| Abstract: | The mission of Canadian Accounting Perspectives is to provide a forum for “applied research” in accounting, but this key term is not defined. I identify three forms of applied research: (1) the use of existing knowledge to find solutions to current problems; (2) the use of positivist research methods to conduct critical tests between current alternative accounting methods and to identify empirical regularities that contribute to the development of technologies of practice; and (3) the use of disciplined inquiry and action research to develop mid‐range theory and generate empirical results that advance the interests or increase the capabilities of an identified community. This third form of applied research may provide the best approach to bridging the schism between academe and practice. |
