Forensic Accounting Literacy and Accounting Students’ Perceptions of Fraud Prevention in Makassar City: A Literature Review

Abstract

This narrative literature review synthesizes evidence on forensic accounting literacy, accounting students’ anti-fraud perceptions, and fraud prevention, with educational implications for Makassar City. Ten empirical articles published between 2021 and 2026 were examined using a thematic comparison of study populations, constructs, and reported findings. The studies cover accounting students, auditors, university personnel, government officials, and regional audit professionals; consequently, their findings cannot be treated as direct measurements of students in Makassar. Across the reviewed literature, forensic knowledge, analytical and investigative skills, awareness, and professional skepticism frequently support fraud-related competencies or preventive strategies. However, some studies report nonsignificant direct relationships, highlighting the possible role of motivation, ethical environments, and organizational controls. The synthesis distinguishes fraud detection ability, preventive attitudes, and organizational prevention outcomes, rather than treating these as interchangeable. It suggests that case-based forensic accounting instruction, ethical reflection, and evidence-evaluation exercises may benefit accounting education. As the review uses a purposive, non-systematic corpus and contains no local primary data, its implications for Makassar remain conceptual and require empirical testing. The review offers a conceptual basis for universities to strengthen anti-fraud education and provides a foundation for future survey research that measures students' perceptions directly.