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Article
Publication date: 1 November 2006

T.A. Lee

The purpose of this paper is to introduce counterfactual analysis and reasoning to the study of accounting history. The counterfactual focus is the institutionalisation of public…

1748

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to introduce counterfactual analysis and reasoning to the study of accounting history. The counterfactual focus is the institutionalisation of public accountancy in the UK.

Design/methodology/approach

The study adopts a counterfactual research design using Ferguson and Bunzl and asks a “what if” question of an event of importance to accounting historians in order to create a plausible counterfactual outcome that is grounded in rationality and causal analysis. The specific counterfactual question relates to the royal charter granted to public accountants practicing in Edinburgh in 1854. The counterfactual outcome is compared to the actual timeline of public accountancy institutionalisation in the UK.

Findings

The “alternative” history reveals uncertainties that confronted public accountants in the past and provides a basis for suggesting that the current fractured and inefficient state of institutionalised public accountancy in the UK has its origins at least partially in the 1854 royal charter. It also suggests that attempts to register and unify public accountants in the UK have been hindered by nineteenth century royal charters.

Research limitations/implications

The study argues that counterfactual analysis is a useful historical tool with which to understand the consequences of historical decisions made in the professional project of British public accountancy. In addition, the study reveals the potential for counterfactual analysis to illumine the consequences of decisions in other areas of accounting and auditing history.

Originality/value

This study is the first counterfactual analysis in the accounting history literature and therefore provides a template for further studies and improved research design.

Details

Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, vol. 19 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0951-3574

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 21 August 2017

Grietjie Verhoef and Grant Samkin

The purpose of this paper is to examine how the actions of the accounting profession, the state, universities, and academics have inhibited the development of South African…

1948

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine how the actions of the accounting profession, the state, universities, and academics have inhibited the development of South African accounting research.

Design/methodology/approach

A multiple history approach using traditional archival material and oral history is used.

Findings

Since the late nineteenth-century, a network of human and non-human actors has ensured that accounting education in South Africa retained a technical focus. By prescribing and detailing the accounting syllabuses required for university accreditation, the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants (SAICA) and its predecessors exercise direct control over accounting education. As a result, little appetite exists for a discipline based on academic enquiry or engagement with international scholars. While the SAICA claims to support accounting research, this support is conditional on its meeting the professional body’s particular view of scholarship.

Research limitations/implications

The limitations associated with this research are that it focusses on one particular professional body in one jurisdiction. The South African situation provides a cautionary tale of how universities, particularly those in developing countries, should take care not to abdicate their responsibilities for the setting of syllabi or course content to professional bodies. Accounting academics, particularly those in a developing country currently experiencing major social, political, and economic problems, are in a prime position to engage in research that will benefit society as a whole.

Originality/value

Although actor network theory has been used in accounting research and in particular to explain accounting knowledge creation, the use of this particular theoretical lens to examine the construction of professional knowledge is limited. This study draws on Callon’s (1986) four moments to explain how various human actors including the accounting profession, the state, universities, and accounting academics, along with non-human actors such as accreditation, regulation, and transformation, have brought about South African academic disengagement with the discipline.

Details

Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, vol. 30 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0951-3574

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 June 2015

Awni Rawashdeh

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the Jordanian accountant’s behavioral intention of using the Internet Banking services to focus on the perceptions of the users in…

2487

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the Jordanian accountant’s behavioral intention of using the Internet Banking services to focus on the perceptions of the users in terms of usefulness and ease of use of Internet Banking, besides the privacy of using this dynamic technology for meeting their banking requirements.

Design/methodology/approach

The questionnaire on Internet Banking was specifically designed and used to survey a randomly selected sample of Jordanian accountants from the web site of the Jordan Association of Certified Public Accountants and 298 usable responses were obtained. The data were analyzed using SPSS and AMOS (structural equation modeling).

Findings

The results of this analysis support the extended Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) as well as confirm its robustness for predicting the behavioral intention of the adoption of Internet Banking by the Jordanian chartered accountants.

Research limitations/implications

During a period when quick changes are taking place, new technologies are entering the market every day, resulting in a cross-sectional study which cannot be generalized perfectly.

Practical implications

The findings offered useful information for the bank management in order to formulate marketing strategies for Internet Banking.

Originality/value

This study has contributed to the literature available as it formulated and validated an extended TAM for predicting the adoption of Internet Banking.

Article
Publication date: 16 December 2021

Harmandeep Singh and Arwinder Singh

This study aims to investigate the awareness of extensible business reporting language (XBRL) and the perception of chartered accountants of India concerning the inhibitors of…

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to investigate the awareness of extensible business reporting language (XBRL) and the perception of chartered accountants of India concerning the inhibitors of XBRL adoption, namely, environmental, organizational and innovation factors developed by Troshani and Rao (2007) from Rogers’ innovation diffusion theory. In addition, the analysis also investigated the relationship between the perception of issues regarding XBRL adoption and individual characteristics (training, age, gender and professional experience).

Design/methodology/approach

A Web-based questionnaire was circulated through e-mail to chartered accountants registered with the Institute of Chartered Accountants India (ICAI) and 233 chartered accountants responded to the questionnaire. The data was analyzed using reliability statistics and multivariate regression analyses.

Findings

The results indicate that accountants perceived that environmental, organizational and innovational factors were challenging in adopting XBRL. Interestingly, training and experience were significant factors in explaining respondents’ perceptions.

Practical implications

From a practical panorama, the significance of issues implies that associations such as XBRL International, XBRL India, ICAI and the Ministry of Corporate Affairs should collectively take the appropriate steps to sustain and ameliorate the reliability and adoption of XBRL.

Social implications

The results can motivate ICAI/Institute of Company Secretaries of India (ICSI) courses to teach academic content about XBRL.

Originality/value

The present study differs from previous research because it examines the inhibitors in adopting XBRL, namely, environmental, organizational and innovation factors, in an empirical setting. Moreover, to the best of the author’s knowledge, this is the first study to analyze the influence of individual factors on accountants’ perceptions about inhibitors of XBRL adoption.

Details

Accounting Research Journal, vol. 35 no. 5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1030-9616

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 27 May 2021

Onsa Akrout and Salma Damak Ayadi

The present work aimed to enhance the understanding of professional turnover intentions of accounting professionals by exploring their attitudes towards this phenomenon in an…

Abstract

Purpose

The present work aimed to enhance the understanding of professional turnover intentions of accounting professionals by exploring their attitudes towards this phenomenon in an emerging economy (Tunisia).

Design/methodology/approach

An exploratory research was conducted using a narrative approach (episodic interviewing) after having interviewed accounting professionals. Data were analysed with the thematic coding method using NVivo software based on the push-pull-mooring (PPM) framework. Based on this analysis, four types of professionals were identified.

Findings

The interconnections among PPM factors, which are different from one type of professionals to another, play a vital role in whether a professional intends to leave the accounting profession or not. All four types of professionals perceived unpleasant facets of the public practice environment (push factors) and manifested a tendency to switch to available job opportunities (pull factors). Nevertheless, the latitude for profession change, for the third and the fourth types who perceived the professional experience differently, is restricted by mooring factors. That is not the case for the first type of professionals who have already left public accounting and the second type who intend to quit the profession, as we did not find any mooring factors.

Research limitations/implications

This study explored the attitudes of accounting professionals towards professional turnover intention. A deeper insight into the views of the academics and the Ordre des Experts Comptables de Tunisie (OECT) might help understand this phenomenon.

Practical implications

Understanding the relative impact of push, pull and mooring allows the accounting professionals to determine their attitudes towards the intention to leave the profession. This enables firms to develop more effective programmes to retain valued accounting human resources. The findings highlight that the professional associations should promote the values the profession brings to the community through nationwide public awareness campaigns and enhance career opportunities by providing more branches of activity within the profession.

Originality/value

The paper responds to calls for further examination of factors behind professional turnover intention at a time when high rates of turnover were observed among accounting professionals. Also, the cultural context of Tunisia helps explain our findings.

Details

Journal of Accounting in Emerging Economies, vol. 12 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2042-1168

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 12 September 2018

Tamaishwar Looknauth and Charles H. Bélanger

This paper aims to assess the levels of satisfaction of legacy designation accountants, namely, Chartered Accountants (CAs), Certified General Accountants (CGAs) and Certified…

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to assess the levels of satisfaction of legacy designation accountants, namely, Chartered Accountants (CAs), Certified General Accountants (CGAs) and Certified Management Accountants, under the new Chartered Professional Accountants (CPA) banner; to measure differences in satisfaction among the three designations; and to identify the factors associated with the levels of satisfaction.

Design/methodology/approach

A 30-item questionnaire was designed, pilot tested for face validity and further tested for reliability using a Cronbach’s alpha. The questionnaire consisted of three parts: sociodemographic questions, bipolar questions to fit the SERVQUAL model of satisfaction and questions about professional identity and general perceptions of the new CPA organization.

Findings

Legacy accountants in Ontario had a lower level of satisfaction than they expected before unification. A pre- and post-unification comparison found statistically significant differences on all five dimensions of the SERVQUAL model and on overall service. Responses to questions about professional identity and general perceptions of the new organization were mixed. An analysis of variance test revealed a statistically significant difference in satisfaction between CAs and the two other designations – CAs were the least satisfied. A varimax rotated factor analysis indicated that the SERVQUAL’s five dimensions appear to be good predictors of service quality.

Research limitations/implications

Merging professional cultures can be as challenging as merging companies. Increased membership volume needs to translate into additional benefits and services. As indicated by the respondents, the new CPA entity has much work to do, particularly with the former CAs.

Originality/value

This is the first study to examine satisfaction, specifically following the merger of the three accounting designations.

Details

Journal of Accounting & Organizational Change, vol. 14 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1832-5912

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 15 June 2012

Garry D. Carnegie and Brendan T. O'Connell

The purpose of this Australian case study, set in the 1960s, is to comprehensively examine the responses of the two major professional accounting bodies to a…

1503

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this Australian case study, set in the 1960s, is to comprehensively examine the responses of the two major professional accounting bodies to a financial/corporate/regulatory crisis necessitating the defence of the profession's legitimacy.

Design/methodology/approach

This historical paper draws on surviving primary records and secondary sources and applies the perspectives on the dynamics of occupational groups and the legitimacy typology of Suchman.

Findings

While the history of the accounting profession has been characterized by intra‐professional rivalries, this case study illustrates how such rivalries were put aside on recognising the power of collectivizing in defending the profession's legitimacy. Based on the available evidence, pragmatic legitimacy is shown to have been a key focus of attention by the major accounting bodies involved.

Research limitations/implications

The paper may motivate similar studies in Australia and elsewhere, thus potentially contributing to developing a literature on comparative international accounting history. The evidence for this historical investigation is largely restricted to surviving documents, making it necessary to rely on assessments of the key sources.

Originality/value

In addressing responses to crises in defending the legitimacy of the profession as a whole, the paper makes an original contribution in exploring the relationship between literature on the dynamics of occupational groups and on legitimacy management.

Details

Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, vol. 25 no. 5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0951-3574

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 19 September 2008

Bernadette F. Devonport

The purpose of this paper is to provide an exploration of the involvement of women in the New Zealand Institute of Chartered Accountants of throughout its 100 year history.

568

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to provide an exploration of the involvement of women in the New Zealand Institute of Chartered Accountants of throughout its 100 year history.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper draws on archival analysis of professional journal and yearbooks of the New Zealand Institute, as well as the minutes of the Institute, and those of its predecessors (the Accountants' and Auditors' Association and the Incorporated Institute of New Zealand.)

Findings

Social stereotyping appears to have influenced women's membership and participation in the accounting profession in New Zealand. Although the number of women in accounting has risen dramatically since the 1980s, and women now have a more prominent role in the profession, they have still not gained equality with their male colleagues.

Originality/value

Research on women in accounting, both in New Zealand and overseas, has tended to focus on women in public accounting (Trapp et al., 1989; Lehman, 1992; Gammie and Gammie, 1995; Whiting and Wright, 2001). This paper contributes new knowledge about the contributions that women have made to their professional associations and how those organizations responded to their women members.

Details

Pacific Accounting Review, vol. 20 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0114-0582

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 June 1994

R.H. Parker

During the twentieth century English has established itself as the worldlanguage of business and, hence, of accounting. The words thatEnglish‐speaking accountants use to talk…

14120

Abstract

During the twentieth century English has established itself as the world language of business and, hence, of accounting. The words that English‐speaking accountants use to talk about accounting concepts are therefore of more than parochial interest. Discusses the problems that English‐speaking accountants have faced in finding words to express some of the concepts that they have tried to articulate. Looks in particular at words related to accounting as a subject and as a profession and at the components of the balance‐sheet. Examines the sources of English accounting words and in particular the interactions with legal and economic words and concepts. Pays special attention to changes in meaning over time.

Details

Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, vol. 7 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0951-3574

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 March 1998

Stephen P. Walker and Ken Shackleton

Explores the genesis of a plan to erect a statutory “ring fence” around the accountancy profession in Britain during the 1960s. Focuses on two elemental problems in actualising a…

1836

Abstract

Explores the genesis of a plan to erect a statutory “ring fence” around the accountancy profession in Britain during the 1960s. Focuses on two elemental problems in actualising a closure strategy: defining a basis for inclusion and exclusion; and, gaining the sanction of the state. Reveals that the complexities of devising an exclusionary code permitted opportunities for “inclusionary usurpation” by “outside” practitioner groups. Examines the quest by accountants to elicit government support for monopolisation during a period in which restrictive practices were outlawed and the professions were “under fire”. The achievement of de jure closure is shown to be dependent on the predilections of senior bureaucrats and the capacity of the profession to negotiate an “informal contract” with the state. Contends that the profession‐state interface primarily engages the apex of the organisational élite and mandrinate Civil Servants.

Details

Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, vol. 11 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0951-3574

Keywords

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