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1 – 10 of over 1000Michael Jones and Malcolm Smith
The study aims to explore the use of alternative measures of “understandability” on accounting texts. This includes the meaning identification test (MIT) and the sentence…
Abstract
Purpose
The study aims to explore the use of alternative measures of “understandability” on accounting texts. This includes the meaning identification test (MIT) and the sentence verification technique (SVT), which have not previously been used by accounting researchers, as well as variants on the traditional Cloze tests such as the C-Test.
Design/methodology/approach
This study focuses on the understandability of accounting texts and evaluates how reliable the Cloze test is as a measure of comprehension. An experiment was designed and conducted to measure users' performance with a variety of comprehension measures (MIT, SVT, Cloze, C-Test).
Findings
The study concludes that the outcomes from the MIT and SVT comprehension tests are not significantly associated with those from the Cloze tests. This implies that while the Cloze test is a good measure of the predictability of accounting narratives, and of textual redundancy, it does not necessarily measure the understandability of the text.
Originality/value
These measures of understandability, which have not previously been used in accounting, would enable researchers to test the communicational effectiveness of using different accounting narratives such as annual reports or prospectuses. Such a measure could be used to improve the understandability of accounting narratives. The strengths and weaknesses of the various tests are assessed. It is suggested that there is a need for further experimentation especially with the MIT test.
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Yuqian Zhang, Anura De Zoysa and Kalinga Jagoda
The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between the understandability of an accounting textbooks written in English and the language learning motivation of…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between the understandability of an accounting textbooks written in English and the language learning motivation of international students. Previous research assumed that native speakers of a language and second-language speakers would understand a given accounting text similarly and little attempt has been made to ascertain any individual differences in users’ capacity to read and understand a foreign language.
Design/methodology/approach
The 107 participants in this study comprised of full-time English as a Second Language postgraduate commerce students studying at a major Australian university. The authors used two-part questionnaire to examine the motivation of participants and the understandability of an accounting textbook using the Cloze test.
Findings
The results suggest that most international students have difficulty in understanding the textbook narratives used in this study. Furthermore, the results show that students’ motivation to learn a foreign language impacts on the understandability of an accounting textbook.
Practical implications
This study will help the educators, textbook publishers and students to understand the needs of ESL students. It is expected to provide guidance for authors and instructors to enhance the effectiveness of the accounting courses.
Originality/value
The accounting literature shows that there have been efforts by accounting researchers to measure the understandability of accounting texts or narratives. This research provided valuable insights of the learning challenges of international students and valuable recommendations to educators and publishers to enhance the delivery.
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Pedro Antunes, José A. Pino, Mathews Nkhoma and Nguyen Hoang Thuan
Business process modeling faces a difficult balance: on the one hand, organizations seek to enact, control and automate business processes through formal structures (procedures…
Abstract
Purpose
Business process modeling faces a difficult balance: on the one hand, organizations seek to enact, control and automate business processes through formal structures (procedures and rules). On the other hand, organizations also seek to embrace flexibility, change, innovation, value orientation, and dynamic capabilities, which require informal structures (unique user experiences). Addressing this difficulty, the authors propose the composite approach, which integrates formal and informal process structures. The composite approach adopts a socio-material conceptual lens, where both material and human agencies are supported.
Design/methodology/approach
The study follows a design science research methodology. An innovative artifact – the composite approach – is introduced. The composite approach is evaluated in an empirical experiment.
Findings
The experimental results show that the composite approach improves model understandability and situation understandability.
Research limitations/implications
This research explores the challenges and opportunities brought by adopting a socio-material conceptual lens to represent business processes.
Originality/value
The study contributes an innovative hybrid approach for modeling business processes, articulating coordination and contextual knowledge. The proposed approach can be used to improve model understandability and situation understandability. The study also extends the socio-material conceptual lens over process modeling with a theoretical framework integrating coordination and contextual knowledge.
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Malcolm Smith and Richard Taffler
Adopts an empirical approach to demonstrate that a markeddifference exists between the terms “readability” and“understandability”, suggesting that “readingease”, as measured by…
Abstract
Adopts an empirical approach to demonstrate that a marked difference exists between the terms “readability” and “understandability”, suggesting that “reading ease”, as measured by formulae like FLESCH and LIX based on word and sentence complexity, conveys data which may be different to that conveyed by tests of the understandability of the message. The CLOZE method is used as a measure of understandability with audiences of differing accounting sophistication to measure the predictability of the narrative and to demonstrate inter‐group and inter‐formulae distinctions. Analysis of the results suggests that readability and understandability are different concepts and that standard setters should pay more attention to “understandability” as a desirable characteristic of accounting disclosures since there is a danger that the intended messages are of a complexity beyond the sophistication of the target audience.
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Sandra Cohen, Francesca Manes Rossi, Xenia Mamakou and Isabel Brusca
Governmental financial reporting is prepared for accountability and decision-making purposes and is directed to a wide range of users, including citizens. However, this may sound…
Abstract
Purpose
Governmental financial reporting is prepared for accountability and decision-making purposes and is directed to a wide range of users, including citizens. However, this may sound easier than it actually is as citizens without specific accounting knowledge may find it difficult to understand the financial information prepared by governments. The study analyzes citizens' perceptions toward infographics as well as their ability to improve accounting understandability by nonaccounting experts compared to the traditional financial statements.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper presents the results of an exploratory analysis conducted with the participation of a group of citizens in three European countries through a questionnaire.
Findings
The results show that infographics improve accounting understandability by nonaccounting experts compared to the traditional financial statements. However, infographics alone are not enough to succeed in making nonaccounting literate citizens experts in fully understanding accounting information.
Originality/value
The novelty of the research consists in its ability to give voice to citizens' preferences regarding the way the financial information is presented, which has been largely neglected by previous studies. In parallel, it analyzes the effect of accounting knowledge on accounting understandability. Moreover, it is the first study that analyzes the use of infographics in public sector financial reporting.
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The cloze procedure has been seen by accounting researchers as a useful tool for investigating the communicative effectiveness of accounting narratives. Compared with text‐based…
Abstract
The cloze procedure has been seen by accounting researchers as a useful tool for investigating the communicative effectiveness of accounting narratives. Compared with text‐based readability measures, such as the Flesch test, the cloze procedure has often been viewed as an alternative and superior method of measuring understandability. Provides a critical review of the accounting and educational cloze‐based literature. In particular, questions the validity of the cloze procedure, the cloze procedure’s measurement of understandability, and the correctness of the criterion reference scores traditionally used to interpret cloze scores. Concludes that these legitimate concerns about the cloze procedure must be taken into account when the results of cloze‐based accounting research studies are evaluated. Repeats calls for further research to establish the validity of the cloze procedure in the accounting domain and to support the results of existing studies.
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Mohd Ramadan Ab Hamid, Mastura Mohd Isamudin, Siti Sabariah Buhari and Emmy Hainida Khairul Ikram
The purpose of this paper is to assess the value of websites accessible to patients looking for Web-based information regarding hypertension management.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to assess the value of websites accessible to patients looking for Web-based information regarding hypertension management.
Design/methodology/approach
A cross-sectional research was carried out by finding out Malay and English language websites about hypertension. For this purpose, the keywords “hypertension and treatment” were entered on the Yahoo, Google, Ask.com, Bing and DuckDuckGo search engines, and the first five pages of the results obtained were inspected. The DISCERN tool was deployed for evaluating the quality of information. The actionability and understandability were assessed through the Patient Education Materials Assessment Tool (PEMAT). Eight assessors were asked to assess and grade the involved websites.
Findings
Of the 216 websites, eight (4.0%) conformed to the inclusion norms. All websites were classified into private, 4 (50%); government, 2 (25%) and personal, 2 (25%). The general rating of the eight websites was good (mean 51.6 ± 8.2 on a 75-point scale); however, half of the websites were rated as fair (mean 45.3 ± 3.1 on a 75-point scale). All websites conformed to the standard score of ≥70% for understandability (mean 76.1 ± 11.4), but none for actionability (mean 52.8 ± 13.9). Analysis of variance indicated there was no statistical difference with regards to quality (p = 0.525), understandability (p = 0.484) and actionability (p = 0.188) among the three website sets.
Originality/value
Considering the surplus of websites dedicated to information on hypertension, an independent assessment of the quality of these websites will be advantageous. Patients should be rendered high understandability, quality and actionability to evade deceptive online information.
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Paulina Myrelid and Patrik Jonsson
The purpose of this paper is to explore how different determinants impact specific information quality (IQ) dimensions of shared demand-related information in dyadic supply chain…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explore how different determinants impact specific information quality (IQ) dimensions of shared demand-related information in dyadic supply chain relationships.
Design/methodology/approach
Through a qualitative case study of three manufacturer–supplier dyads in the European automotive industry, a range of methods are used to collect data about 168 possible IQ deficiency situations. IQ deficiencies are identified in 50 situations and determinants thereof are explored.
Findings
Findings show how inter-organisational collaboration, intra-organisational process support and composite information sharing directly impact five pragmatic IQ dimensions (relevance, accessibility, credibility, understandability and ease of operation) – at times beneficially, detrimentally, varyingly and conflictingly. Furthermore, the findings show how the determinant impact on ease of use-related IQ dimensions is moderated by information sharing facets.
Research limitations/implications
The paper extends previous research by showing how information sharing acts as both a determinant and moderator of pragmatic IQ. It furthermore details previous research by showing how previously examined determinants of IQ impact specific IQ dimensions.
Practical implications
The generated propositions of how determinants impact pragmatic IQ can guide managers to identify key drivers of successful information sharing.
Originality/value
Since IQ mediates the linkage between information sharing and performance, this research helps explaining conflicting results regarding the value of information sharing. It also guides several strands of future research, such as hypothesis testing and exploratory and conceptualising studies.
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Jacqueline L. Birt, Kala Muthusamy and Poonam Bir
eXtensible Business Reporting Language (XBRL) is an internet-based interactive form of reporting language that is expected to enhance the usefulness of financial reporting (Yuan…
Abstract
Purpose
eXtensible Business Reporting Language (XBRL) is an internet-based interactive form of reporting language that is expected to enhance the usefulness of financial reporting (Yuan and Wang, 2009). In the UK and the USA, XBRL is mandatory, and in Australia, it is voluntarily adopted. It has been reported that in the not too distant future, XBRL will be the standard format for the preparation and exchange of business reports (Gettler, 2015). Using an experimental approach, this study assesses the usefulness of financial reports with XBRL tagged information compared to PDF format information for non-professional investors. The authors investigate participants’ perceptions of usefulness in relation to the qualitative characteristics of relevance, understandability and comparability.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper uses an experimental approach featuring a profit-forecasting task to determine if participants perceive XBRL-tagged information to be more useful compared to PDF-formatted information.
Findings
Results reveal that financial information presented with XBRL tagging is significantly more relevant, understandable and comparable to non-professional investors.
Originality/value
The authors address a gap in the literature by examining XBRL usefulness in Australia where XBRL adoption will be mandated within the not too distant future. Currently, the voluntary adoption of XBRL by preparers and users is low, possibly, because of a lack of awareness about XBRL and its potential benefits. This study yields significant implications for the accounting regulators in creating more awareness on the benefits of using XBRL and to create an impetus for XBRL adoption.
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The purpose of this paper is to measure the understandability of the illustrations provided by the International Federation of Accountants in terms of the structural features of…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to measure the understandability of the illustrations provided by the International Federation of Accountants in terms of the structural features of international auditors’ reports with modified opinions.
Design/methodology/approach
Measurement of the legibility of reports illustrated by the revised ISA 705 and ISA 706. This paper discusses the compliance level of modified auditors’ reports with the linguistic rules.
Findings
It was found that the standardized illustrations of modified reports are not fully understandable by users of financial statements. The illustrations of modified auditors’ reports are not compliant with several linguistic rules.
Originality/value
This paper provides new original investigation about the linguistic features of illustrations provided by the ISA 705 and ISA 706. This paper discusses the level of unintelligibility of standardized auditors’ reports and the implications for stakeholders.
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