According to an article published in “The CPA Journal” by Michael D. Akers, Don E. Giacomino and Jodi L. Bellovary, earnings management is defined as: “Earnings management is recognized as an attempt by management to influence or manipulate reported earnings by using specific accounting methods (or changing the methods), accounting for non-recurring items, deferring or accelerating expense or income transactions, or using other methods designed to influence short-term profits. The definition attempts to explain that managers have the control to influence profits and present them in a way that works in their favor. They do this using accounting methods, therefore the methods authorized by GAAP, and find loopholes that benefit them. This same article talks about a survey done by William J. Bruns, Jr. and Kenneth A. Merchant and the findings of their investigation were later submitted to the Harvard Business Review. Ask readers to rate the acceptability of management practices in 13 results management situations. The results described in the article were “scary.” The following observations were made: "It appears that if a practice is not explicitly prohibited or constitutes only a slight deviation from the rules, it is an ethical practice, regardless of who might be affected either by the practical, or by the information that results from it. This means that anyone using information about short-term profits is vulnerable to misinterpretation, manipulation or deliberate deception. We believe that short-term profits are managed in many, if not all, companies. Some of these revenue management practices can be rightly termed as immoral and unethical. Subramanyam. “The Effect of Audit Quality on Earnings Management*.” Contemporary Accounting Research (1998): 1-24. George Wilson. The effect of Sarbanes-Oxley on earnings management behavior. Conference paper. Indianapolis: Proceedings of the 18th International Conference on Business Research 2012, 2012. Michael D. Akers, Don E. Giacomino, and Jodi L. Bellovary. “Profits management and its implications”. Educating the Accounting Profession (2007): 1. Patricia M. Dechow, Richard G. Sloan, and Amy P. Sweeney. “Detecting Earnings Management.” Patricia M. Dechow, Richard G. Sloan, and Amy P. Sweeney. The accounting review. American Accounting Association, 1995. 193-225. Stephen D. Makar, Ph.D., CPA, Ph.D., CPA Pervaiz Alam and DBA, CFE, CPA, CMA and Michael A. Pearson. “When does juggling numbers become fraud?” Revenue management (2000): 1.