The Principle of Prudence in Government Accounting

Abstract

The principle of prudence plays a critical role in the design of national and international public sector accounting. Whereas in private sector accounting there is a substantial body of literature with regard to conservatism, the academic debate on the prudence principle in public sector accounting has only started recently. The aim of this chapter is to analyse whether the International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSASs) address asymmetric prudence with respect to measurement. This chapter shows that the existence of requirements leading to asymmetric prudence with regard to the measurement of assets is widespread throughout the suite of IPSASs.

Citation

Adam, B., Heiling, J. and Meglitsch, T. (2023), "The Principle of Prudence in Government Accounting", Caruana, J., Bisogno, M. and Sicilia, M. (Ed.) Measurement in Public Sector Financial Reporting: Theoretical Basis and Empirical Evidence (Emerald Studies in Public Service Accounting and Accountability), Emerald Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. 63-83. https://doi.org/10.1108/978-1-80117-161-820231004