Hector Perera

Accounting Practice Harmony, Accounting Regulation and Firm Characteristics

Harmonization of accounting standards has been the subject of many initiatives taken at international, regional and national levels in recent years. Policy makers advancing this idea believe that accounting regulation harmony will lead to practice harmony. The literature in the area of accounting harmonization also generally relies on a similar belief. Comparing accounting regulations and accounting practices of two countries that are pursuing a program of harmonization, Australia and New Zealand, revealed some association between the levels of regulation harmony and practice harmony. Although this indicates that regulatory harmony can improve practice harmony, the association is ‘noisy’, suggesting that there are also other factors affecting practice harmony. Evidence adduced here shows that accounting practice harmony is also associated with firm‐specific characteristics.

The evolution of accruals‐based Crown (government) financial statements in New Zealand

Purpose – The aim of this research is to illustrate how a change from cash‐based accounting to accruals‐based accounting in the core public sector of New Zealand occurred.Design/methodology/approach – The grounded theory research strategy is used in a field study setting.Findings – The findings suggest that there were six antecedents of the change – key people, axial principles, communicating ideas, contextual determinants, ethos, and knowledge. All of these converged to create the synergistic process of change that led to policy innovations. In this change process, accounting change was a means to an end, where accrual accounting was introduced in order to achieve ministerial control and measure performance of government entities to provide relevant information for management decision making.Research limitations/implications – Since this is a case study based on a single country, not all analytical categories will be relevant to other contexts/countries. However, the study provides a conceptual framework...

The incidence of budgetary slack: a field study exploration

Extends the investigation into the nature of the relation between participative budgeting and budgetary slack. The literature focusing on this association can be divided into two groups, the conclusions of which are inconsistent with one another. One camp argues that managers intentionally use participation to create slack, while the other argues that managers, through anticipation, reduce slack in their budgets. In attempting to reconcile these differences, it has been suggested that superiors’ evaluative styles and information asymmetry are two factors which may influence this relation. The mechanism, however, by which they may exert an influence is unclear, since the cross‐sectional evidence also conflicts regarding the nature of the impact of evaluative style and information asymmetry on the association between participation and slack. A field study was conducted to allow an in‐depth analysis to be made. The study proposes that the association between participation and slack arises from a complex process of interactions between the parties involved. Although managers were aware that participation provided them with the opportunity to build slack into their budgets, they did not necessarily attempt to do so for reasons that include moral, ethical and career advancement considerations.

The intellectual structure of international accounting in the early 1990s

Abstract This paper derives an intellectual structure of the international accounting literature using co-citation analysis. The structure is found to be fragmented, with a number of areas needing further research to integrate them. The paper identifies the 10 most frequently cited documents. These are predominantly books and standards. It appears that books written by key researchers provide a foundation for the development of related research. The paper also identifies a core literature in international accounting, which focuses on the areas of comparative systems, classification studies, foreign currency, and inflation. By examining the structure and nature of international accounting research in the early 1990s, this study provides insights into the antecedents to contemporary international research. This is useful in assessing how this area of research has developed since then as it creates a benchmark for comparison. The study also contributes to defining the boundaries of the area. Finally, the paper provides a measure of the degree of fragmentation of the international accounting literature and identifies areas that may be integrated through further research.

Market relevance of university accounting programs: Evidence from Australia

Abstract The quality of university accounting programs has been the subject of discussion and debate among researchers, practicing arms of the accounting profession and international accounting bodies for a long time. More recently, the International Accounting Education Standards Board (IAESB) stated in its Strategic and Operational Plan, 2007–2009 that the development and enhancement of accounting education could largely help strengthen the accounting profession (IFAC, 2007a). This comment was no doubt aimed at the need to regain some of the lost confidence in the accounting profession in recent years. The current study focuses on the issue of whether Australian universities produce accounting graduates with market expected knowledge, skills and competencies. Market expectations were identified by surveying employers of accounting graduates in a major metropolitan area in Australia. Focusing on an analysis of the undergraduate accounting program of a prominent university in Australia, the study provides evidence that the existing university accounting programs may not always be in line with the market expectations due to some inconsistencies of program structure and emphasis. The findings of this study have implications for professional accounting bodies, accounting educators and students, and researchers.

Coercive Policy Diffusion in a Developing Country: The Case of Public-Private Partnerships in Sri Lanka

Abstract Over the last two decades, public-private partnership policy has been adopted in developing countries to a lesser degree than in industrialised countries. This paper argues that this policy has been diffused to developing countries like Sri Lanka with coercion from international aid-granting organisations through conditionalities attached to financial assistance. It details the country-specific challenges faced by Sri Lanka in responding to conditionalities as it has sought to implement this policy. Drawing on policy diffusion theory the paper develops a framework to be used in analysing the issues under investigation.

The reflective accountant: towards a new model for professional development

The accounting profession in recent times has been under intense scrutiny. Questions have been raised about, among other things, the right of the profession to regulate its activities, the behaviour of accounting firms and the usefulness of accounting information, a situation that would seem to indicate the existence of a crisis. This paper argues that the present crisis facing the accounting profession can be attributed to the inability of the tradional (technical rationality) model for professional development to cope with the new demands placed on the modern accounting profession which is characterized by professional pluralism. The paper proposes an alternative model for professional development based on the concept of the ‘reflective practitioner’. It is argued that the proposed model would equip accounting professionals with a degree of flexibility which is considered essential in carrying out their functions in a changing environment.

Recent developments in the accounting profession in New Zealand: A case of deprofessionalization?

Abstract The international accounting literature is replete with references to the importance of professionalization of accounting in its development. While professionalization of accounting is progressing at a rapid rate in many developing countries, the recent developments in some western industrialized countries seem to suggest a different trend. This paper proposes to investigate these developments and provide a critical analysis focusing on one western industrialized country (i.e., New Zealand). Evidence is provided in the paper to show that (a) the boundaries between accountancy and other occupations are becoming increasingly blurred; (b) the dominance of accounting controls in organizations is being challenged; (c) the profession does not control access to accounting knowledge; and (d) the profession is unable to prevent government intervention in the areas of work standards, and bureaucratic controls in the work place. The paper argues that the recent changes in the accounting profession in New Zealand suggest a trend towards deprofessionalization.

THE HISTORICAL CONTEXT OF PROFESSIONAL IDEOLOGY AND TENSION AND STRAIN IN THE ACCOUNTING PROFESSION

A growing literature points to a crisis of confidence in the accounting profession and a lack of commitment by its members to the professional ideology. In this paper the approach developed by MacIntyre is used to place professional ideology in an historical context. The paper argues that the tension and strain in the profession can be related to the changing character of both the contemporary society and professional ideology itself. It concludes by highlighting the need for the profession to develop an ideology to which its members as well as society can relate.

The evolution of annual reporting practices of an electricity firm

Abstract Accounting both influences and is influenced by the environment in which it operates. We examine how this interaction takes place in a changing regulatory environment with particular emphasis on the influence on accounting policies and practices. Using a longitudinal study from 1988 to 2001, we analysed six major events representing changes in the regulations governing the operations of an electricity firm in New Zealand. We provide evidence which suggests that those changes influenced the choice of accounting policies and reporting practices of the case organisation. We also found evidence to suggest that accounting was used to influence the regulatory environment and as rhetoric in supporting a new ideology, which is market-oriented and profit driven.