Other lives in accounting: Critical reflections on oral history methodology in action

This paper critically evaluates the nature and practice of oral history as a narrative research methodology in accounting. Oral history allows individual subjectivity and experience to be central to the empirical data. The paper argues that such an approach allows the voices of those who have arguably been ignored, marginalised or silenced within particular contexts to be heard. Drawing on feminist approaches to research methodology, it also evaluates and problematises some of the ethical issues within an oral history methodology, arising from the interpretation and ownership of research, disclosure and reciprocity within the research relationship, and the use of friends and strangers as research participants. The paper concludes that, when approached critically and reflexively, oral history provides a sound epistemological and methodological base for understanding the meaning of events and experience to individuals, and the impact of accounting institutions and practice on their lives.     

Insiders’ perspectives of the effects of recent regulation on corporate taxation

Recent legislation and standard interpretations promulgated by governmental bodies and the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) have attempted to address several issues related to corporate taxation. These issues include the lack of transparency regarding specific tax transactions, the difficulty in reconciling the corporate tax return with the corporate income statement, the relative lack of disclosure of tax contingencies in the financial statements, and the impact of internal control on the reliability of the corporate tax return. While the stated objectives of several recent regulations have included improvements in the areas of corporate tax compliance and transparency of financial statements, it is unclear whether these regulations have resulted in the desired effects. This study analyzes the perceptions of 223 corporate tax executives regarding the effects of Internal Revenue Announcement 2002-63, Schedule M-3 of IRS Form 1120, FASB Interpretation Number 48 (FIN 48), and Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. The findings indicate that the respondents perceive an overall increase in tax return transparency and corporate tax compliance as a result of Schedule M-3 and FIN 48; yet the ability of corporations to engage in tax planning has decreased as a result of FIN 48. The respondents also perceive that both FIN 48 and Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act have increased their reliance on outside sources for tax compliance work.     

Sharing 'worlds of risk'; improving communication with crew resource management

The risk society thesis by Ulrich Beck has been one of the more extensively discussed frameworks in environmental management. This paper tries to give an overview over Beck's extant and fragmented work and ventures to identify the main contributions and implications. It starts with a discussion of the background and principles of Beck's work and identifies the core ideas as well as the theoretical underpinnings. On that basis the paper shows the manifestation of Beck's early ideas in contemporary environmental politics revealing the influence of the risk society thesis especially for environmental management. Following on to more contemporary parts of Beck's work the paper then shows that ‘risk’ and ‘globalization’ are in fact manifestations of the same phenomenon. Both challenge and invert the role of governments on the one side and the role of various social actors on the other side. The paper concludes by discussing major consequences of Beck's thinking for the current agenda of corporate actors in particular.     

Insider econometrics: A roadmap with stops along the way

For the past twenty five years, economists have been building theories of the optimal management of firms. For example, economic models suggest that under some conditions, piece rate pay raises performance, and under other conditions, promotions tournaments raise performance. Some of these theories have been tested, others have not. Economists are now using new empirical research tools, that we label “insider econometrics,” to test the impact of management practices on productivity: to model how much productivity changes; to model why management practices raise productivity; and to examine which firms benefit and why from alternative management practices. The methodology we describe is “insider” because it uses inside knowledge and data from within firms. It is “econometrics” because the methodology is often the application of treatment effects methods to modeling changing management practices within firms. However, the methods and challenges of insider econometrics are unique, and we identify several key features that are important in undertaking empirical studies of workers' productivity. Now that more firms are keeping data on employees, it is time to improve our analysis of the empirical study of the productivity of workers within firms.     

Ekaluka Farmers' Association and the Land Reform Programme: Expectations and success factors

The Land Reform Programme in South Africa aims to transfer 30% of white-owned commercial land to African owners before 2015. The Department of Land Affairs needs to ensure that land redistribution projects are viable and sustainable before approval. This article reports on a case study conducted in the Ermelo district of Mpumalanga Province, South Africa, investigating the situation with regard to the Ekaluka Farmers' Association. The expectations, structure and composition, level of education and employment status of all 163 members of the Association were ascertained through structured interviews. The results indicate various factors that could prove valuable in the process of determining the potential success of this proposed land redistribution project.     

The internationalisation of HRM through reverse transfer: two case studies of French multinationals in Scotland

Building on existing studies of reverse transfer (RT) of HRM and work organisation practices, this article reports on an investigation of reverse transfer of HR practices within two French multinational companies operating in Scotland. The study identifies limited evidence of RT despite the firms' predisposing characteristics for RT. A number of factors inherent within the French national business system were found to create restrictions. In addition, France's history of fostering national champions presented resistance to the transfer of localised HR ideas to the domestic economy. Finally, and to a lesser degree, market relations within one of the subsidiary's locality were found to impede the RT of practices. The article discusses the theoretical implications for the conditions under which reverse transfer takes place.     

Utilization of health services by the injured residents in Kumasi, Ghana

The objective was to determine the pattern of health service utilization by the injured in Kumasi, Ghana and thus to gain information useful for the strengthening of trauma care in that environment. A household survey was utilized as it was anticipated that many injured might not receive formal medical care and a total of 11,663 persons living in 264 clusters in Kumasi were surveyed. One-third of all injured did not receive any formal medical care, mainly due to financial constraints. Altogether, 37% of the injured attended a hospital and 34% attended a clinic. Among the severely injured (> or =1 month disability) attending a clinic, most (76%) used it as the sole source of care. Most (54%) of these clinics were private. Efforts to strengthen trauma care in urban Africa need to address financial barriers to care and need to consider clinics, as well as the main hospitals.