811 research outputs found
Exploring comparative international accounting history
No full textAccounting historians have long recognised accounting’s international scope but have typically concentrated their research endeavours on region- or country-specific studies, or on investigating the diffusion of accounting ideas, techniques and institutions from one country to others. Much potential exists to study the development of accounting from a comparative international perspective, mirroring the attention paid over the past two decades to the comparative study of international accounting practices and standards. This paper proposes a definition of comparative international accounting history (CIAH) and examines the nature and scope of studies within this genre. The CIAH approach is exemplified through an exploratory comparative study of agrarian accounting in Britain and Australia in the latter half of the nineteenth century. In the light of this study, the paper evaluates the potential of CIAH to contribute to an understanding of accounting’s past and provide insights into accounting’s present and future
Accounting as technical, social and moral practice: the monetary valuation of public cultural, heritage and scientific collections in financial reports
No full textThe International Public Sector Accounting Standards Board of the International Federation of Accountants issued exposure draft ED78 Property Plant and Equipment in April 2021. It proposes valuing ‘heritage items’ for recognition as ‘heritage assets’ in statements of financial position. This proposed requirement for global application casts the spotlight on a highly controversial topic in regulated financial reporting. The monetary valuation of cultural, heritage and scientific collections of public not‐for‐profit museums, art galleries and similar repositories has been subject to considerable discussion and debate for the past three decades. Our purpose is to critically examine this perennial financial reporting controversary, in the context of the three conceptions of accounting: accounting as technical practice, social practice and moral practice as articulated in the definition of accounting proposed by Carnegie et al. (2021a, 2021b) for discussion, debate and potential adoption in the accounting profession, including by accounting standard setters in all sectors. This article is intended to challenge accounting to enhanced self‐awareness in reaching its full potential
The paradox of accounting for cultural heritage: A longitudinal study on the financial reporting of heritage assets of major Australian public cultural institutions (1992-2019)
No full textAbstract
Purpose – The monetary valuation of cultural heritage of a selection of 16 major public, notfor-
profit Australian cultural institutions is examined over a period of almost three decades
(1992-2019) to understand how they have responded to the paradoxical tensions of heritage
valuation for financial reporting purposes.
Design/methodology/approach – Accounting for cultural heritage is an intrinsically
paradoxical practice; it involves a conflict of two opposite ways of attributing value: the
traditional accounting and the heritage professionals (or curatorial) approaches. In analysing
the annual reports and other documentary sources through qualitative content analysis, the
study explores how different actors responded to the conceptual and technical contradictions
posed by the monetary valuation of ‘heritage assets’, the accounting phraseology of accounting
standards.
Findings – Four phases emerge from the analysis undertaken of the empirical material, each
characterised by a distinctive nature of the paradox, the institutional responses discerned, and
the outcomes. Although a persisting heterogeneity in the practice of accounting for cultural
heritage is evident, responses by cultural institutions are shown to have minimised, so far, the
negative impacts of monetary valuation in terms of commercialisation of deaccessioning
decisions and distorted accountability.
Originality/value – In applying the theoretical lens of paradox theory in the context of the
financial reporting of heritage, as assets, the study enhances an understanding of the challenges
and responses by major public cultural institutions in a country that has led this development
globally, providing insights to accounting standard setters arising from the accounting practices
observed
Book Review: Handbook Of Accounting, Accountability and Governance, Edited by Garry D. Carnegie and Christopher J. Napier
No full textThe “Handbook of Accounting, Accountability and Governance”, Edited by Garry D. Carnegie - Emeritus Professor, RMIT University, Melbourne, Australia and Christopher J. Napier - Professor of Accounting, School of Business and Management, Royal Holloway, University of London, UK, is a comprehensive volume offering a critical and multidisciplinary examination of the complex interplay between accounting, accountability, and governance, placing them as interdependent and socially embedded practices rather than isolated technical mechanisms
Debate: The fallacy of making non-financial resources into financial resources without concern for their context—A reply to Christiaens (2022)
No full textRedefining accounting as a technical, social and moral practice to better the world
No full textPurpose: The essay is concerned with the redefinition of accounting as a multidimensional technical, social, and moral practice to enable the flourishing of organisations, people and nature to better the world.Methodology/approach: The essay draws upon earlier contributions, especially by Carnegie, Parker and Tsahuridu on redefining accounting, and the related articles by Carnegie, and Carnegie and Parker. It provides a synthesis for readers to understand, elaborate on, and support these ideas. Findings: Accounting is highly influential as a combined technical, social and moral practice, although it has yet to reach its full potential, as this essay illuminates.Originality/value: This essay contributes to the development of accounting thought and to the attractiveness of the accounting profession, especially among potential new entrants. It also helps to foster collaboration between education and research and the professional practice worlds of accounting
Discerning the state of the art in Italy of voluntary disclosure on biodiversity and endemic species
No full textPurpose: This study aims to examine the extent and quality of biodiversity reporting within publicly traded companies in Italy during 2022, amidst growing calls worldwide for enhanced corporate environmental responsibility.
Design/methodology/approach
The study proposes a framework derived from existing biodiversity reporting literature and international guidelines on the topic. Using data from companies’ non-financial reports, the voluntary biodiversity disclosure index is quantified on disclosed information. Various quality reporting characteristics are also deepened. Sector-specific analysis is conducted across 11 industries.
Findings
Approximately 30% of companies in the sample release information on their biodiversity practices/initiatives regarding biodiversity and extinction loss risks. Quantitative analysis reveals a general commitment to disclosure yet falls short of optimal standards. Qualitative insights suggest a genuine intention towards reporting exists, with notable gaps in future orientation, double materiality and mitigation strategies. The quality analysis underscores that the reporting is mainly generalised, narrative and disaggregated concerning actions to restore habitats and ecosystems.
Research limitations/implications
A limitation of this study is the observation of annual reports during one reporting period. Future studies of longer duration would provide cross-period insights into corporate behaviour.
Practical implications
Policymakers should implement regulations and guidelines specifically tailored to biodiversity reporting, providing clear frameworks and standards for companies. Collaborative initiatives between governments, businesses and environmental organisations offer potential to develop best practices and facilitate knowledge-sharing in biodiversity reporting.
Social implications
Collaborative initiatives between governments, businesses and environmental organisations offer potential to develop best practices and facilitate knowledge sharing in biodiversity reporting.
Originality/value
The study contributes to future biodiversity disclosure research by introducing a comprehensive framework that fosters stakeholder trust and environmental accountability. It also sheds light on biodiversity stewardship among Italian companies, under EU directives
The roaring nineties : A comment on the state of accounting history in the United States
No full textThis comment on a recent contribution by Fleischman and Radcliffe [2005], entitled "The Roaring Nineties: Accounting History Comes of Age," specifically deals with their cautionary comments on the general condition of accounting history research in the U.S. around the close of that decade. The author contends that public interest in accounting's past is currently strong, especially following the recent corporate scandals and audit failures in the U.S., and points out that accounting history research projects which are of relevance to policy makers and regulators are likely to be both funded and, accordingly, recognized.C
Popular Accounting History: Evidence from Post-Enron Stories
No full textThis study reviews the concept of “popular history” in the context of accounting history, drawing on evidence from post-Enron stories about corporate collapse and accounting and auditing failure. The study complements the work of Carnegie and Napier [2010], which focused on how professional accountants and their firms and organizations were portrayed in books about Enron and Arthur Andersen that were published during the period 2002 to 2005. These books can be characterized as “popular histories”, and the present paper illustrates how the scholarly work of academic accounting historians is given little attention by the authors of these post-Enron stories. It points to the largely untapped potential for accounting historians to make their research findings and insights available for a general readership
Accounting, accountability and governance in hybrid organizations
No full textChapter 14 “explores the proliferation of organizations in recent decades that favour combining multiple institutional logics to address complex problems. These organizations are collectively classified as hybrids or hybrid organizations. In this chapter, a synthesis is provided of relevant research that has addressed the complex relations among accounting, accountability and governance in increasingly utilized hybrid organizations” (2023, Intro., p. 6)
- …
