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Examining the status of IPSAS adoption at the country level: an analysis of the OECD member states

Michalis Bekiaris (Department of Business Administration, School of Business, University of the Aegean, Chios, Greece)
Thekla Paraponti (Department of Business Administration, School of Business, University of the Aegean, Chios, Greece)

Journal of Accounting & Organizational Change

ISSN: 1832-5912

Article publication date: 1 June 2022

Issue publication date: 21 March 2023

484

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to provide an overview of the adoption status of International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS) within Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) member states at the country level and highlight the main factors impeding the process of accounting harmonisation.

Design/methodology/approach

This study uses factor analysis (FA) to assess the status of IPSAS adoption as the weighted average of the adoption levels of three categories: central government, sub-national governments, and country-level consolidation. Based on this assessment, the sample is classified into three levels of IPSAS adoption: high, medium, and low.

Findings

The findings suggest a slow trend towards accounting harmonisation and an increasing influence of IPSAS. However, evidence also suggests significant limitations in the adoption of the standards, mainly attributed to national adaptations, which undermine the ongoing efforts for standardisation.

Originality/value

This study provides an integrated view of IPSAS adoption at the country level and sheds light on a different aspect of the international harmonisation process, which is missing from the literature.

Keywords

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank the two anonymous reviewers for their insightful and appreciated feedback. Special thanks go to Professor Andreas Andrikopoulos for his valuable suggestions and input on earlier drafts of this paper.

Citation

Bekiaris, M. and Paraponti, T. (2023), "Examining the status of IPSAS adoption at the country level: an analysis of the OECD member states", Journal of Accounting & Organizational Change, Vol. 19 No. 2, pp. 296-325. https://doi.org/10.1108/JAOC-02-2021-0023

Publisher

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Emerald Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2022, Emerald Publishing Limited

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