Abstract:

The study investigates accounting students’ attitudes to pope’s Francis ecological theses formulated in “Laudato Si” encyclical. It confronts their ethical and economical assessment of its statements. The results prove the dissonance between moral and economical perception of theses formulated in “Laudato Si’”. The attitude towards them is more positive when then ethical approach is taken. The theses which are given the highest ethical assessment are characterized by clearness, concreteness, being easy to imagine, affecting respondents and relating to their self-interest. The statements which are given the highest economic assessment are characterized by use of economic terms (such as costs, risks, results) and relation to structures, processes and infrastructure. The differences between ethic and economic assessment of pope Francis “Laudato Si’” theses can be attributed mostly to the explicit or implicit liberal economy and free market assumptions of accounting education offered at business and economics universities.