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It is increasingly recognized that specific knowledge related to the economic, environmental, and social aspects of sustainability may not be a prerequisite for accounting students to engage in sustainability accounting. Many studies have shifted their focus toward identifying inner dimensional factors that, when combined with this specific knowledge, can motivate accounting students to become involved in sustainability accounting. 

This study aimed to investigate the inner dimension factor of compassion and its effect on accounting students’ future involvement intentions in sustainability accounting. A survey of 30 master’s in accounting graduates from Umeå University revealed that compassion has a positive and significant association/effect with accounting students’ intentions to engage in sustainability accounting in the future. 

This finding provides further support for previous research advocating for the inclusion of compassion in accounting curricula as a means of promoting environmental sustainability behavior and action among accounting students.