Dissemination and institutionalization of public sector accounting reforms in less developed countries: A comparative study of the Nepalese and Sri Lankan central governments

One of the major issues in the developing world today is the alleviation of poverty and it is acknowledged that public sector accounting has a key role to play in this through the effective allocation of resources. Implementing public sector accounting changes in developing nations has been a key agenda of international organizations since the 1980s. This study, drawing on the ideas of new institutionalism, strives to explore the implementation of public sector accounting reforms in two less developed countries (LDCs), namely Nepal and Sri Lanka. The empirical findings of the study demonstrate that, while internationally propagated public sector accounting reform ideas have not gone beyond the trial/proposal stage in Nepal, colonialism has bequeathed on Sri Lanka the promotion of accounting education and training, enabling the country to implement some of these reform ideas. However, increasing resistance to accounting changes at the lower administrative level, witnessed in both countries, indicates a need to understand the contexts of LDCs and to fulfil basic preconditions prior to disseminating/embarking on reforms there.     

Management controls in family-owned businesses (FOBs): A case study of an Indonesian family-owned University

This paper reports on the results of a case study of management controls in an Indonesian family-owned University. The paper attempts to understand the nature and dynamics of management controls in the operations of the University. Data for the analyses are gathered from multiple sources including document analysis, observations and semi-structured interviews. The findings of the case study showed that culture and social relations are very instrumental in the management of the University [Ansari, S. L., & Bell, J. (1991). Symbolism, collectivism and rationality in organizational control. Accounting, Auditing and Accountability Journal, 4(2), 4–27]. Decisions such as recruitment, rewards, performance evaluation, and resource allocations are often made in cognizance of social and cultural factors. The strong influence of culture and social relations in the organization thus made formal management controls less relevant. These findings have implications for understanding management controls in FOBs especially in the developing world.     

Examining the differences between United States Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (U.S. GAAP) and International Accounting Standards (IAS): implications for the harmonization of accounting standards

Current trends indicate continued movement towards the harmonization of accounting standards, but not without difficulty and concern. At times, the political and financial market pressure, push the movement in opposite directions. The paper discusses the conceptual framework used in establishing Global Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) (International Accounting Standards, IAS) and U.S. GAAP. Numerous transactional examples are illustrated under both Global GAAP and U.S. GAAP treatment. Several country specific references are presented demonstrating the difficulty in achieving harmonization. Implications for harmonization of accounting standards include arguments “for” and “against” Global GAAP.     

Explaining equity shares in international joint ventures: Combining the influence of asset characteristics,culture and institutional differences

This paper investigates the determinants of the observed contracted equity share ownership structure in international joint ventures (IJVs). We propose that the inherent intangibility of the assets that partner's contribute to the IJV, and both formal (legal) and informal (cultural) institutional differences between partners contribute to explaining the negotiated division of the IJV's equity share. Empirical results from 442 UK-based home-foreign IJVs, indicate that an IJV partner's equity share ownership is positively correlated with the intangibility of the assets they contribute to the IJV relative to those of the second partner. Both cultural and formal institutional differences exert a moderating influence on the observed asset intangibility-equity share relationship for the foreign IJV partner. We attribute this finding to both risk perceptions and the liability of foreignness.     

The influence of the nature of government accounting and reporting in decision-making: evidence from Switzerland

A key objective of government accounting and reporting has been to achieve accountability and its use in that respect has been well documented, however its use for decision-making has had less coverage. This article addresses the latter issue, providing evidence from Switzerland that the accounting basis used (accrual versus cash) influences decision-making. This is the result of the effect that the different approaches have on the nature of the information used for decision-making. Switzerland was among the first western democracies to adopt accrual accounting at both state (canton) and local levels of government in the 1980s. The Swiss federal government followed in 2007. The main examples of the use of accrual information in decision-making are: the focus on self-financing of investments in order to control borrowing, as well as the fiscal policy targets of debt reduction and maintenance of capital. All three require accrual basis information. Therefore accrual basis information is key in fiscal decision-making in Switzerland.     

Corporate accountability and human rights disclosures: A case study of Barrick Gold Mine in Tanzania

Analysis and debate on the roles of accounting in human rights issues is an emerging topic of research. This study draws attention to certain human rights dilemmas arising from investment initiatives of transnational corporations within the Tanzanian socio-political and economic context. Evidence is provided on how accounting operates in resolving such dilemmas through an examination of foreign direct investment episodes where the state has agreed contracts with transnational corporations in the mining sector of Tanzania. The study finally considers the possibility of corporate governance reforms informed by accounting ideas in order to promote realisation of human rights alongside other interests.     

A study of earnings-management motives in the Anglo-American and Euro-Continental accounting models: The Canadian and French cases

The purpose of this paper is to investigate factors that potentially influence earnings-management policy with reference to the Anglo-American and Euro-Continental accounting models. Canada and France, respectively, belong to those different socio-economic environments. Earnings-management practices detected in those countries are expected to be affected by specific socio-economic features of the Anglo-American and the Euro-Continental environments. We explain earnings-management practices by incentives suggested in the literature to reveal which motives are prominent within each environment.We tested our earnings-management motives (EMM) model using appropriate panel-estimation techniques over 1674 Canadian and 1470 French firm-year observations. Our results provide evidence that incentives for earnings management for French firms are specifically linked to contractual debt costs and effective tax rate. However, Canadian firms show specific incentives matched with a dynamic capital market. Issuing equity is a strong motive for earnings management in Canadian firms.