Monetary policy,accounting conservatism and trade credit

Using a sample of A-share listed firms in China during the 2003–2012 period,this paper investigates the effect of accounting conservatism on trade credit,taking...     

Social accounting research: An Australasian perspective

This paper provides an insight into the nature and the extent of social accounting research being undertaken within Australasia. It demonstrates that Australasian researchers account for a significant amount of internationally published social accounting research, but emphasises that the research effort seems to be confined to a limited number of researchers perhaps reflecting a lack of ‘take-up’ in this area in terms of the scale of participation. Information is also presented about the relative propensity of journals within the sample to publish social accounting research, and identifies that ‘top tier’ accounting journals historically have not published social accounting research. The paper also considers various factors which seem to be impeding the ‘recruitment’ of new social accounting researchers.     

Structuration theory and mediating concepts: Pitfalls and implications for management accounting research

Giddens’ way of conceptualizing how structures work as both the medium for and outcome of human action – duality of structure – has been emphasized as a valuable point of departure when studying management accounting in its social context. However, we argue that in the literature there are different ways of using mediating concepts between social structure and action, whereby management accounting systems are conceptualized as both the medium for action, and human action as such. Using the often-cited article by Burns and Scapens [Burns J, Scapens RW. Conceptualizing management accounting change: an institutional framework. Management Accounting Research 2000;11(1):3–25] as an illustrative example, we discuss theoretical and methodological consequences of these different ways of conceptualizing management accounting. A main conclusion is that when management accounting is defined through concurrently referring to both ‘virtual’ structures that generate action and the situated doings of individuals, structure and action risk becoming conflated and there is a risk of drawing erroneous conclusions about structural change or stability. The paper closes with some methodological suggestions as to how these problems can be avoided.     

A framework for social and environmental accounting research

This essay explores recent trends in social and environmental accounting research (SEAR). We offer a basic SEAR typology to examine the limitations and possibilities within the current discourse. SEAR has taken a corporate approach in liberal democratic social space. Our typology examines the opportunities for SEAR to interpret and create change in social practice.     

A classification scheme for financial accounting research

This article uses a framework of the policymaking process to summarize and integrate the existing financial accounting research. The framework is first described and then used to identify and integrate six major research perspectives that have emerged in financial accounting. Special emphasis is given in the article to explaining the motivation and evolution of financial accounting research on economic consequences. The framework could best serve as the basis for an outline in a seminar designed to introduce financial accounting research to accounting doctoral students.     

Tackling an accounting coursework assignment - action research on the student perspective

The study focused upon first year undergraduates' experiences and perceptions of a major coursework assignment in accounting. The context was a modular programme with several hundred students from many different courses taking a common first year, first semester introductory accounting module. In the role of a reflective practitioner, the author adopted an action research approach, and gathered various forms of evidence including in-depth interviews with four students at key points during and after completion of their courseworks. The main issues highlighted were: (1) the effect which the university, as a new environment, has on learning in the early weeks of a course, and the fractured nature of learning in a semesterized course; (2) the personal strategies which students adopt for scheduling time on coursework, and the way in which this may differ from the expectations of staff; (3) the variety of learning approaches represented within the student group. These issues are reflected upon and implications for both the author's practice and for other practitioners are considered.     

Culture and accounting change: A new perspective on corporate reporting regulation and accounting policy formulation

This paper proposes and illustrates a new methodological framework for studying corporate reporting regulation and accounting policy formulation at the nation specific level. The process of corporate reporting regulation is viewed as a social system, and change analysis is used to determine the essential properties of such a system. The framework allows examination of the system's norms and values; the nature of its interdependencies both internally and with other social systems; the factors to which the system is especially sensitive; and the way in which culture influences the form and functioning of the system's elements.     

Managerial accounting systems and organizational control: A role perspective

This paper proposes a new way of viewing the relationship between managerial accounting systems and organizational control. This is done to provide a structure around which control processes may be observed and research conducted. In the context of role theory several propositions are advanced in order to explain the relationship. Namely, it is noted that managerial accounting systems are useful in communicating role expectations, are important to motivation, and are useful in communicating organizational climate. Also, several factors concerning managerial style and social context were seen to influence the operativeness of these propositions.     

An historical perspective on governmental accounting education

This paper presents a senior governmental accounting educator’s perspectives on how governmental accounting education has changed over the past 35 years and what we can expect for the future. Having begun my academic career during the 1970s, a period of turmoil and debate about the deficient state of governmental accounting, I look at how events of this period influenced my personal decision to specialize in governmental accounting education and how those events led to a path of dramatic improvement in governmental accounting standards, practice, and education. Key trends in governmental accounting education are discussed along with major changes in practice guidance over the years that have challenged textbook authors and faculty in staying abreast of change. The paper identifies many governmental accounting educators who have made significant contributions to governmental accounting and auditing policy and encourages current educators to seek ways to participate in the policy-making process. Finally, the paper discusses the future outlook for governmental accounting education and concludes that governmental accounting educators are well positioned to contribute to achieving the recently released recommendations of the Pathways Commission (2012).     

Writing accounting research for publication and impact

This paper suggests guidelines for writing accounting research papers that may be useful to accounting researchers who want to improve the chances that their work will be accepted by top journals and, if accepted, will have a significant impact on their field. The advice is illustrated mainly in the context of experimental research in audit judgment, but it is also applicable to other types of accounting research. Several guidelines for communicating the results of accounting research are offered, and these are broken down by the typical sections and subsections that are (or should be) included in well-written accounting research papers. While guidelines such as these cannot guarantee success (either in publication or impact), they nevertheless may provide a valuable framework for communicating and evaluating accounting research.     

Linking international business theory to accounting history: implications of the international evolution of the state and the firm for accounting history research

Accounting is an interdisciplinary subject. We routinely draw insights and models from the base disciplines (e.g. economics, psychology etc.) as a starting point for research on accounting issues. As accounting researchers, and accounting historians in particular, explore the international dimensions of accounting it is appropriate, therefore, to look to the literature on international relations for insights. This paper provides examples of how we could use the literature on the nation-state and international enterprises to frame questions about international accounting history.     

基于会计视角的BOT业务分析及建议

本文旨在通过对企业会计准则解释第2号及IFRIC12的相关规定进行剖析,结合案例及实务中可能遇到的特殊问题,就BOT业务进行较为全面的探讨,包括对于一项业务是否属于BOT的判断以及BOT业务如何进行会计处理和信息披露等。同时,就涉及BOT业务的拟上市公司在IPO审核中,监管层面需要重点关注哪些问题提出建议。     

A radical perspective on the disclosure of accounting information to trade unions

The major aim of this paper is to present an alternative view of the issues which should be raised in the discussion of the managerial disclosure of accounting information to trade unions for collective bargaining. It is an attempt to present a radically different stance as regards the major concerns that need to be confronted in the above debate. Central to our argument is the recognition that different conceptualisations of the management-labour relationship can generate different conclusions with respect to the potentialities for the use of accounting information in industrial relations.     

Large shareholders and accounting research

Large shareholders are a potentially very important element of firms’ corporate governance system. Whereas analytical research is typically vague on who these large shareholders are, in practice there are important variations in the types of large owners (and the different types of large owners could play very different governance roles). After briefly reviewing the standard agency cost arguments, in this article I emphasize the heterogeneity of concentrated ownership and in particular focus on the roles of families, institutions, governments, and employee ownership. I also discuss the role of large shareholders in private (i.e., unlisted) firms, where ownership tends to be more concentrated than in publicly traded firms. Finally, I briefly discuss variations in ownership structures across selected countries.     

Structural decomposition of time series with implications in economics,accounting, and finance research

Recent literature on the decomposition of a time series into components has produced several alternative methodologies. This situation has arisen because of a lack of consensus on how components should be defined, and on the appropriate decomposition structure. Uncertainty about components structure seems to be inevitable when it is accepted that the behavior of a typical business or economic time series implies evolving rather than fixed components patterns. None of the existing procedures can be viewed as uniquely appropriate for the isolation of unobserved components.     

Critical reflections on research approaches, accounting regulation and the regulation of accounting

The design and choice of research approaches, the nature of accounting regulation and the reactions to these regulations in organisations, involving, in effect, the regulation of accounting, are three themes of considerable importance in accounting research. They are the three themes that have dominated the research agenda of the author throughout his academic career. This paper explores the nature of these three key research themes developing some critical reflections on what has been discovered about each of these themes using the author's sole and joint research and publications as a vehicle for this analysis.