An Exploratory Analysis of Accounting Expert System Abstracts

A classification scheme was developed to show trends and categorize articles on accounting expert systems (AES) which were written during the period 1977 to 1989 and abstracted in Brown (1989). The analysis shows that the number of articles on AES has been burgeoning since 1985. The number of introductory articles has declined, as authors have assumed reader familiarity with expert systems concepts. Research in all areas of accounting has been increasing and a wide range of issues in AES has been covered, but with an increasing emphasis on tax and auditing, perhaps due to the influence of large management consulting/accounting firms. Finally, for most subcategories within AES, the focus of the articles along the ES dimension has been on the prototyping and working model stages of development.     

The influence of self-efficacy beliefs and prior learning on performance

This research examines self-efficacy beliefs and prior learning of accounting students to determine how useful these variables are for predicting academic success in accounting courses. Self-efficacy beliefs are the confidence one has in the ability to perform certain tasks or skills (Bandura, 1997). As Bandura (1977) argued, the results here showed that confidence in one's ability to succeed is the most powerful predictor of academic success. This research provides pathways for increased student success by indicating that a focus on enhancing student self-efficacy will lead to higher achievement. The implications of this research for accounting education practice is discussed.     

环境会计:理论与实务的发展与创新

随着人类社会可持续发展观念的形成,环境会计于20世纪70年代开始成为会计科学一个新的分支,西方发达国家的会计界积极开展这一领域的研究并逐渐形成了具有特色的理论和方法,有关国际经济组织和会计职业组织也采取了多种措施以推动其研究与实践。十多年来中国环境会计研究与实践也取得了长足进步,但在新的经济环境下其信息披露的模式需要创新。     

Structuration theory in accounting research: Applications and applicability

Ever since Giddens’ structuration theory (ST) was introduced into the accounting literature some 25 years ago, it has strengthened its position as one of the major schools of thought used to explore accounting as organizational, social and political phenomena. The purpose of this study is to review how ST has been applied, and can be applied, in this sizeable literature. Overall, the review of some 65 published papers, suggests that not only has ST contributed to challenge the assumptions of ‘inherent and functional’ features of accounting systems per se characterizing mainstream research, but also to develop other alternative theoretical perspectives. However, our review also suggests several limitations. These include that the accounting community has not really worked as a collective to develop a structurationist understanding of accounting practices, and that most researchers remain largely uncritical to ST as a theory. We also find that accounting scholars have not yet developed a mutual understanding of how to interpret ST (i.e. there are conceptual unclarities and even inconsistencies), or how to apply ST methodologically in empirical research. Based on these limitations, and the identification of a number of ‘black spots’ in the literature, we suggest several directions for future scholarly effort.     

Disability and accounting firms: Evidence from the UK

An accumulation of interpretative studies in a range of international contexts has considered gender, race and social class in accounting employment. However, no work has considered accounting firms’ attitudes towards employing disabled people. This omission is surprising given the passing of successive disability rights legislation in the United States since 1918 and the United Kingdom (UK) since 1944 and consequent changes in public expectations regarding equal employment opportunities for disabled people. This paper examines the UK accounting profession's response to changes in disability legislation. Using a survey administered to UK firms and an analysis of the Big Four firms’ 2003 UK annual reviews, we report that firms’ have a minimal understanding of disability, that disability is not a significant component of firms’ personnel policies, that firms lag behind other organizations in their attitudes to disability, and images of disability are wholly absent from firms’ annual reviews. We discuss these findings in the context of prior accounting research which considers gender, race and social class, which is used to develop a research agenda.     

Accounting and Accountability in Fiji: A Review and Synthesis

This paper reviews accounting and accountability research in Fiji. The review is based on 47 papers published since 1978 in accounting refereed journals, professional journals, edited book chapters and theses and other refereed journals outside accounting. In addition to categorisation of the reviewed papers according to accounting topics, theories and methods of data collection, some themes to which the papers could be related are discussed. Financial reporting/accountability research is the most popular research in Fiji followed by new public management research, with sustainability accounting research the third most popular. The paper's findings suggest some directions for future accounting research in Fiji and where the data can possibly be sourced for such research. We conclude that more research is needed in the Fijian context that focuses on accounting and the state, performance auditing, indigenous accounting, SMEs and accountability.     

THE ADOPTION OF PARTIAL DEFERRAL IN THE UK, 1977–78: EVIDENCE ON AN ACCOUNTING CHOICE

This study uses logit analysis to test the relationship between the UK deferred tax accounting decision in 1977–78, when SSAP 11 had been withdrawn and not yet replaced by SSAP 15, and a number of variables or corporate charac-teristics drawn from the largely American accounting policy choice and the more specific UK deferred tax literatures. The findings, of a significant association between several of these variables and the UK deferred tax accounting decision of 1977–78, suggest that further tests of the determinants of accounting policy choice in the UK should include variables that reflect direct, indirect and neutral managerial interests.     

进入21世纪以来中国会计研究的特征与启示——基于会计类核心期刊2001-2008年的数据

对会计研究的系统分析与总结是推进会计研究科学发展的重要途径之一。本文基于《中文核心期刊要目总览》中会计类核心期刊2001-2008年的数据,反映了进入21世纪以来中国会计研究的演进特征与变化,揭示了中国会计研究存在的问题,提出了中国未来会计研究的一些建议。     

Attitudes Towards the Term ‘Generally Accepted Accounting Principles’

The above term has existed in the United States accounting literature since the 1930s, and in general attempts to convey the accounting practices that are accepted as satisfactory by a significant number of recognised accountants. However, the term has been frequently criticised as nebulous and inadequate. Accordingly, this research attempted to determine if parties sophisticated in accounting matters would prefer an alternative term. Financial analysts, certified public accountants (public and private) and accounting academicians were polled as to their preferences. The questionnaire listed twenty potential phrases. The respondent was asked to list his or her agreement as to the appropriateness of each term as a potential alternative to the phrase ‘generally accepted accounting principles’. The results indicated a clear preference for the retention of the term.     

CAPITAL RECONSTRUCTIONS: ARE THEY REALLY NECESSARY?

The topic of capital reconstructions is covered in most texts on company accounting and included in most company accounting courses of study at tertiary institutions. Unfortunately, though, there exists little material on the extent of the application of the available reconstruction options, and the usefulness of these options to companies and shareholders. This paper outlines the extent and type of the capital reconstruction schemes proposed by Australian listed companies between 1975 and 1977. Some research regarding the effectiveness of two of the options is then outlined. Finally, a call is made for research to be undertaken into the other available options to determine whether their implementation is really warranted.     

Exploring corporate governance research in accounting journals through latent semantic and topic analyses

The literature on corporate governance (CG) has been expanding at an unprecedented rate since major corporate scandals surfaced, such as Enron, WorldCom, and HealthSouth. Corresponding with accounting's important role in CG, accounting scholars increasingly have investigated CG in recent years, so the body of literature is growing. Although previous attempts have been made to summarize extant literature on CG via reviews, none of these attempts has utilized recent developments in text analyses and natural language processing. This study uses latent semantic and topic analyses to address this research gap by analysing abstracts from 1,399 articles in all accounting journals that the Australian Business Deans Council (ABDC) has rated A and A*. The ABDC journal list is widely recognized as a journal‐quality indicator across many universities worldwide. The analyses revealed 10 distinct research topics on CG in the ABDC's top accounting journals. The results presented include the five most representative articles for each topic, as distinguished by topic scores. This study carries important practice and policy implications, as it reveals major research streams and exhibits how researchers respond to various CG problems.     

“The reports of my death are greatly exaggerated”—Artificial intelligence research in accounting

Gray et al. (2014) examined the productivity of expert systems/artificial intelligence research in accounting and came to the conclusion that both research on and practice use of expert systems/artificial intelligence had waned since the late 1990s. In our study, we reconsider these findings based on a broader view that is ‘artificial intelligence’ centric versus ‘expert systems’ centric. The results show that while there was a bit of a lull in the late 1990s, artificial intelligence research in accounting has continued to steadily increase over the past 30 years. Further consideration of artificial intelligence techniques as embedded modules in integrated audit support systems also suggest that use by practice continues to be robust. Based on these findings, we make a call for much more research on the usability, and use, of artificial intelligence techniques in accounting domains. Contrary to earlier perceptions, the research domain remains vibrant and holds great potential for AIS researchers to take a leadership role in advancing the field.     

Two Decades of Research on Comparative Management Accounting – Achievements and Future Directions

Comparative Management Accounting research has explored the applications, transferability and cross‐country adaptation of management accounting practices since the early 1990s. These efforts have been triggered by findings indicating that the adoption of foreign management accounting techniques generates comparative advantages in environments characterised by increasing global business competition. However, the literature on Comparative Management Accounting is heterogeneous in terms of its methods and theory and tends to focus on a great variety of practices and instruments. Therefore, this paper reviews the existing literature, elaborating on the dimensions of comparative research in management accounting. In addition, it provides insights into shortcomings and developments in the field and identifies directions for future research and implications for corporate practice.     

The effectiveness of electric utility price regulation in the 1970s a stochastic dominance analysis

This paper examines whether electricity price regulation in the United States has been effective during the period January 1969 through December 1977. Because our analysis provides evidence suggesting that the price-setting system has been ineffective, we extended our study to examine the equability among regulated firms as well as the relationship between firms' asset size and return distributions. These latter examinations shed some light on the quality of the accounting information set, which serves as a major input to the price-setting process.     

The use of microcomputers in accounting education

Developments in the microcomputer industry promise to revolutionize American business. Recent projections show 1983 retail sales to be almost 8 billion dollars.Four years ago Brigham Young University began using microcomputers to assist in accounting education. This article explains how the micro is used in a variety of undergraduate and graduate classes and for administrative purposes.The micro is a very powerful tool that has many future uses in accounting education. Examples include: accounting and data base packages and as an auditing or research tool.The use of the micro, however, is not without problems. For example: funding, training, student assistance, and quality teaching materials.Accounting educators must train their students in the use of the microcomputer since failure to do so would result in their missing one of the most significant trends in American business.     

Market share and market size variances in a multi-product environment: An evaluation of competing formulations

Market share and market size variances are typically included in cost and managerial accounting texts in the discussion on sales variances. Shank and Churchill (1977) introduced a widely-adopted methodology wherein these variances are equal to the sales quantity variance, with the sales mix variance accounting for the entire variation in sales mix. Hirsch (1988) treats multiple products differently than Shank and Churchill (1977) and offers an alternative formulation for analyzing market share and market size variances. This paper compares the two variance formulations and demonstrates that the market share and market size variances under the Hirsch formulation more realistically reflect changes in market share and market size. As a result, the variances under the Hirsch formulation are more useful for managerial decision-making.     

Recent Evidence on Australian Current Value Accounting Practices: Is the Phoenix Rising from the Ashes?

There has been a perceptible movement in Australian accounting regulations towards various forms of current value accounting (CVA) in the past five years. These developments could reflect changing commercial attitudes to CVA in Australia. This paper presents evidence about the acceptance of CVA based on a survey of 176 public companies in Australia. It was found that the number of companies preparing comprehensive CVA accounts for external purposes has significantly increased since 1980. Furthermore, the majority of respondents rated a valuation basis other than historical cost as having more relevance to the resource allocation decisions of various users. While it is concluded that current value research is still an important topic for research and debate, the findings indicate that corporate acceptance of CVA will be continually hampered by a number of implementation obstacles.     

An Interpretive Inquiry of Accounting Practices in Religious Organisations

This paper reports the study of accounting practices as embedded in two religious organisations in Malaysia. The research is an attempt to study accounting practices in a cultural setting that has not been the subject of previous interpretive accounting research. The study also makes a contribution towards the need for accounting research to become more explanatory of accounting as social practice wherein theory is both informed, and is developed by observation. This is achieved by developing grounded theory from the data and is in accordance with recent calls for case studies in accounting research to be more concerned with producing social theories of accounting practice.