievement, business
decision making, advancement/promotion and work with others. These findings indicate that
Malaysian students’ intentions are statistically significant with all categories of attributes and
with eight attributes and outcomes associated with the AP. In contrast English students’

9
intentions are statistically significant only with the intrinsic and social categories, and with six
attributes.

6. Conclusion

In general the study indicates that if a student has a positive perception of the AP then that
student will be highly likely to have a positive intention to pursue an accounting career,
consistent with the findings of Cohen and Hanno (1993), Felton et. al. (1995), Marriott and
Marriott (2003) and Sugahara et al., (2008). The study provides further evidence of the
importance of students’ perceptions of different attributes in making an accounting career
choice. Specifically, the intrinsic and social category of attributes were found to relate
significantly with the English students’ intentions and all four categories were related
significantly to the Malaysian students’ intentions.

The findings reveal important similarities and differences between the two ethnic groups
concerning the attributes associated with the AP. Accounting students from both countries are
motivated to pursue the profession mainly based on their perceptions about the opportunities
for work with others, career advancement and the interesting nature of the accounting job,
confirming the emphases of Saeman and Crooker (1999), Coate et al. (2003) and Byrne and
Willis (2005). Furthermore, perceptions concerning business decision making, self esteem and
job security seemed to be important motivators. Interestingly, both Malaysian and English
students perceive the accounting job as stressful, that accountants work under difficult
working conditions (pressure and stress), follow instructions from others and work with strict
deadlines for the completion of accounting assignments (Pollock et al., 2002). An interesting
direction for future research would be to investigate the reasons for this common negative
perception among groups of students with diverse geographical and cultural backgrounds.

This study indicates that students with diverse cultural and ethnic backgrounds can differ with
respect to their personal perceptions about the AP, consistent with the findings of Hofstede
(1986), Tan and Laswad (2006) and Sugahara et al (2008). English students perceived that the
AP is more associated with economic benefits, achievement and contribution to the well-
being of society, whereas Malaysian students perceived that the profession offers
opportunities for job security, advancement and an interesting job. These findings generally
accord with the research of Auyeung and Sands (1997) and Tan and Laswad (2006).

10
The research confirms the expectation that students will be influenced by a broad range of
perceived attributes and outcomes of the profession. This suggests the importance of
accounting educators and practitioners actively promoting the whole range of outcomes
(extrinsic, intrinsic, prestige and social) to prospective and current students in order to
positively influence their overall perception, thereby attracting individuals with creative,
analytical and leadership skills into the AP.

There are some limitations in this study. Participants used in the present study comprise a
relatively small sample of accounting students, and the study was based on self-reported
answers which may be subject to social desirability bias.

Several directions for future research are suggested by this study. Researchers can utilise the
proposed framework to examine how student perceptions evolve during the different stages of
their educational life (high school, university) and how student perceptions affect vocational
constructs and outcomes about the accounting career choice. Additionally, it will be important
to identify the reasons why students acquire a neutral or negative intention to pursue the AP,
and the reasons why students choose to pursue an accounting degree even though they have
no intention to pursue the AP as a career choice. It is also desirable to shed some light on how
cultural, business/economic conditions and socio-political system differences, influence the
formation of perceptions held by students and accountants in the international business
sphere.

11
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Table 3 Descriptive statistics of the constructs under investigation
Total sample Malaysian sample English sample
Variables Std. Std. Std.
N Mean N Mean N Mean
Dev Dev Dev
Intention 223 3.48 0.82 136 3.43 0.80 87 3.55 0.94
Perception 215 3.42 0.35 132 3.42 0.36 83 3.43 0.33
Extrinsic 222 3.25 0.45 137 3.21 0.25 85 3.31 0.40
Intrinsic 221 3.33 0.39 135 3.33 0.41 86 3.33 0.37
Prestige 222 3.63 0.45 135 3.66 0.47 87 3.58 0.42
Social 221 3.33 0.57 136 3.05 0.59 85 3.81 0.54
Econ. benefits 224 3.42 0.56 137 3.30 0.58 87 3.61 0.49
Job security 223 3.65 0.63 137 3.75 0.61 86 3.50 0.62
Work condition 223 2.70 0.65 137 2.68 0.72 86 2.73 0.55
Business decis. 224 3.58 0.53 137 3.63 0.54 87 3.50 0.51
Advancement 224 3.80 0.57 137 3.84 0.58 87 3.72 0.56
Social status 222 3.57 0.60 135 3.57 0.60 87 3.58 0.60
Autonomy 224 2.93 0.82 137 2.99 0.77 87 2.85 0.88
Personal growth 224 3.45 0.56 137 3.43 0.59 87 3.47 0.52
Achievement 224 3.48 0.83 137 3.32 0.94 87 3.74 0.52
Nature acc. job 223 3.74 0.54 136 3.81 0.55 87 3.63 0.51
Self esteem 223 3.65 0.60 136 3.63 0.59 87 3.68 0.61
Work w. others 221 3.85 0.70 136 3.81 0.75 85 3.90 0.62
Contrib. society 224 3.19 0.65 137 3.08 0.64 87 3.74 0.67

15
Table 4 T-tests- Identifying differences between Malaysian and English students
Variables Nationality N Mean Std. Dev T-test P-value
Intention English 87 3.55 0.94 n.s.
Malaysian 136 3.43 0.80
Perception English 83 3.42 0.33 n.s.
Malaysian 132 3.42 0.36
Extrinsic category English 85 3.31 0.40 n.s.
Malaysian 137 3.21 0.25
Intrinsic category English 86 3.33 0.37 n.s.
Malaysian 135 3.33 0.41
Prestige category English 87 3.58 0.42 n.s.
Malaysian 135 3.66 0.47
Social category English 85 3.81 0.54 4.22 .000
Malaysian 136 3.05 0.59
Econ. benefits English 87 3.61 0.49 3.87 .000
Malaysian 137 3.30 0.58
Job security English 86 3.50 0.62 -3.00 .000
Malaysian 137 3.75 0.61
Work condition English 86 2.73 0.55 n.s.
Malaysian 137 2.68 0.72
Business decision English 87 3.50 0.51 n.s.
Malaysian 137 3.63 0.54
Advancement English 87 3.72 0.56 n.s.
Malaysian 137 3.84 0.58
Social status English 87 3.58 0.60 n.s.
Malaysian 135 3.57 0.60
Autonomy English 87 2.85 0.88 n.s.
Malaysian 137 2.99 0.77
Personal growth English 87 3.47 0.52 n.s.
Malaysian 137 3.43 0.59
Achievement English 87 3.74 0.52 3.74 .000
Malaysian 137 3.32 0.94
Nature acc. job English 87 3.63 0.51 -2.50 .002
Malaysian 136 3.81 0.55
Self esteem English 87 3.68 0.61 n.s.
Malaysian 136 3.63 0.59
Work w. others English 85 3.90 0.62 n.s.
Malaysian 136 3.81 0.75
Contrib. society English 87 3.74 0.67 3.10 .000
Malaysian 137 3.08 0.64

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Table 5a Total Sample and intercorrelations (N = 224)

Variables 1 2 3 4 5 6 a
1 Intention 1 .91
2 Perception .46** 1 .91
3 Extrinsic .22** .71** 1 .77
4 Intrinsic .51** .90** .47** 1 .84
5 Prestige .31** .79** .39** .59** 1 .83
6 Social .35** .60** .22** .53** .44** 1 .69
**Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed).

Table 5b Malaysian Students and intercorrelations (N = 137)

Variables 1 2 3 4 5 6 a
1 Intention 1 .90
2 Perception .53** 1 .91
3 Extrinsic .28** .68** 1 .81
4 Intrinsic .53** .90** .44** 1 .83
5 Prestige .41** .80** .32** .63** 1 .79
6 Social .22** .45** .20** .50** .48** 1 .70
**Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed).

Table 5c English Students and intercorrelations (N = 87)

Variables 1 2 3 4 5 6 a
1 Intention 1 .88
2 Perception .36** 1 .91
3 Extrinsic X .79** 1 .75
4 Intrinsic .50** .89** .56** 1 .85
5 Prestige X .79** .57** .56** 1 .86
6 Social .38** .65** 29** .57** .53** 1 .67
**Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed).

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Table 5d Interrcorelations intention and sub dimensions
English sample N=87 Malaysian sample N=137
1 Intention 1 Intention 1
2 Economic benefits Economic benefits
.150 .302(**)
attribute attribute
3 Job security Job security
.137 .220(*)
attribute attribute
4 Work condition Work condition
-.075 .104
attribute attribute
5 Business decision making Business decision making
.110 .380(**)
attribute attribute
6 Advancement Advancement
.202 .310(**)
attribute attribute
7 Social status Social status
.120 .289(**)
attribute attribute
8 Autonomy Autonomy
.047 .048
attribute attribute
9 Personal growth Personal growth
.317(**) .297(**)
attribute attribute
10 Achievement Achievement
.310(**) .331(**)
attribute attribute
11 Nature of accounting job Nature of accounting job
.519(**) .389(**)
attribute attribute
12 Self esteem Self esteem
.440(**) .551(**)
attribute attribute
13 Work with others Work with others
.349(**) .304(**)
attribute attribute
14 Contribution to society Contribution to society
.299(**) .207
attribute attribute
** Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed).
*Correlation is significant at the 0.05 level (2-tailed).

18