Accounting Thought

La  promoción  de  Pacioli  como  tecnócrata,  desconoce  intencionalmente  los  aspectos  sociales  de  su  trabajo  y  otros  textos  antiguos,  pues  constituyen  una  visión  eurocéntrica  y  post-colonial,  que  unge  al  italiano  como  pionero  contable  y  señala  a  otras  civilizaciones  como subdesarrolladas, premodernas, y hasta bárbaras, a las que se puede invadir, ocupar y ‘salvar’.  Este  documento,  en  contraste  con  la  sabiduría  ortodoxa,  busca  redimir  la  noción  de  ‘Contaduría’ de Littleton, para que abarque las prácticas contables de diferentes formaciones sociales antiguas y contemporáneas. Así, proponemos sepultar a Pacioli el tenedor, y redimir a Pacioli el actor social, mediante la explicación del incipiente contenido social, cultural y político de su obra, el cual es más explícito en los registros pre-paciolianos, particularmente aquellos de África, que se remontan a los albores de la civilización.

The  promotion  of  Pacioli  as  technocrat,  willfully  ignores  the  social  aspects  of  his  work  and other ancient texts, as it constitute a Eurocentric and postcolonial vision, that anoint to  the  italian  as  accounting  pioneer  and  simultaneously  marks  to  other  civilizations  as  underdevelopeds, pre-moderns and even barbarians to which it can invade, occupy and “saving”.  This  paper,  in  contrast  to  the  orthodox  wisdom,  seeks  to  redeem  the  notion  of  ‘Accounting’  of  Littleton,  to  encompass  accounting  practices  of  diff  erent  ancient  and  contemporary social formations. In summary, we propose bury to Pacioli “the bookkeeper” and  redeem  to  Pacioli  “the  social  actor”,  through  the  explicating  the  social,  cultural  and  political inchoate content in his work, which is more explicit in the pre-paciolians records, particularly those from Africa, that reach back to the dawn of civilization.

This study focused on the emergence of accounting theory from practice towards general accounting theory in corporate organization in Nigeria. It was carried out, using Guinness Nigeria PLC. The study is based on primary and secondary sources of data. Data were gotten from the audited financial statement of organization for a period of four years (2014-2017) through simple random sampling technique. Regression analysis is used to test the hypothesis for this study at 5 per cent level of significance. Findings revealed that there is a significant relationship between accounting theory and accounting practice in corporate organization. It is recommended that organization should be consistent with type of accounting theory adopted in preparation of their various accounting records, since there is proportional relationship between accounting theory and financial reporting. Keywords: Accounting Theory, Accounting Practice, Corporate Organizations, Financial Statement, Normative Accountin...

The Securities and Exchange Commission censured its former Chief Accountant, William W. Werntz, in a case involving his first audit after leaving the SEC. This study investigates the oddities and mysteries surrounding this case and the conclusions reveal lessons for accounting historians. One conclusion is that the establishment of accounting and auditing standards is conducted in a political environment. Further, individuals who work in this environment have complicated and, sometimes, adversarial past associations and some promote ideas out of positions of self-interest, personal animosities, or for the sake of appearances. Thus accounting historians are warned to be aware of the political and social facets that underlie events and actions when trying to discover the theory behind the rules and to also suspect that the position taken may not have been for ideological reasons. As with this episode, some mysteries may not be resolved because vital facts are not available and thus the most important warning is to gather facts while the witnesses are available to provide information.

Doctoral candidates at many schools are expected to be familiar with the individuals who have made a significant contribution to the field of accounting. This awareness and appreciation of individuals who have contributed to accounting is considered to be basic knowledge which any candidate for a Ph.D. in Accountancy should possess. However, when considering individuals who have helped to advance the profession of accountancy many names come to mind, names such as

This research aims to define the association between improving the quality of financial reporting process and achieving positive changes in operating income and comprehensive income by means of applying corporate governance requirements in the banks of the KSA. The research showed a positive relationship and statistically significant association between achieving corporate governance requirements in the Saudi banks (especially the existence of audit committee, board size, number of board committees) and improving the Saudi banks profitability, and consequently, refining the value of financial reporting process. The study recommends the importance of applying CG requirements in the KSA properly in order to improve the quality of financial reporting process more and more. This will lead to achieving positive changes in operating income and comprehensive income.

The paper analyses the concept of 'user needs', which has been widely adopted by official bodies as the basis of a conceptual framework for financial reporting, including the ASB in the UK, following the lead of the FASB in the US. The user needs approach is essentially deductive: if users of the financial statements are identified, together with the decisions such users want to make with the information such statements contain, then the required information can be specified in the appropriate form. The paper attempts to follow this logic, to test its viability, making reference to the literature and the conceptual framework statements of FASB and the ASB. The paper concludes that the approach throws up such serious problems that no clear conclusions can be drawn from it. FASB and the ASB do not explicitly face these problems, and effectively abandon the user needs criterion. User needs can only serve a rhetorical function within conceptual framework documents. Acknowledgements: The Author wishes to thank Leigh Holland and the anonymous referees for their helpful comments.

The objectives of financial reporting: the case for coherence the Conceptual Framework, and standards This paper proposes a basis for progress in the development of the conceptual framework (CF) as a foundation for developing accounting standards. This topic has gained increased prominence following the IASB's (2013) release of its Review of the Conceptual Framework for Financial Reporting (RCFFR) proposing changes to the CF. In this paper the broad socioeconomic environment is seen as determining the primary purpose of General Purpose Financial Reporting (GPFR) which, in turn, establishes the high-level properties of a CF suitable to meet that primary purpose. GPFR's primary purpose is to support market stability and efficiency through the provision of an account of the financial position and performance of an entity that accords with economic reality. The case is made that the primary purpose of a CF is to provide the principles for the development of accounting standards that will 'produce' GPFR that is useful. This requires theoretical coherence. The CF should drive the standards and if standards depart from the CF principles, such departures should be justified. This proposal is consistent with the position adopted in the RCFFR. However, in contrast to the RCFFR, this paper accents the purposive approach and links the formation of standards directly to the CF. This implies that standards, as sets of rules, are subordinate to CF principles; therefore compliance with standards should not provide a basis for compromising the faithful representation of economic reality. From the purpose identified for GPFR, the paper argues for a default presumption in favour of Fair Value Accounting, a retreat from asset/liability approach, and a re-casting of the income statement to focus on operational flows.

While the precise moment when accounting was first used remains unknown, one can speculate that the emerging need for economic systems necessitated the invention of technologies such as double-entry bookkeeping and the creation of new business models to determine the purpose of accounting at a given time period. Corporations as a business model may not be served by the conventional role of accounting, which caters to the needs of engaging in other businesses forms. Accounting principles such as a historical cost valuation basis can only be justified in reference to accounting rules but not necessarily theories. A corporation needs to be theorized and properly conceptualized from an accounting perspective so that the role of corporate accounting may be suggested or an existing one adopted.

2009 Ohio Regional Meeting. Being encouraged by such a scholar means a lot to me. Showing an interest in my dissertation's topic was a great encouragement to me. It was a unique pleasure to meet him and have conversations about the state of accounting academia. Special thanks are due to Patricia Petty for the many things she has done for me. I cannot forget her help and support. I wish her the very best.

Earning a doctorate entails the learning of skills necessary to investigate the underlying truth of issues and exposure to epistemology that portrays reality. Subscribing to a certain epistemology and training plays a pivotal role in the perception students develop once they become an accounting academic. Doctoral studies, generally, focus on pre-setting students' minds to utility and convincing them of the usability of prescribed meta-theory. However, preparing a thoughtful and independent scholar mandates multiplicity in research methodologies and methods to broaden the academic's ontological horizon. Thus, in addition to discussing the philosophies of running a PhD program in accounting, in this essay, I highlight a PhD program that broadens students' perspectives.

Although the other contributors generally agree with what I have written in my article, I think that the following statement by Basu and Waymire (2017) summarizes the relationship between my article and the subsequent essays and comments in the best way: "Braun (2017) ignores the contracting use of accounting principles because he abstracts away from all stewardship, accountability and contracting issues." I would like to explain briefly my perspective on this matter. The reason why I became interested in questions of financial accounting as an outsider stemmed from my research on capital and entrepreneurship. I wanted to augment my knowledge about economic calculation with how it occurs in actual business life. While studying the relevant literature, I learned that there are basically two competing approaches to financial accounting. My impression was that their respective theoretical foundations differed strongly in character. The balance-sheet approach is based or at least is closely related to today's neoclassical economics. The adherents of the revenue-expense approach, on the other hand, do not systematically rely on a coherent theoretical system; the American institutionalism and the German historical school that could serve as a proper foundation (Biondi, 2013) live in the shadow nowadays. Here and there I found some short remarks on the relationship between Prospect Theory and the principles of historical costs and conservatism that sounded promising to me, yet had not been elaborated at greater length. That is the gap in the literature that I thought needed to be filled and that led me to write the article even though I was well aware of my status as a non-specialist. Basu and Waymire are therefore correct in their statement quoted at the outset of this short rejoinder when they point out the limitations of my article. I welcome the important and necessary comments and criticisms, made by several renowned accounting theorists included in this volume. I would also like to use this opportunity to thank all contributors for applying so much effort to clarifying and shaping those issues that I covered only unsatisfactorily or not at all. Whereas I made a general point about the relationship between neoclassical economics and the balancesheet approach, Baker (2017) adds his knowledge of the current state of the accounting regulations which are (as yet) far from following the balance-sheet approach completely. Baker also provides some historical perspective by referring to the discussion of the two approaches to financial accounting in the German Reich. Tang (2017) adds the idea that the choice between the balance-sheet and the revenue-expense approaches depends on the function that accounting is to serve. If we need periodic information on either the value or performance of a firm in the capital markets, the balance-sheet approach will be, under certain conditions, the appropriate choice. Basu and Waymire (2017), like Tang, point out where and how far fair-value accounting could be the better choice in certain situations. Furthermore, Basu and Waymire push the arguments that I assembled and elaborated in my article further by introducing firm-specific issues like internal quasi-prices. Saito and Fukui (2017) provide of course a totally independent attempt to analyze and criticize the influence of neoclassical economics on the regulations and standards of financial accounting. They make powerful arguments for considering the concept of income as more than a mere byproduct of the measurement of assets and liabilities. I am deeply grateful to the contributors and appreciate all their comments, approving or critical, and accept them entirely. The only point that I do not want to leave undiscussed is Baker's claim that the combination of the ideas of evolution and progress led to the terrible tragedies of the twentieth century:

Every profession has a historical background “traditional heritage upon which all contemporary practice is based” (Murphy, 2016, p.131). In accounting this heritage is reflected in the lives of the practitioners who fought against unethical doing and worked hard to develop the profession (Murphy, 2016). “Members of the profession of public accountancy owe a deep debt of gratitude to the predecessors.... who advanced its principles and techniques” (Murphy, 2016, p.131). Accounting was significantly renovated by the influential works of accounting writers between 1900 to 1920 (Previts, 1972). Preclassical writers searched for a proper epistemology and started a series of definitional investigations (Previts, 1972). This period of preclassical accountants’ work shaped and influenced the later work of classical accountants (Previts, 1972).


Classical accountants are credited for their early attempts at formulation of accounting principles (Previts, 1972). This noticeable achievement clearly distinguished them from accounting earlier thinkers (Previts, 1972). While there is a clear separation between the two groups, classical accountants were greatly affected by preclassical writers (Previts, 1972). Preclassical accountants were a valuable source for financial accounting thought and furnished the foundation for classical accountants to develop formal accounting principles (Previts, 1972). In fact, throughout the preclassical period, accounting thought developed to the level it can be called a body of accounting knowledge (Previts, 1972).

Our paper aims to examine the impact of an “objective” measure for the quality of transparency and disclosure practice that is extracted from the Egyptian corporate governance guidelines on the performance of a selected sample of 85 Egyptian listed companies. We use mixed methods (i.e. content analysis, regression analysis, questionnaires and interviews) to test the relationship between the transparency and disclosure index and corporate performance for the period 2006-2010. We found no significant relationship between transparency and disclosure practice and corporate performance. Our results suggest that governance mechanisms such as transparency and disclosure practices are considered to be just ink on paper without any actual value added adopting corporate governance in Egypt.

Before the emergence of accounting regulation and broadly-based equity ownership in the US, corporations had a relatively free hand over financial information disclosure. Why information was disseminated was therefore a purer window into corporate strategy. This paper considers the case of U.S. Steel Corporation, a dominant industrial company for the good part of the 20th century in the world's largest economy. Two explanations, stewardship and legitimacy theory are offered as rationales for the company's relatively high level of voluntary disclosure. The results suggest that the stewardship model is the one most likely to explain the variation in the historical pattern of disclosure.

Discuss the implications of materiality of financial information on "earnings management". Imply the content description and analysis of FASB Accounting Standards Codification™. The Professional View is used to confirm the absence of materiality guidelines in the US GAAP. Materiality, importance and significance are terms used to indicate the materiality consideration in the Codifications. The main conclusions are concerned to, first, the internal and external determinants and motives influence the practices of "earnings managements", and second US GAAP do not offer well defined guidelines to apply materiality on decision making.

EN ESTE TRABAJO SE HACE UNA REVISIÓN DE LOS RESULTADOS DE LA INVESTIGACIÓN QUE SE HA LLEVADO A CABO EN VEINTITRÉS AÑOS DE TRABAJO EN EL CENTRO COLOMBIANO DE INVESTIGACIÓN CONTABLE (CCINCO). ESTE CENTRO REÚNE A PROFESORES UNIVERSITARIOS (CONTADORES PÚBLICOS) VINCULADOS CON DISTINTAS UNIVERSIDADES DE COLOMBIA QUE EFECTÚAN Y PROMUEVEN LA INVESTIGACIÓN CONTABLE. ESTA ORGANIZACIÓN SURGIÓ EN 1987 EN UN CONTEXTO EN EL CUAL LA INVESTIGACIÓN CONTABLE EMPEZÓ A SER RECONOCIDA EN COLOMBIA COMO UNA ACTIVIDAD FUNDAMENTAL PARA EL DESARROLLO DE LA DISCIPLINA Y LA PROFESIÓN. ESTE TRABAJO UTILIZA LA PROPUESTA TAXONÓMICA DE JORGE TÚA PEREDA SOBRE LOS ENFOQUES DE INVESTIGACIÓN CONTABLE COMO HERRAMIENTA PARA LA IDENTIFICACIÓN Y CLASIFICACIÓN DE LAS HIPÓTESIS Y PROBLEMAS ESCOGIDOS POR LOS INVESTIGADORES, Y SOBRE ÉSTOS SONDEAR EL ANÁLISIS EPISTEMOLÓGICO DE SU FORMULACIÓN, ASÍ COMO TAMBIÉN LAS PRUEBAS DE CONTRASTACIÓN DE LAS HIPÓTESIS ENCONTRADAS.

The primary purpose of this short article is to present a list of publications by Scholars Book Co. that Prof. Robert Sterling established. The books and monographs are of two types. While some were being published for the first time and were original, others have been previously published. The contribution of previously published books in accounting is wellknown. With the closure of Scholars Book Co., it is imperative that the 32 books that the publishing house printed should be preserved for accounting students and researchers. 1. INTRODUCTION This short article is aimed at sharing and documenting works that were deemed classic by or considered necessary from the perspective of Prof. Robert Sterling, an accounting scholar and theorist. He established Scholars Book Co. for publishing new books and reprints of previously published books. Some of the editions of books he selected for reprint are still available, and are being circulated among readers and interested individuals [1]. Considering their intellectual value, Prof. Sterling decided to republish them. Since the publishing house no longer exists and its founder is deceased, accounting researchers, historians, educators, and students should be aware

Corporate performance is a key in corporate accounting. One of the earliest accounting measures of corporate performance is accounting income. Accrual accounting enables the measurement of changes in net assets of an entity. Accounting income is neither scientifically determined nor proven. Accounting information often results from approximation and estimation when choice among alternatives is professionally judged, rather than exact measures and perceptions. Divergence in application of accounting policies in corporations under similar conditions may present different results. Some criticize corporate accounting, particularly after scandals related to financial statement fraud, for choices among procedures that accounting standards permit. However, choices in the application of accounting permitted procedures that accounting standards allow are based on professional judgment. Professional judgment enables accounting as a profession and allows accounting professionals to claim status in their respective communities. Exploring users' awareness of corporate reports in Saudi Arabia in terms of flexibility in using accounting methods when preparing corporate reports and analyzing their understanding of corporate reports, this study surveyed 72 financial statement users. Research has found that sufficient efforts must be made to obtain information when making investment decisions. As accounting income is a result of applied accounting procedures and methods, users perceive information published in the financial reports, including notes, as understandable. Flexibility in applying accounting standards is imperative for adapting to changes in the entity's business environment. Potential capital market investors must maintain a minimum level of knowledge; otherwise, they might be gambling their wealth or savings against the odds.

Research aim: This paper critically evaluates the qualitative characteristics of accounting information that can be drawn from the Financial Accounting Standard Board (FASB)/International Accounting Standard Board (IASB) Conceptual Framework and Value-Relevance studies that are motivated by users of accounting information. Design/Methodology/Approach: This study reviews the value-relevance literature and Statement of Financial Accounting Concepts (SFAC) No. 8, which was issued by FASB in September 2010 in order to make a distinction between them. Research findings: The value-relevance literature, which reported the associations between accounting numbers and common equity valuations, has limited implications or inferences for accounting information users. Although some scholars believe that the value relevance model indicates that accounting information is relevant and reliable (faithfully represented), it is, however, difficult to attribute the cause of the lack of value relevance to the relevance or the reliability aspects as the value relevance model does not distinguish between relevance and reliability. Theoretical contribution/Originality: This study provides some recommendations and a framework for future academic research related to the qualitative characteristics of accounting information (especially earnings) and value-relevance models. Practitioner/Policy implications: According to the conceptual framework defined by the FASB and IASB, relevance and faithful representation, as fundamental qualitative characteristics, are required for the provision of the usefulness of accounting information, and should be taken into consideration by scholars and standard setters in the accounting area. Research limitation/Implication: This paper does not have a direct impact on practice. But, if the standard setters and researchers apply the concepts have been defined by this study in their accounting standards and their research,

La promoción de Pacioli como tecnócrata, desconoce intencionalmente los aspectos sociales de su trabajo y otros textos antiguos, pues constituyen una visión eurocéntrica y post-colonial, que unge al italiano como pionero contable y señala a otras civilizaciones como subdesarrolladas, premodernas, y hasta bárbaras, a las que se puede invadir, ocupar y ‘salvar’. Este documento, en contraste con la sabiduría ortodoxa, busca redimir la noción de ‘Contaduría’ de Littleton, para que abarque las prácticas contables de diferentes formaciones sociales antiguas y contemporáneas. Así, proponemos sepultar a Pacioli el tenedor, y redimir a Pacioli el actor social, mediante la explicación del incipiente contenido social, cultural y político de su obra, el cual es más explícito en los registros pre-paciolianos, particularmente aquellos de África, que se remontan a los albores de la civilización.The promotion of Pacioli as technocrat, willfully ignores the social aspects of his work and other ancie...

EN ESTE TRABAJO SE HACE UNA REVISIÓN DE LOS RESULTADOS DE LA INVESTIGACIÓN QUE SE HA LLEVADO A CABO EN VEINTITRÉS AÑOS DE TRABAJO EN EL CENTRO COLOMBIANO DE INVESTIGACIÓN CONTABLE (CCINCO). ESTE CENTRO REÚNE A PROFESORES UNIVERSITARIOS (CONTADORES PÚBLICOS) VINCULADOS CON DISTINTAS UNIVERSIDADES DE COLOMBIA QUE EFECTÚAN Y PROMUEVEN LA INVESTIGACIÓN CONTABLE. ESTA ORGANIZACIÓN SURGIÓ EN 1987 EN UN CONTEXTO EN EL CUAL LA INVESTIGACIÓN CONTABLE EMPEZÓ A SER RECONOCIDA EN COLOMBIA COMO UNA ACTIVIDAD FUNDAMENTAL PARA EL DESARROLLO DE LA DISCIPLINA Y LA PROFESIÓN. ESTE TRABAJO UTILIZA LA PROPUESTA TAXONÓMICA DE JORGE TÚA PEREDA SOBRE LOS ENFOQUES DE INVESTIGACIÓN CONTABLE COMO HERRAMIENTA PARA LA IDENTIFICACIÓN Y CLASIFICACIÓN DE LAS HIPÓTESIS Y PROBLEMAS ESCOGIDOS POR LOS INVESTIGADORES, Y SOBRE ÉSTOS SONDEAR EL ANÁLISIS EPISTEMOLÓGICO DE SU FORMULACIÓN, ASÍ COMO TAMBIÉN LAS PRUEBAS DE CONTRASTACIÓN DE LAS HIPÓTESIS ENCONTRADAS.

The main purpose of this paper is to show the significance of the accounting Olympics for high school students. They can be use not only to test the level in which the students have mastered the accounting knowledge but as well to ensure they’re much more smooth transition from the high school to the university.

Professor Sunder’s book raises significant issues about the state of financial reporting, particularly his concern at the proliferation of complex rules for which there are only questionable justifications. In this review essay issue is taken not that there isn’t a problem with current financial reporting, but with the unexamined premise about the nature of that problem and the role that accounting and auditing play in the regulation of the modern, powerful corporation. It is argued that rules are the logical consequence of a competitive order and that resorting to norms as an alternative to rules or standards promises no better alternative unless there is a critical examination of who is to be the community to which norms apply. Thus, it is crucial to question the premise of decision usefulness as the underlying purpose of accounting vis-a-vis the publicly traded corporation. I argue that re-considering the historical norms of accounting that are based on the premise that holding c...

Raymond J. Chambers was an internationally recognized scholar, influential theorist, as well as an important contributor to the study of the history of accounting thought. He was an advocate of the needs of financial statement users. He investigated what users, not accountants, considered important and what in fact was relevant to their decision-making. He challenged existing theoretical propositions which he believed were only rationalization of current practices. He argued that the lack of a rigorously developed theory of accounting led to contradictory and less relevant accounting practices. In his theory of continuously contemporary accounting (CoCoA), he demonstrated with logic and evidence that only an accounting system based on market selling prices is relevant to users' evaluation and decision-making process. Chambers dedicated a significant amount of his most recent work to his Thesaurus [1995] and to the origins and developments of conventional accounting. He endeavored to refute the widely held assumption that cost-based accounting is a superior rule. Besides launching Abacus in 1965, his works, Accounting, Evaluation and Economic Behavior [1966] and An Accounting Thesaurus [1995] are among Chambers' notable contributions to the accounting literature.

Accounting has been offered as an academic discipline in universities and higher education institutions for more than a century. For the first time in history, the American Institute of Accountants (AIA) puts forth efforts to compile the generally accepted accounting principles back in 1939. Since then, we have witnessed more efforts in setting accounting standards along with an expansion of the accounting theory and academic research studies. All of the mentioned efforts are signs of the fact that accounting is going through a change, from a profession into a field of science. However, one cannot claim accounting as a scientific field without justification, reasoning, and argumentation. Thereby, in this article while studying the deductive and inductive reasoning, we will elaborate their role in developing the accounting theory, setting the accounting standards, and accounting research. What has been expected from the accounting theory is to enable the standard setting authorities to deduce standards. Considering the impact of accounting theory on standard setting, the main aim of this study is to explore the role of deductive and inductive reasoning in the development of accounting theory and setting accounting standards. Furthermore, regarding the fact that accounting research is the joint connection between accounting theory and standards, the role of these reasoning approaches on the integrity of this connection is studied. This non-empirical research is based on reviewing of the existing literature.

While the precise moment when accounting was first used remains unknown, one can speculate that the emerging need for economic systems necessitated the invention of technologies such as double-entry bookkeeping and the creation of new business models to determine the purpose of accounting at a given time period. Corporations as a business model may not be served by the conventional role of accounting, which caters to the needs of engaging in other businesses forms. Accounting principles such as a historical cost valuation basis can only be justified in reference to accounting rules but not necessarily theories. A corporation needs to be theorized and properly conceptualized from an accounting perspective so that the role of corporate accounting may be suggested or an existing one adopted.

Several efforts have been made towards basing the practices of corporate accounting on reasoning. This article critiques Understanding Mattessich and Ijiri: A Study of Accounting Thought to expand some of the topics currently relevant to the accounting discourse. The following two claims may be needed for further clarification. Mattessich’s and Ijiri’s presuppositions towards reality actually contribute to reality, as each one of them perceived it as an objective construct, but this idea is challenged in this article. In conceptualizing the practice of accounting, Mattessich may not explain how corporate accounting is perceived. A suitable extension of the book’s topic is thus discussing positive accounting research, elitism in accounting research. More sources on the topics of ‘accounting sociology’ by applying the theory of elitism, ‘positive accounting research’, and ‘citation analysis’ are provided as well. Reading the book may be deemed for accounting researchers trained in the...

Building upon panel discussion held at the sixth Accounting History International Conference, a resounding “yes” is offered in response to the question of whether accounting history matters. However, reflecting the viewpoint that accounting history can and should matter more, various suggestions are presented for advancing the quality, relevance and significance of historical research in accounting, commencing with the need to redress persistent misconceptions about the discipline. Practical strategies for enhancing the impact of accounting history scholarship are then developed around the themes of promoting its contemporary relevance and implications, fostering engagement with diverse groups of scholars, writing accounting history in informative and engaging ways, and articulating and developing appropriate methodologies. Finally, the role of accounting historians as “change agents” is explored and advocated.

Banks in Egypt have unique characteristics that makes its micro economic role vital in the macro economy throughout their financial performance impact on the investors' decisions in the capital exchange market. The research investigates assesses, and discusses the appropriate disclosure attributes of banks, and disclosure attributes impact of corporate governance, audit quality, along with the voluntary disclosure attributes on the financial performance of the Islamic and non-Islamic banks in the Egyptian exchange market through an empirical research applied on banks listed in the stock exchange market. The corporate governance disclosure attributes presented by the research included Audit committee dimensions: Audit committee size, AC autonomy, AC meetings, Board size, Board independence, Managerial ownership, and other prominent variables. The audit quality disclosure attributes addressed by the research divided into two subcategories, Auditing firms determinates and Audit process determinates.

Accounting has been offered as an academic discipline in universities and higher education institutions for more than a century. For the first time in history, the American Institute of Accountants (AIA) puts forth efforts to compile the generally accepted accounting principles back in 1939. Since then, we have witnessed more efforts in setting accounting standards along with an expansion of the accounting theory and academic research studies. All of the mentioned efforts are signs of the fact that accounting is going through a change, from a profession into a field of science. However, one cannot claim accounting as a scientific field without justification, reasoning, and argumentation. Thereby, in this article while studying the deductive and inductive reasoning, we will elaborate their role in developing the accounting theory, setting the accounting standards, and accounting research. What has been expected from the accounting theory is to enable the standard setting authorities to deduce standards. Considering the impact of accounting theory on standard setting, the main aim of this study is to explore the role of deductive and inductive reasoning in the development of accounting theory and setting accounting standards. Furthermore, regarding the fact that accounting research is the joint connection between accounting theory and standards, the role of these reasoning approaches on the integrity of this connection is studied. This non-empirical research is based on reviewing of the existing literature.

La promocion de Pacioli como tecnocrata, desconoce intencionalmente los aspectos sociales de su trabajo y otros textos antiguos, pues constituyen una vision eurocentrica y post-colonial, que unge al italiano como pionero contable y senala a otras civilizaciones como subdesarrolladas, premodernas, y hasta barbaras, a las que se puede invadir, ocupar y ‘salvar’. Este documento, en contraste con la sabiduria ortodoxa, busca redimir la nocion de ‘Contaduria’ de Littleton, para que abarque las practicas contables de diferentes formaciones sociales antiguas y contemporaneas. Asi, proponemos sepultar a Pacioli el tenedor, y redimir a Pacioli el actor social, mediante la explicacion del incipiente contenido social, cultural y politico de su obra, el cual es mas explicito en los registros pre-paciolianos, particularmente aquellos de Africa, que se remontan a los albores de la civilizacion. Palabras clave: Contabilidad Africana, Pacioli, Eurocentrismo, Diop, Contabilidad por partida doble, Ca...

Discuss the implications of materiality of financial information on "earnings management". Imply the content description and analysis of FASB Accounting Standards Codification™. The Professional View is used to confirm the absence of materiality guidelines in the US GAAP. Materiality, importance and significance are terms used to indicate the materiality consideration in the Codifications. The main conclusions are concerned to, first, the internal and external determinants and motives influence the practices of "earnings managements", and second US GAAP do not offer well defined guidelines to apply materiality on decision making.

This paper recasts the debate over whether accounting research is relevant to accounting practice by asking the more fundamental question of whether modern academic accounting is an applied discipline. Using an institutional theory template, we argue that academic accounting only purports to be an applied discipline relative to the professional practice of accounting. We study the human capital of personnel inflows into academic accounting in terms of practice work experience. We conclude that pre-academia practice experience is counterproductive to academic success in terms of research productivity and movement in academic labor markets. Implications pertaining to the broadly based schism between ''town and gown" in accounting are drawn.

This paper explores a general validity of the prevalent Accounting Equation in determining the real wealth and accountability discharge through contemporary financial reporting. In so doing, an augmented accounting framework is developed in order to indicate the gaps that may arise in the accounting equation; which is inherent in the system if compared among different layers – sign to alleged to referent (Buarillard 1983, 1994; MacIntosh 2000, Ijiri 1986, and Mattessich 2003). We argue that this augmented framework will help in enhancing our understanding, at least at the level of pedagogy and for corporate governance and discharging social responsibility, about the missing elements and the nature of financial reporting including the determination of fair values and therefore, reduce the blaming games of maintaining objectivity and neutrality about information provision for an augmented reality of wealth (economic or otherwise) for an entity.

EN ESTE TRABAJO SE HACE UNA REVISIÓN DE LOS RESULTADOS DE LA INVESTIGACIÓN QUE SE HA LLEVADO A CABO EN VEINTITRÉS AÑOS DE TRABAJO EN EL CENTRO COLOMBIANO DE INVESTIGACIÓN CONTABLE (CCINCO). ESTE CENTRO REÚNE A PROFESORES UNIVERSITARIOS (CONTADORES PÚBLICOS) VINCULADOS CON DISTINTAS UNIVERSIDADES DE COLOMBIA QUE EFECTÚAN Y PROMUEVEN LA INVESTIGACIÓN CONTABLE. ESTA ORGANIZACIÓN SURGIÓ EN 1987 EN UN CONTEXTO EN EL CUAL LA INVESTIGACIÓN CONTABLE EMPEZÓ A SER RECONOCIDA EN COLOMBIA COMO UNA ACTIVIDAD FUNDAMENTAL PARA EL DESARROLLO DE LA DISCIPLINA Y LA PROFESIÓN. ESTE TRABAJO UTILIZA LA PROPUESTA TAXONÓMICA DE JORGE TÚA PEREDA SOBRE LOS ENFOQUES DE INVESTIGACIÓN CONTABLE COMO HERRAMIENTA PARA LA IDENTIFICACIÓN Y CLASIFICACIÓN DE LAS HIPÓTESIS Y PROBLEMAS ESCOGIDOS POR LOS INVESTIGADORES, Y SOBRE ÉSTOS SONDEAR EL ANÁLISIS EPISTEMOLÓGICO DE SU FORMULACIÓN, ASÍ COMO TAMBIÉN LAS PRUEBAS DE CONTRASTACIÓN DE LAS HIPÓTESIS ENCONTRADAS.

We report on a panel discussion at the 2001 CMU Accounting MiniConference under the title “Intellectual Foundations of Accounting.” We provide a background and the motivation for the discussion and present the remarks by the four panelists. A number of perspectives are taken. Professor Sunder emphasizes dualities in accounting. Professor Demski stresses the endogeneity of accounting measurement activities. Professor Fellingham examines the core and superstructure of accounting. Professor Ijiri observes the microcosmos in accounting and its philosophical connection. We also argue that accounting's intellectual foundations are far from settled and an ongoing discussion is likely to help reinvigorate accounting scholarship.

SYNOPSIS: We report on a panel discussion at the 2001 CMU Accounting Mini-Conference under the title "Intellectual Foundations of Accounting." We provide a background and the motivation for the discussion and present the remarks by the four panelists. A number of ...

Accounting has been offered as an academic discipline in universities and higher education institutions for more than a century. For the first time in history, the American Institute of Accountants (AIA) puts forth efforts to compile the generally accepted accounting principles back in 1939. Since then, we have witnessed more efforts in setting accounting standards along with an expansion of the accounting theory and academic research studies. All of the mentioned efforts are signs of the fact that accounting is going through a change, from a profession into a field of science. However, one cannot claim accounting as a scientific field without justification, reasoning, and argumentation. Thereby, in this article while studying the deductive and inductive reasoning, we will elaborate their role in developing the accounting theory, setting the accounting standards, and accounting research. What has been expected from the accounting theory is to enable the standard setting authorities to deduce standards. Considering the impact of accounting theory on standard setting, the main aim of this study is to explore the role of deductive and inductive reasoning in the development of accounting theory and setting accounting standards. Furthermore, regarding the fact that accounting research is the joint connection between accounting theory and standards, the role of these reasoning approaches on the integrity of this connection is studied. This non-empirical research is based on reviewing of the existing literature.