Showing papers in "Accounting Organizations and Society in 1985"
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors argue that understanding accounting practices in their organisational contexts requires more than a technical description of accounting information systems as they are conceived and designed in abstract, and that studies of the way in which accounting systems become embodied, through use, in organisational systems of accountability.
Abstract: In this paper we argue that understanding accounting practices in their organisational contexts requires more than a technical description of accounting information systems as they are conceived and designed in abstract. What is required are studies of the way in which accounting systems become embodied, through use, in organisational systems of accountability. We present a framework for analysing the operation of systems of accountability in organisations, and illustrate this by contrasting, in an ideal-typical manner, forms of accountability in relationships characterised by regular face-to-face contacts, with forms of accountability in relationships which span physical distance.
952 citations
TL;DR: The relationship between accounting and society has been posited frequently, but it has been subjected to little systematic analysis as discussed by the authors, and the implications of these for the social analysis of accounting are discussed.
Abstract: Although the relationship between accounting and society has been posited frequently, it has been subjected to little systematic analysis. This paper reviews some existing theories of the social nature of accounting practice and, by so doing, identifies a number of significant conceptual problems. Using the case of the rise of interest in value added accounting in the United Kingdom in the 1970s, the paper conducts a social analysis of this particular event and then seeks to draw out the theoretical issues and problems which emerge from this exercise. Finally, the implications of these for the social analysis of accounting are discussed.
782 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors examined linkages between strategy, incentive bonus system and effectiveness at the strategic busines unit (SBU) level within diversified firms, and found that the relationship between extent of reliance on short run criteria and effectiveness is virtually independent of SBU strategy.
Abstract: Rooted in contingency theory, this paper examines linkages between strategy, incentive bonus system and effectiveness at the strategic busines unit (SBU) level within diversified firms. Data from 58 SBUs reveal (1) that greater reliance on long-run criteria as well as subjective (non-formula) approaches for determining the SBU general managers’ bonus contributes to effectiveness in the case of ‘build’ SBUs but hampers it in the case of ‘harvest’ SBUs, and (2) that the relationship between extent of reliance on short-run criteria and effectiveness is virtually independent of SBU strategy.
726 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors developed an integrative organizational control model, which synthesizes selected contributions of the administrative management school, organizational sociologists and organizational psychologists, and presented propositions for each core control mechanism, relating its impact to work behaviors and outcomes.
Abstract: This paper develops an integrative organizational control model which synthesizes selected contributions of the administrative management school, organizational sociologists and organizational psychologists. The model consists of a core control system embedded in the context of organizational structure, organizational culture and the external environment. Control is defined as attempts by the organization to increase the probability that individuals will behave in ways that will lead to the attainment of organizational objectives. Control of work behavior is accomplished by the four core control mechanisms of planning, measurement, feedback and evaluation-reward. The paper presents propositions for each core control mechanism, relating its impact to work behaviors and outcomes. It also examines the manner in which the contextual factors (culture, etc.) function as control mechanisms on work behavior. Finally, the paper suggests directions for future research on the proposed model. Taken together, the model and the propositions comprise the basis for an integrative framework of organizational control.
597 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors investigate how managers' propensity to create budgetary slack is affected by the budgeting system and the technical context, and they find that propensities to create slack are lower when managers participate actively in budgeting.
Abstract: This paper reports the results of a field study designed to investigate how managers' propensities to create budgetary slack are affected by the budgeting system and the technical context. The results show that propensities to create slack are lower where managers participate actively in budgeting, particularly when technologies are relatively predictable. But such propensities are higher if a tight budget requires frequent tactical responses to avoid overruns.
327 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors explore the rationales offered by participants for the accounting and management control practices in which they are involved, and focus on four characteristics of current practices: financial planning and control systems do not appear to be a dominant mode of organisational control for the organisation investigated, physical production planning appearing to be more important.
Abstract: This paper explores the rationales offered by participants for the accounting and management control practices in which they are involved. An analysis of these rationales emphasis four characteristics of current practices. Firstly, financial planning and control systems do not appear to be a dominant mode of organisational control for the organisation investigated, physical production planning appearing to be more important. Secondly, the parts of the whole organisation appear to be only loosely coupled, thereby insulating the various parts from each other, and from pressures for change. Thirdly, in such a context, accounting and information generally may be managed either (or both) to enhance ambiguity or to provide legitimacy in (and about) the organisation. The paper concludes, fourthly, by noting the pressures for change which appear to operate through the finance function, thereby enhancing that function's organisational role. The observations and analysis of the paper are based on an in-depth observational study of an Area (i.e. geographical division) of the National Coal Board, in the U.K., and on a detailed study of that organisation's history and environment.
302 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors examined the non-formalized, non-rule oriented approaches employed in large public accounting firms to effect control, and concluded that informal communications play a limited role in informing organizational members of the politics and power within the organization, and are of some benefit to lower level individuals.
Abstract: Control is important within public accounting firms for a variety of reasons. Yet professional pronouncements are limited in providing guidance to auditors in the form of formally stated rules and requirements. The purpose of this article is to examine the non-formalized, non-rule oriented approaches employed in large public accounting firms to effect control. More specifically, it is directed towards understanding the possible roles of informal and nonformal communications and mentoring in managing public accounting firms. Based upon evidence gathered using a naturalistic, qualitative research methodology, it is concluded that: (1) informal communications exist in public accounting firms, play a limited role in informing organizational members of the politics and power within the organization, and are of some benefit to lower level individuals; and (2) nonformal communications and mentoring are involved with the performance of audit tasks, socialization of the individual firm, and instruction as to politics and power within the organization, and benefit the protege, mentor and firm, though at some cost. Implications of the study are also explored.
253 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors report the results of a field study aimed at exploring how discretionary program decisions are controlled in decentralized films and show that decisions are affected by many devices that can be called controls, including net income targets, expense targets, headcount constraints, requirements for approvals, and directives given by higher management.
Abstract: This paper reports the results of a field study aimed at exploring how one important class of decisions— discretionary program decisions—are controlled in decentralized films. Data were collected from profit centre managers using unstructured interviews and a questionnaire survey. The data show that decisions are affected by many devices that can be called controls, including net income targets, expense targets, headcount constraints, requirements for approvals, and directives given by higher management. They also show that the effects of the controls can vary with certain characteristics of the profit centers' situation (e.g. strategy, recent performance), the management style of the company chairman, and the accounting treatment for the expenditure (i.e. whether capitalized or expensed).
194 citations
TL;DR: The efforts of a committee which never finally reported provided an interesting insight into the problems involved in a social analysis of the accounting craft as mentioned in this paper, and its mobilising concerns and bases for disagreement are emphasised.
Abstract: The efforts of a committee which never finally reported provided an interesting insight into the problems involved in a social analysis of the accounting craft. In this tale of the deliberations on this committee both its mobilising concerns and bases for disagreement are emphasised. The latter are shown to be of wider significance to the accounting research community, related as they are to substantive debates in the social sciences generally.
136 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors present a stepwise process for evaluating the usefulness and use of corporate social reporting information based on surveys conducted in Germany and Switzerland of readers and potential users of social reports.
Abstract: This article presents a stepwise process for evaluating the usefulness and use of corporate social reporting information. Drawing on surveys conducted in Germany and Switzerland of readers and potential users of social reports, it discusses the stage of development of this information tool and it suggests qualitative considerations for assessing its impact on business behaviour.
113 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors describe the findings of an empirical study of the management control relationships established between acquiring and acquired companies during the first two post-acquisition years and conclude that accounting-type controls probably played a much more important role than is generally acknowledged and that inappropriate changes in MAS caused considerable undesirable effects.
Abstract: This paper describes the findings of an empirical study of the management control relationships established between acquiring and acquired companies during the first two post-acquisition years. In particular it considers: how important MAS became; how they were modified in different styles of acquisition; and the dysfunctional effects of change. It concludes that accounting-type controls probably played a much more important role than is generally acknowledged and that inappropriate changes in MAS caused considerable undesirable effects.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors described the findings of an empirical study of the changes introduced into management accounting systems following acquisition and adopted a contingency theory perspective of the findings; relates them to existing hypotheses; and introduces a test of the theory involving measurement of the control relationships established between acquisition partners.
Abstract: This paper continues the theme of Jones (Accounting, Organizations & Society, 10, 177–200, 1985) which described the findings of an empirical study of the changes introduced into management accounting systems following acquisition. It adopts a contingency theory perspective of the findings; relates them to existing hypotheses; and introduces a test of the theory involving measurement of the control relationships established between acquisition partners. Theoretical expectations for the adaptation of effective post- acquisition MAS are developed and related to success/failure.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors present an alternative view of the issues which should be raised in the discussion of the managerial disclosure of accounting information to trade unions for collective bargaining, and present a radically different stance as regards the major concerns that need to be confronted in the above debate.
Abstract: The major aim of this paper is to present an alternative view of the issues which should be raised in the discussion of the managerial disclosure of accounting information to trade unions for collective bargaining. It is an attempt to present a radically different stance as regards the major concerns that need to be confronted in the above debate. Central to our argument is the recognition that different conceptualisations of the management-labour relationship can generate different conclusions with respect to the potentialities for the use of accounting information in industrial relations.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors developed and tested a model of job satisfaction and intended turnover in the large CPA firm environment and found that job satisfaction showed strong significance in a multiple regression equation predicting the probability of turnover.
Abstract: This research reports on the development and test of a model of job satisfaction and intended turnover in the large CPA firm environment. On an overall basis, the model was generally supported. Satisfaction showed strong significance in a multiple regression equation predicting the probability of turnover. In addition, eleven dimensions of job satisfaction developed through factor analysis, as well as a “career preparation” variable, correlated positively with a measure of overall job satisfaction and negatively with a measure of the probability of turnover.
TL;DR: The authors argue that an altered understanding of intellectual honesty is required of scholars and practitioners, one which seeks to maximise public awareness of the inherently disputable and questionable in the truth-claims of practices acting upon their welfares.
Abstract: The paper argues a need to redraw the boundaries between politics, and academic and professional work in the corporate financial reporting field. The argument is pressed on grounds of intellectual honesty, in view of the under-determination by facts that can characterise social scientific theories, including accounting theories, that seek to legitimate or to change practice. An altered understanding of intellectual honesty is required of scholars and practitioners, one which seeks to maximise public awareness of the inherently disputable and questionable in the truth-claims of practices acting upon their welfares.
TL;DR: In this paper, the roles that accounting information appeared to play in the negotiations between a not-for-profit organization and the association representing its professional employees are described and assessed using a case mode of inquiry, and drawing on the industrial relations and recent accounting literature.
Abstract: In this paper, the roles that accounting information appeared to play in the negotiations between a not-for-profit organization and the association representing its professional employees are described and assessed Using a case mode of inquiry, and drawing on the industrial relations and recent accounting literature, the paper explores the impact of accounting on both the process and outcome of the negotiations, and concludes by offering some tentative hypotheses on the roles of accounting in collective bargaining
TL;DR: In this article, a critical review of recently completed empirical work, carried out under the auspices of the SSRC, on the use of information in individual company and plant level bargaining is presented.
Abstract: The aim of this paper is to undertake a critical review of recently completed empirical work, carried out under the auspices of the SSRC, on the use of information in individual company and plant level bargaining. The authors also attempt to develop a strategy for further investigation of this important topic which highlights the importance of variations in the nature of the domestic organisation in relation to the potential importance and usefulness of financial information for union negotiators.
TL;DR: In this paper, it was shown that judges, when attempting to evaluate decisions that were made with only pre-outcome knowledge, are unable to separate their knowledge of the outcome from pre-outing knowledge.
Abstract: A decision maker (DM) must make decisions with a given amount of information (called pre-outcome knowledge). Later, if a person (judge) is asked to evaluate the accuracy of those decisions, the judge frequently has an additional piece of information available to him/her that wasn't available to the DM: knowledge of the outcome (hindsight). Hence, the judge's (post-outcome) knowledge includes both pre-outcome knowledge and hindsight. Research in other areas has shown that judges, when attempting to evaluate decisions that were made with only pre-outcome knowledge, are unable to separate their knowledge of the outcome from pre-outcome knowledge. In effect, they infer that knowledge of the outcome should have been apparent from the pre-outcome information. This current research shows that the same phenomenon can exist in the public accounting environment; several implications for accounting are discussed.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors identify the institutions that have been most productive in publishing research in scholarly accounting journals over a recent period and measure the degree of concentration of accounting research among these institutions.
Abstract: It is generally agreed that an important dimension of a university’s academic quality is the research productivity of its faculty, particularly as measured by their publications in leading scholarly journals. The primary objective of this study is to identify the institutions that have been most productive in publishing research in scholarly accounting journals over a recent period and to measure the degree of concentration of accounting research among these institutions. There have been a number of studies analyzing the publication rates of various accounting faculty (see Bazley & Nicolai, 1975; Andrews & McKenzie. 1978; Windal 198 1). However, none of these studies differentiated between refereed academic journals. which serve as media for disseminating the results of scholarly research, and practitioner-oriented journals and magazines, which tend to be more topical in their orientation. Because the focus of this study is on scholarly research in accounting. we consider only publications in refereed academic journals.
TL;DR: In this paper, the role of information in the process of diagnostic inference required for the evaluation of operational performance was investigated, and the results generally confirmed a set of hypotheses predicting the effects of cause/effect temporal orders and covariations, supporting the notions that temporal order and covariation are cues-to-causality used by individuals when inferring causality.
Abstract: The role of information in the process of diagnostic inference required for the evaluation of operational performance was investigated. Assuming the role of a manufacturing division manager, subjects were asked to estimate the likelihoods of four potential causes of a department's weekly labor efficiency variance. Given requested items of evidence, subjects were asked to re-estimate the causal likelihoods. The results generally confirmed a set of hypotheses predicting the effects of cause/effect temporal orders and cause/effect covariations, supporting the notions that temporal order and covariation are cues-to-causality used by individuals when inferring causality and that temporal order is a noncompensatory cue. Additional evidence is presented that supports the notion that although individuals prefer evidence concerned with confirming the cause/effect relation to evidence concerned with disconfirming the relation, preference for evidence concerned with disconfirming the relation increases as additional items of evidence are sought.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors analyse the politics of professional research and propose improvements in this type of research, along with suggestions for further investigation of the issues dealt with, with particular reference to the production of The Corporate Report in the United Kingdom and Corporate Reporting: its Future Evolution in Canada.
Abstract: Professional research is generally undertaken by committees and is almost invariably commissioned and monitored by committees. This article deals with the politics of such research. It draws on the author's experiences with professional bodies and government organisations in several countries, with particular reference to the production of The Corporate Report in the United Kingdom and Corporate Reporting: its Future Evolution in Canada. Types of professionally sponsored research are analysed, and proposals for improvements in this type of research are presented, along with suggestions for further investigation of the issues dealt with.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examined management perceptions on 28 ZBB implementation variables for MBO users and non-MBO users which were gathered from 153 managers at two hierarchical levels within a single private sector organization.
Abstract: Popular arguments in the management literature advocate the implementation congruity and complementarity of zero-base budgeting (ZBB) with an established management-by-objectives (MBO) system. The present study examined management perceptions on 28 ZBB implementation variables for MBO users and non-MBO users which were gathered from 153 managers at two hierarchical levels within a single private sector organization. Results from both univariate and multivariate tests indicate that ZBB implementation was not facilitated by the existence of an MBO system for either lower level management or for upper level management. The evidence obtained here strongly suggests that the purported conventional rationale underlying ZBB coupling with an extant MBO system is seriously defective; ZBB design implementation issues need to be thoroughly re-assessed, with the emphasis on matching compatible systemic properties between information sub-systems.
TL;DR: In 1983, the Canadian Auditor General reported to Parliament on the State of program evaluation in the Federal Government and found that, since 1978, the government has made progress in implementing program evaluation as mentioned in this paper.
Abstract: In 1983, the Canadian Auditor General reported to Parliament on the State of program evaluation in the Federal Government. Nineteen departments and agencies were audited and it was found that, since 1978, the government has made progress in implementing program evaluation. This paper describes the audit on which the opinion was based. The background to the audit is presented, followed by a discussion of the audit methodology developed and the audit standards employed. The findings of the audit are summarized along with a brief discussion of the implications of effectiveness auditing for auditing and public administration.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors examined twelve Swedish cases and found that cost benefit analysis does not seem preferable as a basis for decision making where ordinary business accounts are available, and that the claim is questioned by an examination of 12 Swedish cases.
Abstract: The choice whether to continue or discontinue business operations always includes a strong element of valuation and hence a certain amount of arbitrariness. In order to limit this arbitrariness there are laws and a very firm old tradition regulating common business accounting. If an annual report shows repeated losses over a number of years and thus indicates that operations should be discontinued totally or partially, a so-called cost benefit analyst may appear claiming to produce a better basis for decision “from society's point of view” than the one which is given by ordinary business accounting practices. In this article that claim is questioned by an examination of twelve Swedish cases. It has been found ungrounded. Cost benefit analysis does not seem preferable as a basis for decision making where ordinary business accounts are available.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors examined auditors representing their local offices in their evaluations of SFAS No. 2, and their decision whether or not to communicate these evaluations to the home office.
Abstract: This study examines auditors representing their local offices in their evaluations of SFAS No. 2, Accounting for Research and Development Costs, and their decision whether or not to communicate these evaluations to the home office. Preliminary interviews with four local office representatives (LORs) indicated that LOR evaluations are related to three criteria: usefulness, theory and implementation cost. The interviews further suggested that the importance of the cost criterion depends upon the extent to which the local office's clients are affected by SFAS No. 2 as well as the LOR's rank in the firm. Finally, it was also suggested that a LOR's decision to provide input to the home office is related to the magnitude of the perceived costs associated with SFAS No. 2, the extent to which the local office's clients are affected by the standard and the LOR's rank in the firm. The importance of these factors is supported by modeling responses to a field survey which asked LORs, who represent local “Big 8” offices throughout the United States, to evaluate SFAS No. 2, and to indicate whether or not they provided input to the home office on this pronouncement. Areas for future research are also discussed.