An Essay on Accounting's Social Complexity and the Fairness Challenge/ESSAI SUR LA COMPLEXITÉ SOCIALE DE LA COMPTABILITÉ ET LE DÉFI DE LA FIDÉLITÉ DE L'INFORMATION

We are honoured to contribute our ideas to the tribute to Ross Skinner, stimulated by his 1995 CA Magazine article “Judgment in Jeopardy". Our effort is titled “An Essay” because we want to suggest an approach to the problem of judging fairness in financial reporting that Skinner raised and to explore some consequences of that approach. We include no literature references other than to “Judgment in Jeopardy", and occasionally to Homer, because we have developed the ideas in this essay specifically for this tribute and have not relied on others in doing so. There has been an enormous amount of writing about accounting standards, professional judgment, fairness, and other related topics, but rather than exploring all that, we have focused directly on Skinner's concerns and have tried to develop some consequences of those concerns. One of the issues Skinner's article raised is the possibility that a solution to the judgment problem will forever be elusive. Another is the enormous challenge that “fairness” presents in an increasingly complex world. To explore the implications of Skinner's call for judgment, we use a framework based on the relevance, reliability, and validity of accounting information as a means of addressing this challenge and the demands on social consensus that result. Since Skinner was concerned about the application of judgment to real problems, we illustrate our analysis by considering four contemporary accounting debates: principles versus rules, global convergence of accounting standards, the need for a stand‐alone Canadian standard‐setter, and accounting for stock options. We argue that ideological choices, competition among parties in society, and fundamental measurement problems support Skinner's prediction that a solution will remain elusive.     

Cultural differences and judgment in financial reporting standards

This instructional resource provides you with the opportunity to explore how cultural differences can impact financial reporting outcomes through the judgments accountants make when interpreting and applying accounting standards. It is intended to draw your attention and awareness to culture’s impact on financial reporting judgments since financial reporting is becoming increasingly international in scope. The instructional resource begins by discussing financial reporting standards and cultural differences and then moves into presenting three accounting scenarios. The three scenarios (lease classification, contingent liability, and revenue recognition) examine how applying accounting standards requires judgment and how cultural differences can influence accountants’ judgments and the resulting financial reporting outcomes. In each scenario, you have the opportunity to identify and consider how different cultural dimensions could impact cross-cultural financial reporting outcomes. The instructional resource content allows you to consider the challenges in using and applying a uniform set of global accounting standards that require judgment across cultures.     

Goodwill Accounting in Selected Countries and the Harmonization of International Accounting Standards

Economic and financial markets interpenetrate and national economies are increasingly interdependent. This results in a growing need for comparability of accounting procedures internationally. Accounting for goodwill illustrates this phenomenon. By specifying the recommended asset treatment for purchased, positive goodwill, and the five-year amortization period, IASC has taken a significant step towards harmonization of goodwill accounting. As noted in the article, however, the implications for consolidated income may be quite drastic. This is especially so with respect to the implications of the revised IAS 22 (following IAS ED 32) for potential leveraged corporate buy-outs.     

Agenda formation and accounting standards setting: lessons from the standards setters

There are many studies on lobbying of accounting standards, but the technical agenda of regulators is taken as ‘given’ and why a particular topic was admitted to the agenda is not investigated. Agenda formation is important as control of the agenda determines which topics get regulated and the form of the regulatory response. A few studies have explored agenda formation across regulatory institutions but are largely silent on the role of individual decision makers and technical staff. However, the standards setters have sought to explain their agenda processes. This paper reviews statements by the members of accounting standards setting agencies about their experiences of agenda formation. It identifies insights gained from standard setters and makes some suggestions for future research.     

International Accounting Standards: An Alternative Rationale

International aspects of financial reporting have begun to receive an increasing amount of attention by a range of organizations. There is a need then, to appraise critically the performance and the underlying rationale of those agencies responsible for influencing international practices. Identification and appraisal of the rationale underlying the existence of those agencies is a necessary step in determining their potential for achieving the objectives which they have been set. This paper examines the rationale behind one of these agencies, the International Accounting Standards Committee (IASC, 1977). Unlike many others, the paper does not attempt to explain why we should have an organization such as the IASC and the standards it produces. Rather, it represents an attempt to explain why we do have an organization such as the IASC. To that end, an alternative rationale is suggested for the output of the IASC, based on theories of professional selfinterest, agency, and property rights. It is argued that that rationale is likely to have significantly greater explanatory power in respect of the present output produced by the IASC than those traditionally presented.     

关于新会计准则下会计职业判断的探讨

新会计准则下影响套计职业判断的因素主要有：会计法律、法规;不同利益主体;企业经营环境;财务会计报告的质量要求;会计人员的素质与动机。提高会计人员业务素质;坚持诚信原则和遵守职业道德;坚持独立原则、合理权衡相关性原则;加强会计人员职业道德建设;进一步完善会计监管体系是确保会计人员正确运用职业判断的重要途径。     

Towards a Theory of Cultural Influence on the Development of Accounting Systems Internationally

Research has shown that accounting follows different patterns in different parts of the world. There have been claims that national systems are determined by environmental factors. In this context, cultural factors have not been fully considered. This paper proposes four hypotheses on the relationship between identified cultural characteristics and the development of accounting systems, the regulation of the accounting profession and attitudes towards financial management and disclosure. The hypotheses are not operationalized, and empirical tests have not been carried out. They are proposed here as a first step in the development of a theory of cultural influence on the development of accounting systems.     

Intangible assets and value relevance: Evidence from the Portuguese stock exchange

We assess the value relevance of the amounts for identifiable intangible assets and goodwill reported in the financial statements of all non-finance companies listed on the main market of the Portuguese Stock Exchange from 1998 to 2008. Additionally, we use panel data to explore the impact on value relevance of Portugal’s formal adoption of International Accounting Standards [IAS] and International Financial Reporting Standards [IFRS] in 2005. A distinctive feature of the accounting by our sample companies is that when they adopted IAS 38 and IFRS 3 in 2005, they were no longer required to recognise some intangible assets (such as start-up costs and research expenditures) and were no longer required to amortise goodwill.We find that net earnings, reported goodwill and other intangible assets are highly significantly associated with stock price. However, whereas earnings are related positively to stock prices when Portuguese Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) were applied prior to 2005, the value relevance of earnings appears to have declined after the adoption of IAS/IFRS in 2005. Although the change to IAS/IFRS had no impact on the value relevance of identifiable intangibles as a whole, the evidence suggests that there was a positive effect on the value relevance of goodwill. When the subclasses of identifiable intangible assets are considered, we found evidence of an increase in value relevance of goodwill, other intangible assets, and research and development expenditures.     

Culture and accounting in Indonesia: An empirical examination

This study examines the relationships among the cultural characteristics of Indonesian society, reporting practices of Indonesian firms, and accounting standards promulgated by the Association of Indonesian Accountants. It is argued that an empirical relation exists between the change in cultural values, as conceived by Hofstede's theory of the five dimensions of cultural values (power distance, uncertainty avoidance, individualism, masculinity, and time horizon and the change in accounting values as captures by Gray's four dimensions (professionalism, conservatism, secrecy, and uniformity). Using LISREL to evaluate data between 1981 and 1992, three of Hofstede's five cultural values (power distance, uncertainty avoidance, and individualism) have significant relationships with one or more accounting value. This limited confirmation of the culture-accounting relationships suggest that particular historical and economic configurations must be considered in longitudinal analysis. The conflicting influences of extensive government involvement in the economy and nascent market competition are a possible explanation of the Indonesian results.     

Valuation-based accounting research: Implications for financial reporting and opportunities for future research

This paper discusses the relation between financial reporting research and practice, particularly standard setters. Many studies addressing financial reporting issues use a valuation approach. The paper describes alternative approaches to valuation research and summarises the findings relating to four major current issues: fair value accounting for financial, tangible, and intangible assets, cash flows versus accruals, recognition versus disclosure, and international harmonisation of accounting standards. The summaries include identifying what standard setters and others would like to learn from research, what we have learned, and what is left to learn. The paper concludes with observations about future financial reporting academic research.     

Accounting standards and value relevance of financial statements: An international analysis

Using 17,743 firm-year observations of industrial companies in 21 countries from 1991 to 1997, this paper finds that the use of accrual accounting (versus cash accounting) negatively affects the value relevance of financial statements in countries with weak shareholder protection. This negative effect, however, does not exist in countries with strong shareholder protection. These findings are consistent with the belief that shareholder protection improves the effectiveness of accrual accounting, and suggest the importance of considering shareholder protection when formulating accounting policies related to accruals.     

Accounting and prudential regulation: from uncomfortable bedfellows to perfect partners?

Recent initiatives to improve the public information about individual firms have brought to the fore significant differences in perspective between accountants and prudential regulators. We examine the reasons for these differences and propose ways in which they could be reconciled within a broader framework aimed at identifying the type of information conducive to the proper functioning and stability of the financial system. We argue that such information should concern three characteristics: estimates of current financial condition; estimates of risk profile; and measures of the uncertainty surrounding those estimates. So far, efforts have mainly focused on the first characteristic, with the second having drawn attention only recently and the third having been largely neglected. We propose a strategy to reconcile different perspectives based on two principles: first, in the long-term, the “decoupling” of the objective of accurate financial reporting by the firm from that of instilling the desired degree of prudence in its behaviour; second, a “parallel transition” process towards that objective so that at all points the prudential measures can neutralise any undesirable implications of changes in financial reporting standards on financial stability.     

Financial reporting of European banks during the GFC: a pitch

This short paper applies the pitch template developed by Faff (2015a), for a proposed accounting research project on financial reporting of European banks and the global financial crisis. I begin by giving a brief background to writing the pitch. I then give a brief commentary on my pitch, followed by a few key personal reflections on the pitch exercise itself.     

Achieving High Quality, Comparable Financial Reporting: A Review of Independent Enforcement Bodies in Australia and the United Kingdom

This article provides a review of the activities of two quite different types of national enforcement body, the U.K.'s Financial Reporting Review Panel (FRRP) and the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC). We present material (some not available elsewhere) about their activities over the period 1998–2004 and show that both types of body can fulfil an enforcement role, albeit subject to political forces. We also assess the relevance of the bodies' past activities for comparable international enforcement following the adoption of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) in 2005. A review of cases reveals that for both bodies approximately half were related to recognition and measurement issues, where interpretation can be crucial. Although there is potential for cross-country differences to arise, they may be mitigated by the participation of both bodies in international enforcement coordination activities. Past activities suggest that the scope of the bodies' activities and the extent of comparability of enforcement decisions are likely to reflect political views held within the government, corporate sector and accounting profession.