After reading tltis chapter, you should have an appreciatic:n of the following:

I no* pragmatic approaches to theory development apply to accounting

pl criticisms that have been levelled at historical cost accounting as a theoretical model
p normative true income theories and the decision-usefulness approach to
accounting theory

4 how positive theories are constructed

E alternative naturalistic approaches and the importance of ontology

E misconceptions associated with scientific approaches to accounting research, and why

they are misconceptions

z issues for auditing theory construction.

 Ausefulwaytostudyandassessaccountingtheoriesisto'classifythemaccordingto to
they #t'" fo'*t'lated' and their approaches
the assumptions they '"1y o"' how
explainingandpredicting"*utevents.Someoftheclassificationsthathaveproven
mostusefularepragmatic,syntactic,,"*u.'ti.,normative,positiveandnaturalistic
of accountants
based on observing the behaviour
approaches. rrrglnutit ;p;;outtt"' ""
orthosewhousetheirrformationgeneratedbyaccountants..Syntacticapproachesrely
onlogicalargument,uasedonu,"*fp,",,'ises,andsemanticapproachesconcernhow
theoriescorrespondtoreal-worldevents.Normativetheoriesrelyonbothsemantic
andslmtacticapproaches.Positiveapproachestesth}pothesesagainstactualevents,
individual cases and do not try to generalise'
and naturalistic approaches consider
Thischapterprovidessomeinsightintohowaccountingtheoriesineachofthese
classificationswereformulated.Wealsonotesomeoftheweaknessesandcriticisms in
the different types of theory in detail
of various theories. i"i", lrr^p,.rs consider
relation to particular accounting issues'

@ PRAGMATIc THtoRlEs
DescriPtive Pragmatic apProach
ThedescriptivepragmaticapproachtoaccountingtheoryConslnrc.tionisaninductive
upp.ou.r',-i..i,u","ao,-'continualobservationofthebehaviourofaccountants
inordertoCopytheiraccountingproceduresandprinciples.Hence,.atheorycanbe
developedfromobservationsofhowaccountantsactincertainsituations.Thetheory
canbetestedbyobservingwhetheraccountantsdo,infact,actinthewaythetheory
Suggests.Sterlingcalledthismethodthe,anthropologicalapproach,:
y";'J:l;
;. jiH:a:Hi,::fJ::::?:il'":1li$:il:es[ffi ::i:Tf'ry$HT'fl
whether or not accounting man does
in fact record a
test this principle by ouse-wing th:-111t3* of diversity"
sets fo;h
conservative figure. If the
".."r'",i"g ^nthropologist

,'gJ:*',;:J*xlxli*i,"'l;{*rlxiT;;xl*coun'iinsmandoesinrac'1
Thedescriptivepragmaticapproachisprobablytheoldestandmostuniversallyused of
untii quite recently' ft yu.t u popular way
method of accounting theory construction.
learningaccountingskills_futureaccountantsweretrainedbybeingapprenticedor
articled to a practising accountant' to accounting theory
However, there have been several criticisms of this approach

analvtical judgement of the

:"+it[::::i,iu" p.ug-atic approach does.not include an
qualityofanaccountant,sactions;thereisnoassessmentofwhethertheaccountant
rePorts in the waY he or she sfolta
'i::*m*x:n**]f ""1^ru;:':f; l'i:[Ti':
J:'T'::x'1"':ff

ilfi """*TlffiJ?"':xl"f, ::Ji:il:X*il:l

n*HT:":llif *.**""r*h*ffii:tffi
to teach, and so on.
Thedescriptivepragmaticapproachfocuses.attentiononaccountants,behaviour,not
profit' In taking
on measuring ,n" u,,rib,ri", or,n"
firm, such as assets, liabilities and
adescriptivepragmaticapproach,wearenotConcerningourselveswiththesemantics I

of accounting Phenomena'

20 PART 1 Accounting theorY

 Sterling comments:
. . . it is my value iudgement that the theory of accounting ought
to be concerned with
accounting phenomena, not practising accountants, in the same way that theories of
phvsics are concerned with physical phenomena, not practising physicists.2
Sterling concludes that such a pragmatic approach is inappropriate for accounting
theory constmction. His conclusion is, of course, in relation to normative theories of
how accounting should be conducted rather than pragmatic theories that describe real-
world practices.

Psychological pragmatic approach

In contrast to descriptive pragmatic approaches where theorists observe accountants'
behaviours, psychological pragmatic approaches require theorists to observe users'
respoDses to the accountants' outputs (such as financial reports). A reaction by the
user is taken as evidence that the financial statements are useful and contain relevant
information. A problem with the psychological pragmatic approach is that some users
may react in an illogical manner, some might have a preconditioned response, and others
may not react when they should.'l his shortcoming is overcome by concentrating on
decision theories and testing them on lar-ge samples of people, rather than concentra-ting
on the responses of individuals.

@-, syNTACTtc AND sEMANTIC THEoRtEs

One theoretical interpretation of traditional historical cost accounting is that it is largely a
syntactic theory. This interpretation may be described as follows: the semantic inputs of the
system are the transactions and exchanges recorded in the vouchers, journals and ledgers
of the busir-ress. These are then manipulated (partitioned and summed) on the basis of
the premises and assumptions of historical cost accounting. For example, we assume
that inflation is not to be recorded and market values of assets and liabilities are ignored.
We then use double-entty accounting and the principles of historical cost accounting to
calculate profit and loss and the financial position. The inclividual propositions are verified
ever time the statements are audited by checking the calculations and manipulations.
However, the accounts are rarely audited specifically in terms of whether and how people
will use them (a pragmatic test) or in terms of what they mean (a semantic test). In this
way, historical cost theory has been confirmed manlr tiiles. If we assume a Lakatosian
research program, the principles of historical cost accounting form the negative heuristic
and, in a Kuhnian viewpoint, the dominant paradigm.
Some accounting theorists are critical of this approach. They argue that the theory
has semantic content only on the basis of its inputs. There is no independent empirical
operation to verifi, the calculated outputs, for example, 'profit' or ,total assets,. These
figures are not observed; they are simple summations of account balances, and the
auditing process is, in essence, simply a recalculation. The auditing process verifies the
inputs by examining underlying documents and checks mathematical calculations.
However, it does not verifi/ the final outputs. 'Ihis means that even if accounting reports
are prepared using perfect synta-x, they may have little, if any, value in practice.
Sterling comments:
The inadequary of this procedure ro confirm a theory is immediately apparent. If
one were to attempt to confirm a theory of astronomy, as exemplified by a particular
planetarium, then one might begin by checking on the accuracy of the observational
inputs and one might also check for errors in computation. However, at some point the

CHAPTER 2 Accounting theorl,construction 21

 be verified' One would
look at the sklz to see if the stars
outputs of the system. would of this last step'
uy,rr" ptur1.iurir-. In the absence
were in fact in the ,.rr;;i;;iur"J pirst' ihe .,f ;q";ti""s could de3cribe
any situation
several absurdities t.,'ral""i'' '* the 'verification' procedure to a
whatsoever, .'r' u '"ttui]*'rl'
o'u* rr o'-t" "tttilied one would certify that
inputs and u t..ui..rtution, then
check on the accurary;,h; The only wav to discover that
this planetariu* pr.r"n-,,
iuirfy in. position of ,f,. r,ut.. operation and
is ro perlorm u ,.puru,t
rhe orbit oughr or..J;'ii:i.io'il.;*r"*,ar of these
wir.,i'eor,pr,t or the sYstem' lfrectangular
enoug'h
compare rhe resutrs .ft,;'rr';;;;";itn verifil.,i"* ,r.l. theory of orbits
ourputs were subiecr.;';;;;;;"ndent two planetariums
would be either tot't'I-"i'o'
ii"<l'ntrned' Second' if there were resulting in
Ur, *i f, ilffJent sets of equations
concerned with the r#;;h*;;;"; both of them be
the auditing pr.J.i" *."ra
require ihat
contradictory outputs,-ttren *io^t'g Finally' the number
or-r" of-th"--ili-'"t"tt^t,y
certified as corect *h;;;ilt
of different sets of "qr"ai.",
*rth different outputs is rimitless.3
Thefollowingarticledemonstratestheimportanceofensuringthatthesyntaxand
,;;;,;"t",'lt o"ly corect' but also complete'

Do share prices rise when

profit improves?

Bonuses soften wage freeze

by |ue Mitchell

blow for senior execu.,l;;u;ff;;ing

t, ,ittion long-term retentionupavments'
Metcashhasfrozenemployeesalariesandnon-executivedirectors,feesbuthasso{tenedthe
..tln-,oound 8 per cent
The... retention Jr"".;"j?,il""f on-f'r"rcir', achieving
i-" offers' entered into
"il:,
pJ;'h;" in" n"*'fi";'v";;hi[
;' {::l'us
increase in earnings compound earnings per share
in 2006 and 2007,*"r" Jona-','onul on Metcash achieving
growtho[ l2.spercentancl l0p*tt":]^':tllltlil';",,-.rs
rhe slowing growth:rl::l
tot
nu,t,arion ofi*iutions in 2005
;;,ancr]s
';;t;'to potential
-l[,fl"iU;i.s,i;'iJ-Ji,',"#:[::lllJ"""1
,,post that acquisirion ,#;; ;", ;;ite a lot .f
synergies ' ' ' to an extent
Bank analyst Kristan Walker'
most of that has ttowei i-nro'gft'" laia fel1c"ne ; more growth
Metcash increased earnings-per
share bv, ;"i;"il; ry::^l*forecasting acquisitions'
;;; "
;:;'ing' tt."ough u combination of organic
growth and
this year, driving
'"1"' 7c to cloie at $4'29 yesterday'
Metcash ,hur",
'o'"tirtancialRevlew' 31 luly 2009' p 45' wrvrv afr'com'
Soulce: The Australiat-t
an
Questions ,h+ino np\A/q This description provides
l.Thearticledescribesamarketreactiontoaccountinsnews.Thisdescriptionprovidesar
' of which aPProach to theorY?
";;;Pl"
(a) Pragmatic
(b) sYntactic
(c) semantic
Exolain vour answer'
that companv's
rhan previousrv, investors rorce
' ;,i;:l'::'i;l:'fiHsoil't""1i:Io,.,,o"cts
share Price to increase'
oMetcashisacompanythathasreportedbetterearningspersharethanpreviously'
increase'
. lnvestors forced Metcash share prices to,"",runii.s its
within the syllogism that means
I

o|"
(a) ls there a flaw in the syntax the general
what l' tn" ifu*l (Hlnt: Consider"whether
conclusion is not true? lf so
must always be true')
premise ut'tn"''tu'ioithe syllogism invalld and its conclusion false?
(b) what is the pracrical significance "i',h;il;;r;eing

'r') PART 1 Accounting theorY

 Historical cost accounting has also been criticised on the basis of its syntactic element,
for example with respect to the practice of summing several different money amounts
assigned to specific assets:
The sum of two weights means nothing unless they are measured by the same rules
. . . What, then, about the procedure of adding the amount of cash held by a company
today to rhe amount of cash paid 20 years ago for a piece of freehold land which the
company still holds today?a

Chambers adds further criticism:

The impression one gains from the internal inconsistenry of many of the arguments
upon which the justification of conventional accounting is made to rest is strongly
reminiscenr of the underlying philosophy of the rulers of Oceania in George Onvell's
Nineteen Eighty-Four. The distinctive feature of this philosophy is doublethink.
Doublethink means the power of holding two contradictory beliefs in ot-re's mind
simultaneously, and accepting both of them.5

Chambers goes on to give some examples of accounting doublethink:

Valuations are incorporated in balance sheets ... but the balance sheet is not a valuation
statement.
Fixed assets should be carried at cost ... in historical accout]ts, unless such cost is no
longer meaningful.6

Questions have been raised also about the imprecision of definitions in accounting.
In terms of a Popperial approach to science, many of the propositions of conventional
accounting are not falsifiable. Take, for example, the following criticism of a definition
of depreciation:
Definitions are unacceptablewhich implythat depreciation fortheyearis a measurement,
expressed in monetarv terms, of the physical deterioration within the year, or the decline
in monetary value within the year, or, indeed of anlthing that actually occurs within
the year.7

Sterling takes this point further by stating that the problem lies in the way accountants
have defined the determination of costs and profit as a choice among conventions,
which are in turn defined so that a present magnitude depends on a future magnitude.
For example, depreciation depends on allocation, which in turn depends on a future
sale (disposal value) and the expected useful life of the asset. The same is true for profit.
tlnder this logic, true profit cannot be determined until the firm has been liquidated.
Theories based on historical cost conventions lead to cautious hypotheses. The
hypotheses therefore are unable to be tested and, as per the falsificationist approach
(in which a hypothesis is not informative and does not add to scientific progress if
it is not worded or proposed so that it is falsifiable), they are not useful for financial
decision making except to verifi, accounting entries. Hence, they are uninformative and
do not add to knowledge or progress in accounting. The above criticisms of historical
cost are essentially criticisms about measuring current values and were the forerunner
of the current move of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) towards
'fair value' accounting.
In defence of the historical cost system, accountants argue that there is no requirement
that accounting outputs should have any semantic content (correspondence with current
real-world events, transactions, or values) or be subiect to falsification rules. They
counter by using the argument that the role of accounting is to allocate the historical
cost of resource usage against revenue the matching concept - to determine the
-
surplus secured from economic activity. In this case, assets, Iiabilities and equitl' are

CHAPTER 2 Accounting theorv constrLI.:i.'- 23

 ,fl
residuals from this process;
they are not meant to measure
entitv value or abour the entitv's
n"r"I*r srare or ii;:::Trlffil:1,1.t,."7
approach, the definition of depreciation "ffti;;
is then in ,..o.dur.." with the matchino
concept' Although it-may be syniactic,
this cost allocation arr.rmption
normative theories about how can conflict witf
we should account to provide information
for decision making. The assumptir; that is usefur
rh;; accounting should be a measuremenr
providing information useful svsrem
for decision making, is a normati\ ze
a large group of accounting premise assumed by
theorists u.rJ r"grtutorr.
The criticism that there i."
systems can be exprained within
Jirr.."* and acceptable historicar cost arocation
-urry ,positive
a accounting, framework which
assumption that accounting ,uurr,aLron
informaiion ls makes the
l, an economic good, subject to
supply forces. demand and
LInder positive approaches. to
accounting theory development,
techniques erists because diversity diversity of accounting
techniques are needed to account
i, ."q'rl."a. This is;..;;:; different accounting
ro. airri".r, business ,itrutiorrr. For example, where

[u tmnl'::,i'J:il;:J[*i'i*em prices o,,rv o, to charge a cosr-recovery

informingortria"rr".sof nanciarr,","^"1rll5HihH".[t,ffi;H:}ffi
fi
also as a means of influencing
pri;" ;g";on ,1fj
of their price-setring r-ormural 'Th;.i[:;ion agencies regarding the appropriateness
o[ cosrs used for
g, i ti o n,
:il::[""[T' ii,t*"? "
re c o s u ch a s d i m in i sh i n g- b;
1

"
;;:
;:?ti
::'r1.',"r,t'Jf
thenrm,sp."d,:;;i:T$:Jrl"?:T:.^:::,.fi
users rhe likelv life and value
:.:Hi"ffi i:i:-,,":m:*i:.,,_?J
of th" urr"i" Agenry*-tr;;;;;s
technique required to minimise that the accounring
the costs of
to situation. Moreover, different potrticat .or.t.ucti.rg will often differ from situation
ana ."gutotJry .or,, ,rr"o each
firms seek to minimise all cosrs, firm. Since
because historical cost alrocarion
frt ili lhoor" different u..o.,r,ir.g rechniques
allows l-ri u.turrtiul ,rr,,b;.;;;llocarion and
then firms can simply choose rechniques,
ttr" _ort technique.
"in"cient

@_, NORMATIVE THEORIES

The 1950s and 1960s saw what
has been described as the,golden
accounring research. During this age,of normarive
period, u..ourr,irf-1"i"""in"^
concerned with poliry recommendations became more
and with *ni ,t
_

with analysing and explaining ,rr" done, rather than

"ribe
.u..""Jy accepted practice. Normative theories in
this period concenrrared eithel
""org"ri"-s i1" ,1.1" i".r-"; rrroo,; ro. an accounring
L:1?S#ff.*',:T:'.lf,jl: ',r" u'co"iti,g i,,ro.-uii; ffin,, wourd be userur in
True income: True income theorists concentrated on deriving
and a unique (and correct) profit a single measure for assets
figure.-go_"rr", there was no- agreement
constituted a correct or true on what
-"urr."tf ,alue and profit. uu.r, or the literature during
this period consisted of academic
d;;;;;."t the merits arra a"m".rts of alternarive
measurement systems.
Decision-useJulness: The decision-usefulness
approach assumes that the basic
accounting is to aid the objective of
d,ecision-making p.o'."r,
of cer-tain ,rr".r,
of
by providing useful, or relevanr,
,..;;;,:il;"h; for exampr", to,r,"rpu..ounting reports
invesrors (currenr
and potential) decide whether
to buy, h;il; seil shares. or"
discussed is the psychological ,"ri oi ,sefurness arready
p*s"r",i. *u.tio.r to data. o,rr"^ do
particular group but argue that not identifiz a
utl ,r-".s rrurr" irr" same requirement
for accounting data.
21 P I RT .t Accou nting theory
 In most cases decision-usefulness theories accounting are based on classical
of
They usual]1'
economics concepts of profit and wealth or rational decision making'
make adiustments to historical cost measures to account for inflation or the market
They are
values of assets. They are, in essence, measurement theories of accounting'
normative in nature because they make the following assumptions:
. accounting should be a measurement system
. profit and value can be measured precisely
. hnancial accounting is useful for making economic decisions
. markets are inefflcient or can be fooled by 'creative accountants'
o conventional accounting is inefficient (in an information sense)
. there is one unique profit measure'
These assumptions were rarely subiected to any empirical testing.
Their proponents
system as the 'ideal'. They recommended it
usually described their derived accounting
to ,"piu." historical cost and prescribed its use by all and sundry'
and'
Normative researchers labelled their approach to theory formulation scientific
in general, based their theory on both analltic (syntactic) and empirical (inductive)
began with a
propositions. conceptually, the normative theories of the 1950s and 1960s
assumptions underlying
statement of the domain (scope) and obiectives of accounting, the
accounting was general'
the system and definitions of all the key concepts. The domain of
statement and balance sheet, not just specific
It was in relation to the entire income
only. Also, it was in relation to all
accounting items such as accounting for doubtful debts
or user group'
users of f,nancial statements and not confined to a specific user
a firm's operations
The normative theorists also made assumptions about the nature of
based on their observations. Detailed and precise accounting
principles and rules and a
framework
logical explanation of the accounting outputs were outlined. The deductive
in its anall'tic concepts' Financial statements should
was to be rigorous and consistent
mean what they say; they should have semantic connections with the
real world'
Although financial statements are abstractions and reductions of firms' economic
they
affairs, since they summarise the stock and the movement of economic
resources'

should be pragmatic only to the extent that they were surrogates for
direct experience'
when observing financial statements, users should act
The pragmatic tests were that,
represented'S
as though they actually observed the events the financial statements
Although this methodoiogy has both syntactic and semantic features, it relies mainly
'hypothetico-deductive''
on synlctic relations andiherefore has been labelled
An important question in this accounting research concerns the usefulness of
of operations based
accounting data. Are the quantitative data we derive from given sets
To find the
on an overall theory of accounting useful to users of financial statements?
accounting systems
answer, what was usually done was to take the output data of specific
and determine whethei this data helped decision makers make the right financial
theory. Figure 2'1 indicates the
decisions. This is a direct approach to testing accounting
makers use accounting
procedure. The arrows signit, the output of each model. Decision
predictions, they decide
data to make predictions about the company. Based on these
what to do, such as sell shares in the company or buy more'

Accounting
system of
company X

FIGURE 2.1 The decision Process

CHAPTER 2 Accounting theory constructron 25

 In science' this decision-usefulness
approach is referred
instrumentalism or realism' The suggestion to as either financial
thit ,tt"rrruti ." systems should be
assessed according ro their prediaive ^..oJ.rting
ability is an extens;;;ilogical positivism and
is termed 'instrumentarism'
that is, u irr"o.y
-
for prediction. According to Friedman,
has no utility except as an instrumenr
,rr"o.r", cannot be teste; by the rearism
assumprions; rhev can be judged of their
onry bv their predict;;
some problems involved in applying ;;;;., There are, however
,Lr, i"r,. First, if the pr"ai.aio., is
the prediction moder of the usei verified, it ,rerifies
,,J, ,n" u..or.rtirg ,yrt"-. There are,
variables besides accounting data of course, other
that affect a fi#;;i;;"jr.,r"".
precisely how the accounting we do nor know
data were used. Second, if ,h; ;;;ion
right one, it verifies the decisi-on tums our ro be the
moder, ,ot th"-u..or",i";rrr,;;.
to interpret rhe varidity.of the accounring Therefore, it is difficulr
model uus"a ,i-"pii o,, a".irio, making.
on the other hand, realism ,,."rrJ, the explanatory
prediction in reverse. This methodotogi."i .ol" of ,.i"r."; in essence,
point of ,ri"- strers"s the feedback role of
accounting. The ,realism, approach
to Iccounting means that for
to be valid it must be more than an instrumenr for forecasri"-,iiit":tJliTiffi"X
a description of the rearity that underri",
tt u..o,rrr,i.rg ;hzrromena. Accounting,
under this approach, gains predictive " because it
abiiity only
or descriptive expranatio, of *hut hu. gives relevant feedback
validity of using prediction. (forecastini
o..rr."d. we .u, ulr-o question the rogical
a-s a scientific test for
a dynamic environment whlre i"t".u#ir.g an accounring theory in
variables cannot be controlted. prediction
in science is more varid when we
can .""i.3r variabres ,r;;:;;,
and so on' when we cannot control pressure, hear, weighr
variabres i, trr"
as inflation and interest rates ".o.rJ-i. such
or consumer confidence, *" hurr" to"rrri.onment,
assess predictions
to how probable it is that tr," *ia*i.ffiorti,rg
,T1l $ll;l'"?rding the prediction

on the wav accounting theory has

r"ffi"'::ffi: ffiitJ,ili"l?,",:: evorved,

IFRS is a Big Four gravy train

by Richard Murphy

[:j:il#ff"lT:*.iiJ:l"jl?,".,::,_lT:.]:l
local authorities from I Anril rnin r_'-i^::^:''
April 2010lor the
.\EPUrr'rrrB )tanoards
T,"p.iing
preparation
standards aare to be used by UK
r,_ not . - ,, I of
ur
one of tt-,oru *no {o;I;;;' "
Nrnr, I'm
Now, ^^. usuaily th"eir
tr rcrr dLcounts.
"..orn,r.
,""y,'lr;;"i;;;.";rl
monev/ Iargetv because irn"" is c:irr ,^u u^^^'lllsuggesting
the public sector is wasring
'rid;;J;;;"; ##;?t;ilr;'J"#""c
au i'
when a1
of human fallibility than the )re prone to the frailty
orivate .".r^. ;,^,iJ.^ r i,h-.,^ ...:".-- ,
j
:j : 1T
ffin.u,,on
fl,,l j:il :i: *1,,: ::ii
thisi,loccasion r,, goingll, ,,-s.,,;iJ;ffiT:iX#i::[n:frT::flffil
t"ffi""#J;#,: i;n I f :,li:,;11
waste. "",

,,"T;l ;::6: il ff :1r,tjJ xi 1r ;:: 5i f, ::i;: ;ffi J r" i? T:.1 X,,j;'J:ff; 1 H

r question that, but for logicir reason r, ,nl,i:T."r". ffiil" r:
The IASB defines decision usefur
inform;;;, u, that needed by an investor
whether to buy or sell shares in to decide
for financial reporting. That is
an entity. rr-y-.r" ,"i-;;;?J1. o" nny other reason
*r,y trr" of IFRS ,rriri"aJr"n, that in the previous
CAAP' which was on reporting
profit, "iltir;;;:r,
to o,-r"Li reporting changes in balance UK
This is no minor issue:'uK ciAp sheet value.
*u, ,..rrr"r, accounting and sought to march
in a period to provicle u transactions
or *hut r.,lJ rrlip"n"a in th-at
T:::rr" time sc?i". srtun." sheets are a
;:1 l*, IT iil: i: JH: ru;:::: ::*: :5 ?#ffi ;; ;fi "'o
Inlil ii,
".,
" - *.",
i pu,r.

26 PART 1 Accounting theory

 IFRSontheotherhandisaboutmeasuringvalueatapointoftimeandcomparinSthatwith
is the result for the period'
value at another polnt oi time' The differenie it
So the balance sheer ir'fr"aorinonl and
the profir and loss account secondary because
rusually
is assumed that the investor in the entitv
will have a short time scale for involvement
entirely well.over once a year now/
i;i;;" a year - the UK stock exchange changes inhands stewardship, performance over time or
on average) and is therefore wholly uninterestJd
even delivery o[ resulls.
to the investors, who they believe to be the
The *FRS belief is thatthe only issue of concern
buck from dealing'
sole user of accounts, is in making a quick They're
Now, let,s g"t do*nio some blsic'facts here. No one inv-ests in a local authority'
with rare exceptions (and I regret this)
return'
not for sale. They do not provide an investment
capital projects'
thev do not even issue bonds to finance their
' ':{. il ;;".i,i-."li""".ial statements that IFRS assume to exist are not present in the case
that
,qnd the use for which the financial statements
of local authorities. There are no investors. not exist in the case of
IFRS assumes to exist, U"'"S,h" Jecision
to buy and sell shares, does
sell'
local authorities. There is nothing to buy and
This alone, at this most obviJus ani basic level, makes it abundantly obvious that IFRS
(as it is for any unquoted company'
is the wrong accountin"g syri"n to,. Iocal authorities
incidentally,formuchthesamereason-anabsenceofanynrarketablesecurity).
It,s worse than that though: IFRS will not
require accounting for stewardship of public.funds
enrrusted, or for the r;p;i, .i ;;;vices, both
oi *hich nr" ."o'" to the management of local
deliver in
measure almost always means a {ailure to
authorities. And we know ihat a failure to hands.
disaster on our
.r""g"r;", terms. This means we have a potentialThey do not act in the oublic interest, after
And whose fault is this? Well firstly, the t,qsB,s.

all. They are a prlvate curtel d"signed by ancf

proroied for, in no-small part, the benefit o{
theirbiggestSponsors-whoare"theBig4firmsofaccountants.second,thosefirmshave
much to answer for.
ffiU#'#r,"rua" a fortune from the rFRS transitiol]111:::
il;;;
i; ,r," '"lonau'v T"jl:l: ?:9,:tl:j,,f,j::,': ,XH i"",: ?.:; il]]1":.:::?"li"il"li1
*"rl:J i"lil;J:,;ii":
iffil;;:T"Ji,'":": ,1"';,;i":'r",j i"ai"' i*il 'n tn",-11T1:1? y^,T:l: ]ii?r:1':"::::l
years. you t an ca,
[1I,# ffiT,5i'iil-ffi^;,;i;il;i
*- - ,.' r a
fo,.,"u"'.,r',ore
;rr" i,,c+ r cfrlpmpnt of faCt.
^^r,,^jt., ir's *atelent
thar cvnicar

ii-f", - bur actua'ilv, iust

f if." 31,!11
,a
fil".T,;'ilil#;;il";;:;;[ "vir'"
pubr,ic sector
': 'l"tl:::l,yl:i:::i"li.:;:",',::
by rhe private sector. rhat's true
,,;'jit";i,;1,:,"H;";; ffi;;;;fr"r"ry,a,a nrSctul
lt will be true here'
;;;:i"f in" rr a"nr.tes, for example'
#::il: ilJl;;l;,p, l,'"ri,r," coffee and realise,lu, u
[, l.:1"::,T::."'iT
b"''"?,".1:""'a',?l"J.uiil'v5l',.-a"' s""Ji'i"1 1n;.9-'I"i^t:,::* :il:::'i:?"i:::;'lJil:
of monev rhis is
;:.1s.:'Ji,1 ;:::;::i:0"";;;;i;;'?
i, ioo rnt"r rhis is not iust a waste

a straightforward con.
lamangry.AndsoshouldalllocalauthoritytaxpayersintheUK'We'regoingtobetaken
for a ride unless we Protest now' org ul<
corporate accor-rntabilitv' w$'w t'rxresear.ch
-souft.e,: Tax Research UK, Rich;rrcl MUrllhy orr tax ;lncl

Questions
I";";;;;l."mments on the dirrerent theories :1 u.."y1,1,19^*::::T::[1y,[:^^P' what
#;;;;;; ;. ilnf
a;: I^'"i ii r ns deemed
r in approp
w!
j3 r o-ca t
ri ate.
dirrerent
t

11tn'.1':'::1svstems? For
accounting
.,
i:::Tff;;;:d#;b; M;;phy
thoutd
have
local auihorities? For different countries?
3.WhatapproachisMurphyusingwhenheaddressesthequestionofaccountingforlocal
authorities?
4.WhydoyouthinklFRShasbeenadoptedforlocalauthorities?lsitscientificor
unscientific?

Accounting theorv constructron 27

CHAPTER 2
 Normative theories of investment

Shares set for a pullback, not new lows

by Clenn Mumforcl
It's been a Sreat run' but I'm
starting to
get very nervous. Australian
40 per cent off bear-market I"*r.'D;;;e 'co*rodity
equities are now about
Ausrrarian aoirur.
,,r;",,#."?:t while domestic ir;;;; ,r1", ur" indices are at
at +o_year lows.
T-Js,

,Xi,,,'flrlrft";iiiffitif.; j#.f5,rfx*i :n:ffi :::3"1;il

so why in the worrd am, r worriedi
iE". ,rr" r."rinj
$*l*:tixn J

equities' the Australian dollar *" mri'f"i,"ua,rg at inrerim highs on

and .orrl-Jiiiu,
"'i"i' .. . r cin,t sha(e the.flering

; lfrit'ff:',"|:fl ,.;ru:,:#iru;fi'
u, u"; ilil;''ini,, *i n
rhat invesrors have
t" n y
Commodities are a particulai
concern. I think Xstrata's Mick
r

","",
r ir,
",
Tuesday when he oointed Davis caught the mood on
to the "frothi irrui r-,ra
"sentiment has been driuingp,i.ir,';;;;,^;h;, ";;;;;il ill
,.rn_ro in metat prices.
a more pragmatic reading of
frndrr;;;;;,',-n-" *l,"nua. r,m arso
the domestic interest rate outlook expecring
Equity investo^ uoouui to be to soften the local currencv. -
searching ro, un excuse to take
pinching rhemserves, as rhey
..r" ,, i*'r"#wirh thejrLc-eri some profits. Many are sti,
in the US wourd be the rikerieu.r,.ryrii"r,n,, ,1rd,.,o* s..j f.*rne. Seling pressure
underwav, ,o,J J""ur,,n-,Lrw
rilri8.r.r,,, though with reporring
;:il#i::X.set rioaii'ii,rii'outcomes courd provide
so how should investors play this?
As volatility
"o. returns, the market will inevitably
foot many as it moves to find wrong-
accrued since the March rows
u'r"* rr"rr. you rook ,. arr.* ,J"rrtage of gains
una to.l ,Iini" u*ryi o, J. that have
out any shofl{erm voraririry,,
before the exp".,"a j"*.ir,_;#;rlHrLprion ,r, *r,, your teeth and ride
market trend? wharevel,Ralh of rhe dominanr
you rake,;i:;rry correcrion
remember whar we said back as an added opporruniry.
i, ,ra.r.rr.'ror"gu, ,"rring ,"ur;, Jusr
,o buy
Source: The Australian Financial
Review, O Rugust-ZOttO
, -itl',,il"
pp. 23,25, www.afr.com.
dips.

Questions
1. What is a bull market? What is
a bear market?
2' why would high commodity prices and'Jow interest rates herp to
maintain share prices?
' Hiil,;'#;'I:J'",:""'rvi'g tn"
'aJ'l'io u,v tr," 'aip,;ii,-thl, u no,.,ative rheory?

@= POSITIVE THEORIES
During the 1g70s, accounting
theory saw a,move back to empirical
methodorogy,
1,,:i :;,:[t ,|;T:'.:1
real world' Positive accounting
j:#
hmt * f*:* j##*[;H
iesearch first focused on empiricalry
:ffi* ffi:
the assumptions made by the-norm",t""l..""rting testing some of
questionnaires and other theoristr. Fo, ou-ple, by using
suwey t".rrrriq*r, attitudes
accounting techniques to the ,ofulrr"r. of different
y"r." d"-,:r^inea. a typicar approach *urio ,r*"y
of financial analysts' bank offrcers the opinions
inflation accounting methods
u"J on the usefurness of different
"Jiorrrants
in their J".irio.,
bankruptry or deciding whether
b b;;";;I shares).-rr.i"g l"rr.]"isuch as predicting
Another approach was to tesr
PART 1 Accounring theory
 the assumed importance of accounting outputs in the marketplace. Tests attempted to
determine whether inflation accounting increased the information efficiency of share
markets; whether profit is an important determinant in share valuation; whether the
cost of gathering 'finer' accounting data outweighed the benefits; or whether the use of
different accounting techniques affected value.
Today, the greater bulk of positive theory is concerned mainly with 'explaining'
the reasons for current practice and 'predicting' the role of accounting and associated
information in the economic decisions of individuals, firms and other parties that
contribute to the operation of the marketplace and the economy. This research
tests theories that assume that accounting information is an economic and political
commodity, and that people act in their own self-interest. Positive accounting theory
in particular covers questions such as: Do firms substitute alternative ways of financing
assets when the rules governing the accounting for leases change?rWhich firms are more
likely to use straight-line depreciation rather than diminishin{-balance depreciation,
and why? The theory used to answer these questions generally revolves around
managers' incentives to ma-ximise bonuses based on their companies' profits, their
incentives to avoid breaching accounting-based debt covenants and thereby reducing
the cost of debt, or their incentives to use accounting techniques to divert attention
from their high profits if those profits would attract public or government scrutiny, and
perhaps lead to higher taxes. In this book, chapters 71, 12 and 13 focus on different
types of positive accounting theories.
The main difference between normative and positive theories is that normative
theories are prescriptive, whereas positive theories are descriptive, explanatory or
predictive. Normative theories prescribe how people such as accountants should behave
to achieve an outcome that is judged to be right, moral, just, or other-lvise a 'good'
outcome. Positive theories do not prescribe how people (e.g. accountants) should
behave to achieve an outcome that is judged to be 'good'. Rather, they avoid making
value-laden prescriptions. Instead, they describe how people do behave (regardless of
whether it is 'right'); they explain why people behave in a certain manner, for example
to achieve some objective such as maximising share values or their personal wealth
(regardless of whether that is 'right'); or they predict what people have done or will do
(again, regardless of whether that is 'right' or 'best behaviour').
Many positive theory researchers are largely dismissive of normative viewpoints.
Similarly, many normative theorists do not accept the value of positive accounting
research. In fact, the theories can coexist, and can complement each other. Positive
accounting theory can help provide an understanding of the role of accounting which,
in turn, can form the basis for developing normative theories to improve the practice
of accounting.

r= DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVES
To this point, we have focused on what may be considered to be a highly structured
approach to theory formulation
- the scientific approach. We start with a theory based
on prior knowledge or accepted 'scientific' theory constructions. When we obserwe
real-world behaviour that does not concur with the theory, we treat that anomaly as a
research issue and express it as a research problem to be explained. We develop a theory
to explain the obserwed behaviour and use that theory to generate testable hypotheses
that will be corroborated only if the theory holds. We then follow precise and highh,
stnlctured or predetermined procedures for data collection and, after subjecting the data
(usually) to mathematical or statistical techniques, we validate or refute the hypotheses

CHAPTER 2 Accounting theor\ cons'rr.rc.i, r

 tested. This approach has an inherent assumption that the world to be researched is an
objective reality capable of examination in terms of large-scale or average statistics. This
tlpe of research is carried out by incremental hypotheses which are then combined
to provide greater understanding, or better predictions, of accounting. The implied
assumption is that a good theory holds under circumstances that are constant across
firms, industries and time.
This approach to research is generally described as the 'scientific' approach and is
the approach currently used by most researchers in accounting, and the approach that
is published in most major academic accounting journals. It is important to note that
it is based on cer-tain ontological assumptions (the way we view the world), which
imply different epistemologies (the way we gather knowledge, or learn) and different
research methods. This, in turn, influences the types of research problems posed and
the hypotheses that are tested. It is important for accounting researchers to clearly
recognise the assumptions underlying their research and to consider whether alternative
research approaches are more appropriate. 'Ihere is a body of literature, Ioosely labelled
naturalistic research, which is critical of the highly structured approach adopted by
'scientific' researchers. We briefly review some of their criticisms in this section. Most
researchers now accept that the most appropriate approach depends on the nature of
the research question being considered.
The first criticism of the scientific method is that large-scale statistical research tends to
lump everyzthing together. Hypotheses based on the use of stock market prices or surveys
render much of accounting research remote from the world of practitioners. Also, thev
are not commensurate with the concerns of many individual accountants in their roles
as accountants. Some researchers advocate the naturalist research focus as being more
appropriate for gaining a knowledge of accounting behaviour in its natural setting. The idea
is that we undeftake research as naturally as possible. This approach has two implications.
First, we do not have any preconceived assumptions or theories. Second, we focus on
firm-specific problems. This is done by taking a flexible research approach using close
observations and placing less emphasis on mathematical analysis, modelling, statistical
tests, surveys and laboratory tests. The usual way to undenake naturalistic research is to use
individual case studies and more detailed fieldwork. this qpe of research is much more
micro in its perspective because it is aimed at solving individual problems which may be
firm-specific. Therefore, results may be more difficult to generalise.
The naturalistic approach can be compared with 'scientific' accounting research,
which is more prone to aggregating the results from testing a number of hypotheses in
order to form 'general theories of accounting'. Naturalistic research starls from specific
real-world situations; the main intention is to answer the question 'What is going on
here?', not to provide generalisable conditions for wide segments of society.
The case-study approach is seen by some researchers as best fulfilling the role of
exploring or crystallising the research problem for naturalistic research. For example:
. . . where it is not feasible to develop theoretical models prior to empirical observation,
the next best alternative (an exploratory approach) may be followed.l0

Tomkins and Groves disagree with this viewpoint. They see the naturalistic
research approach as being more appropriate to different ontological assumptions.ll
Differences in ontological assumptions imply different research styles and influence
the research questions asked and investigated. For example, we may view accounting
as a social construction. We may wish to understand what self-images people hold,
what underlying assumptions sustain that view, or what part this perception plays in
controlling the way they perform their everyday role. These are the ty.pes of questions
that might be researched using a subjective ontology.

30 PART 1 Accounting theory

 To further explain
ontology and the different research styres
we consider the article by Tomkins and Grovesl2 which may be used,
and the Morgan and Smircich
classification they used' First, they list a six-way classification
of the nature of the social
world (see table 2.1).
categories 1.-6 are alternative ways of looking
at the world. category 1 is a strict
objectivist viewpoint of the worrd, where behariour
behavioural rules, and outcomes of decisions
*iil ui*uy, conform to a set of
and actions are highry predictabre. In
relation to category 1, for example, researchers
assume that all managers aim to maximise
their personal wealth and that they are aware
of how they can .,r" u..or.rting techniques
to do so (e.s. by increasing_reported earnings,
thereby increasing ,h"i, borrrr"s that are
tied to reported earnings). This enables ,ese)rchers
topredict *fu, u..orrting methods
managers will use if accounting choice is
unregulated. Researchers will predict that
managers behave in the same manner because all
they have a shared view of the world and
the outcomes of their actions, and because they share preferences
of
for parlicular
outcomes.
when researchers view the world as a concrete
structure (category 1), this enables them
to use the scientific approach and statistical methods',o
,Jr, ihelr predictions. The
scientific approach is appropriate where the
behaviou. irrrr"rtiguiJ is predicted to occur
systematically, according to a model of behaviour
and events.

Assumption
1. Realityas a concrete structure
2. Realityas a concrete process
3. Realityas a contextual fielcl of information
4. Realityas symbolic discourse
5. Realityas social construction
6. Reality as projection of human imagination
Source; C. Tonrkins and R. Croves. ,The
everyday accoLlttant ;r nd rese;rrch r.rg h is rea I itv,,,A
Orianitations Jlrl \orielr, rul. B. no. -1, 1 eB3, i a c oLtt1 t i n g
pp. -t6t 7 4.

As we move down through the categories

we are gradualry relaxing our assumptions
about the 'concrereness' of the worrdl category
1 assumes that the worrd is concrete
and stable, category 6 views the world as unstable
and human-specific. rn category 6,
humans are not expected to behave according
to a set of behavioural rules that apply to
everyone equally. Complex interrelationships
and individualistic decision models are
I

assumed' Individuals are not expected to

think alike. Because individualism is expected
in category 6' the scientific method and statistical
tests u." inapf.opriate because their
assumptions are violated. Although individuals
may behave rati,onally according to their
personal understanding of the world
and of the outcomes of particular actions,
share a common understanding of how they do not
the world works, and they have different preferred
outcomes from their decisions. For example,
some managers might prefer to ma_ximise
their personal wealth; others might prefer to
ma-rimise theiisubordinates, job satisfaction;
and others might prefer to minimise their personal
work effort. understanding decision
making involves understanding individuars; perceptions
and preferences.
For categories 1-3, it is more appropriate
io ,r" th" scie.rtific approach. By appropriate
observation and measurement, it is assumed
that one has ,".;ir; available, stabre and
usually very simple functions relating to isolated
and small srbr"t, of the social world
that can be used for accurate predictions.l3
For categories 4-6, Tomkins and Groves suggest
that naturalistic or exproratory
research is more appropriate. These three
categories are generally labelled as ,symbolic

CHAPTER 2 Accounting theon,constructjon 31

 interactionist,.Symbolicinteractionistsseetheirworldasoneinwhichpeopleformtheir
ownsepalateimpressionsthroughaprocessofhumaninteracdonandnegotiation.They exchange of shared
believe that social ^.rio, and
iiteraction i, porriule only Pt"In
,tuu"iJ uto.n"a to people, ,titn*, and situations. Reality is not embodied
inrerpreratior$ of from people's
U"t o"ffithe meanings that result
in the rules of interpretation themselv"r, 'scientific' approach to
of the situations and events i("y op"'i"nce' A
interpretation such rules through large-scale'
people In^tt" -ffi
researching the interpretations "lucidate
statistical research inthose areaswhere
*"urrir!, heldby indMduals mightbe assumedto
by placing emphasis on
.utisc would ."rlu..h the problem
be stable. ln contrast, *r"lr-rut gain an understanding of
,feeling one,s way i"ri;" th" operience of th" actor in order to
behaviourwhich
identis, -"";;rg"iflcantforms of social
the problem. rrris processmight but which result
ruriaUtJ, with stable meanings'
cannot be related,o " i"* wJll-specifiea
among a group of people'
from the nature of the interactions make implies different
As we have previously noted,
the ontologicai assumption we
certain resea"rch methods' rtris
in turn influences the types
epistemological approaches and
you understand
hypoth"r", that are tested. To help
of research prour"-, ^J"d and tne 2'2'
naturalistic approaches in table
scientific and
this, we pres"rr, u.o-il'r-r-ri".i.r."

Naturalistic research
Scientific research
is socially constructed and
Ontological . Reality is objective and concrete'
reality' a product of human imagination'
I
o AccountinB is objective
assumPtions I . Accounting is constructed reality'
-n"ut''ty
. Holistic
Epistemological
knowledge
t . Complexity of the world cannot be
approaches solved bY reductionism
. Reductionism
I

.
o TestinB of individual hypotheses lrreducible laws
. Laws iapable of Seneralisation
. Structured . Unstructured
MethodologY
. Prior theoretical base . No prior theory

, . Empirical validation or exlension

1 syntn.ti. model formulation I . Case studies
MALdt
. Empirical induction to form I . Exploration bY flexibilitY
hvootheses I . Experience of events
' Appropriate stalislical methods

on accounting
illustration of different perspectives
In the following arlicle as a fufiher
,Financial accounting: an epistemological research
theory formation, *,r".i, from theory
2oo7) provide an ov^erview of accounting
note' (Schiet-ttt, so'Uu, i;i-ni t't"tiu theories'
development and the ^t"ttott
view on the development of accounting

research note
Financial accounting: an epistemological
Borba' and Fernando Dal-Ri Murcia
by Eduarclo Schiehll, Jos6 Alonso
basic question
what is accounting? lt is amazing how
this
i""ffivvrvv /
:iTpl",' ii:ff:"lfT;:t:r"J:1
Y,:::ff ii:il''i8ili''t'ffi,if
precisely (Kam, Ivoo]' "\ 5rr.rPrc
recording,
otrv
t*ii*."*':.*":'i:.'iXffi:,'::H::','J,l
'nformation about an
identifying, measu.ns, ,":d 1":T:i:::l:?-*,::H'J concept was derived
:H:YIi;"T:",'^T1?',,,T:ilhtr11y:1**:il:*'l*;J}'ffi::T,'"-"1',fl ml
it emphasizes the application
;'j#fi,1iir",ilff';J il" il";".;;."pi, "i accounting,

1H PART 1 Accounting theorY

I
 -l
I

l
aspect of accounting knowledge. Viewing this definition from an epistemological perspectii e,
one might argue that the object of study is not well defined, the methodology (truth criterial
is not identified, and the purpose of accounting research is poorly delimited. The aim of this
document is not to criticize this specific definition, but to argue that one of the difficulties
in understanding accounting as a scientific discipline resides in its definition as stated in the
literature. Among others, the importance of viewing accounting as a scientific field is that
fundamental or applied research is the only way to generate and improve knowledge in a
scientific field. In other words, the relevance of, and incentives for, conducting research in a
specific discipline like accounting depend on the extent to which specific methods may be
applied to improve the discipline's body of knowledge.
Following this line of reasoning, we believe that in order to perceive and appreciate
accounting as a scientific field, a first, essential step would be to understand the distinctions
and associations between accounting theory and accounting practice. According to the
framework proposed by Kuhn (1972), for example, we may conjecture that accounting
theory is a body of statements or propositions connected by rules of inferential reasoning
(i.e. testable hypotheses or premises and conclusions) that form the general frame of reference
for the development or explanation of accounting practices. The study by Hendriksen (1982)
corroborates this argument, adding that accounting theory may be defined as logical reasoning
in the form of a set of broad principles that:
(1) provide a general frame of reference by which accounting practice can be evaluated, and
(2) guide the development of new practices and procedures.
According to these principles, we argue that the next step in perceiving accounting as a
scientific field would be to identify the accounting theories that are being developed and how
they are verified. ln this respect, Popper (1 982) suggests that accounting knowledge is a body
of normative and positive empirical theories built around inductive inferences.
"Normative" means that accounting theories contain imperative value judgments stemming
from factual statements about the object of study, e.8., the market value of firm equity. Another
justification is that normative conclusions are very often the origin of policy recommendations,
which may or may not be adopted by practitioners in the field. According to Watts &
Zimmermann (1986), normative theories are almost entirely devoted to the examination of
questions of "what ought to be done." Thus, this theory attempts to prescribe what information
ought to be communicated and how it ought to be presented. ln other words, the normative
theories attempt to explain what accounting "should be" rather than what accounting "is."
On the other hand, positive theories attempt to explain why accounting is what it is. They
describe not only what accounting information should and how it should be communicated
to its users, but also why accountants do what they do and the effects of all this on people
and resource utilization (Christenson, 1983). However, as suggested by Schroeder and Clark
(1995), ideally there should be no such distinction (normative versus positive) because a well-
developed and complete theory encompasses both what should be and what it is.
The empirical and inductive attributes of accounting theory are easier to justify. ln fact,
according to Sterling (970), only mathematics and logic can be classified as non-empirical
sciences. Accounting theories in particular are fundamentally based on experience and
observation. For example, the qualitative and quantitative variations of firm equity studied
in Financial Accounting, or the dysfunctional behaviors of budgetary control investigated in
Management Accounti ng.
However, accounting premises and conclusions are connected by inductive inference.
Double-entry bookkeeping system can serve to illustrate this point. The double-entry system
is based on noting changes in the wealth of a firm and an attempt to translate the qualitative
and quantitative variations in the firm's equity. The double-entry system, perhaps the first
and most important paradigm* of accounting science, was invented in the commercial city-
states of medieval ltaly in response to the emergence of trade and commerce. According to
de Roover (.1 938) the double-entry was born when people came to see that you could not take
something out of one pigeonhole without putting it into another. lt has emerged as a natural
outcome of the evolutionary process to the need of times (Kam, 1986). The first published *

CIIAPI ER 2 Accounting theory construction 33

 accounting work was written in 1494 by the Venetian monk
Luca pacioli (,l450-1 520). It
summarizes principles that have remained essentiaily unchanged
to this day.
Subsequent works written in the 'l 6th century introduced
the first formulations of the
concepts of assets, Iiabilities, and income. ln keeping with
this theme, Lakatos (l 97g) suggests
that a theory is constructed by a bocly of concepts. From
this perspective, assets, liabilities,
income, and other notions derivecl from these such as long
and ,nou ,"rr, revenue, costs,
operarionat, etc., h,ave a specific"(or rather particutar) meaning
:f::"^:,^..?^"lrlll,ill:l? aie fundamentat.erements in
11"-::::::.13^.1,:11,,_:"9
ar_counting
i"; il"l,,tdi;B'#;;;;,#,;;;;
knowledge. rn rhe same Iine of thinking, the study rrf 6rrr,L,.
(1994) suggests that the concepts of financial acco"unting "r; J;;5";
nr"'pniti.rlrrly significant to the
development of accounting theory in two ways:
(1) they are themselves part of an empirical process for developing
rules of financial
accounting, and
(2) they reflect the influence of institutional forces which shape
the philosophy of accounting
in a given and social environment.
Much later, the lndustrial Revolution drove the need for accounting
practices that could
handle mechanization, factory-manufacturing operations,
and the mass production of goods
and services. with the rise of rarge, pubricry"heid business
.orforu,ion, ownecr by absentee
stockholders and administrated by professionar managers,
trr" u..lrnii;;;;bH;;;";
redefined. According to Schoroeder, Clark and Cathey
tZbOSitnu lndustrial R"evolution f r"rght
the need for more formal accounting procedures and standards.
ln terms of epistemology, these
two events may be interpreted as a crisis (Kunh, 1972) in accounting
science. organ"izations
were immersed in a new social and economic reality. New
paradiims were imposed onto
management activities, calling for new accounting theories
to supplrt the new
practices' From that point on, research in the accounting
field split off into two "...rrli"g
directions:
financial accounting and management accounting.
While the first focuses on the outside user of accounting information,
the second focuses
on the internal user and the decision making process. However,
independently ottnis sptit,
theorists continue their quest: explain accouiting practice.
In the next section we discuss the
purposes, evolution and methods of financial accounting
research.
The sociological and-d is^cu rsive perspectives of accou nti ng
The studies by Latour ('1989).and w-hitley (.1984) suggest
that the"sociological and discursive
perspectives of a science are basically determined byihe
and intensity of its interaction
with society' Like every other social science, accounting"*tent
conducts its research based upon
assumptions about the nature of social science and the nature
of society (Belkaoui, 1gg7)i. As
it happens, financial accounting may be analyzed from both the
sociological and discursive
perspectives. Thus, accounting may be viewed as a ,,socio-systemic,,
stiucture, with input,
process, and output' The idea is that financial accounting
knowledge does not ufi".t onty
the accountants and accounting practices, but also
tail".ify .r-indirectly) impacts the
management context in all its ramifications. As Beaver (-1998)
suggests, the currentfinancial
report environment consists of va.rious groups (investors, iilormation
intermediaries,
regulators, managers, auditors, etc.) who ,re iffe.ied by
and have a stake in financial ,eporting
requirements' Hereafter, the sociological and discursive perspectives
of accounting *ilr bE
analyzed assisted by the strong interdependence between
,.i"n." and society (the science
"players"). our argument.is that, as an applied science, the accounting
discipline is no
exception to the rule. In this sense, the process of constructing
accounting"theories has been
analyzed, culminating in the conclusion that market pressure,
tI* tr*, tinrtitutional influence),
management decision needs, and macroeconomic factors
such as inflaiion are the main lnputs
to a sociological accounting system. These inputs are the starting
points for an accounting
translation process' Thus, the discursive result is the creation
or iil[.u"*ent of accounting
practices, while the sociological contribution is the correct
incorporation of these aspects intS
the accounting framework to address user needs and serve
ns int"rpretut,on models. Therefore,
the accounting "socio-output" is represented by better
assessmenL of u fir*,, financial health

34 PART 1 Accounting theory

 by investors and stakeholders and improved decision-making by managers.
Thus, selection
of financial reporting system might be viewed as a sociaichoice,
.a w"here bargain po*er
will determine whoever gets their desires fulfilled. In a number of countries,
such as the
united States, where financial reporting information is directed primarily
toward the needs of
investors and creditors, decision usefulness is the overriding
cliterion ior judging it, qr"fity
(Mueller, cernon and Meek, 1994). However, in
someotheicountries, such [as] some Latin
American countries, financial accounting is designed primarily to
ensure that the iight urount
of tax is collected. ln this sense, u..ounling is iaped by theenvironmental
forces in which
it operates. At the same time, scientific research in accounting has
also been influenced bv
social and environmental forces, which resulted in two differentitrearr
of ,"r"urln,if-l""xr""rifr-
American and the European. According to Lopes and Martins (2005)
research in accounting
cannot be considered independently of the social environment in
which it is inserted. ThL
research itself is a product of the social environment. The North
American stream of accounting
research, which is known as the mainstream, has been based
on the economic concepts and in
a framework based on the positive method, which basicailv
reries on:
(i) hypotheses development
(ii) economic theories to support the hypotheses
(iii) empirical tests using econometrics techniques
(iv) conclusions that wish to construct a theory in order
to explain and predict particle
This Iine of research.has largely disseminated by the Elite Schools (Chicago,
Rochester, Stanford, !9en MIT,
etc.) and their PhDs programs. This research has also be"n ,timuiaied
by
premier scientific journals Iike rh_e Accounting Review (TAR),
/ournal of Accounting Researc'h
(lAR), lournal of Accounting and Economics
uAE), Contemporary Research (CAR) and Review
o.f A-ccounting studies (RAS). However, an alternative
stream of research has emerged with
the foundation of the journal Accounting, organization and
Society, in England. Here, we call
it the European or British stream, nt rr-rort of t[e researchers
were origlnalli British like A"t;;t
Hopwood, Michael Power and Peter Miler. However, we might nie
the existence of British
authors that are adopters of the "North-American approach,,
Jnd vice-versa.
The. theoretical approach used by the British stream
. of research has been based on
disciplines like sociology, psychology, history and political economy-
ln this Iine of research,
the accou.nting phenomenon cannot be viewed within the best po;sible
option (normativej
or a set of hypotheses to be tested (positive); instead the proposition
is that forcertnnt inup"
accounting should be elaborated within a set of social inieractions
that act in a debate arena
(Lopes and Martins, 2005).

Final remarks
This brief epistemological overview of the history of financial accounting
research
demonstrates how it gained importance as a hands-on activity
before the accountifg theorists
arrived on the scene. consequently, accounting practices were shaped
rry
interest in ti-re"i..r"ti"g
practitioners and the Sovernment authorities, which took a keen
protectioX
of capital markets and creditors. The capital market still wields a strong
influence over the
sociological and discursive branches of financjal accounting science.
Research programs
have been supporred by regulatory bodies such as ArcpA (Ls,c) ana
C|CA (Canada] and
professional accounting associations such as AAA (USA) and
CAAA (Canada)**. Financial
accounting research has also been impacteci by the corporative influence.
This influence
has taken the form of standards designed to control financial
accounting practices instead of
fostering discussion on the anomaliei between the reality and
evaluatioi of firm equity. As a
consequence, few paradigms or accounting theories have been
put forwarcl to guide ,"senrch
avenues in financial accounting. When Positive Accounting t'heory
brought"to u..ornaing
a.theory-testing approach, researchers embarl<ed on an eff"ici"nt capital
i-rarket approachl
which led to improved utilization of rigorous research methods and statistical
analysis. These
factors may have shielded financial accounting from criticism, and
therefore'creat,;;t,
compared to other management disciplines, wheie there was more incentive
for qualitative
and interpretative investigation. At the same time recent accounting scandals
involving highly rr

CHAPTER 2 Accounting theory construction 35

 known corporations have raisecl questions about.financial reports, reliability,
to [have] somehow shifted the focus back to regulation which seem
that coutd-result in less information
usefulness, in order to recover the integrity
of aicounting J"r-r"i"". As such, researchers
in financial accounting need to be a#are of the
many air"rri.r, ;;i*dil* il:l'il'",
are attempting to "account for" and represent.
Numericar Rclounting highrights aspects
of organizational reality that are quantifiable and
built into the uc.ounting framework, but
oftentimes ignore aspects of organizational reality
tnut ur" noi qLl"n,,iinot" in this way. That
said such challenges are part aid parcel of all ,

scientific fields.
x Both inductive
and dedrctive inferences may generate positive
or normative theories. pr
what and how accounting informarion ;, p,"i",,"J
attempt to prescribe what data ought to be communicated
n"J;.;;,;;;i;,.," ..,ffi:#li:ti:XTlT:ilii:,;::il::
and how ,r,"y i. b" iresented, that is, they artempr to
explain what should be rather than what is. Watts
& Zimmermann (19g6). "rgLi
*x AICPA is
the acronym for American lnstitute uf certified
Public Accountantsi crcA is the acronym
Accountants oI Canada; AAA is the acronym for chartered
for American 'Accounting,qr.o.irr_n,
--"-"'"'b and CAAA is the acronvm for
Canadian Academic Accounting AssoLiation.

References
Beaver,w. Financial Reporting: an accounting reuolution.3rd ed. prentice
Hall, 1998.
Belkaoui, A. AccountingTheory.3rd,ed. Dryden
Press, I993.
tTlrl:lr?;. (1e83), The Methodoiogv of positive Accounting. .rhe
Accounting Reuiew, v. 58,
de Roover, R. characteristics of Bookkeeping
before pacioro. Accounting Reuiew,p. 146, 1938.
clautier, M.; underdown, B. AccountingTheory and practice.sth
ed. pi,rnu, publishing, 1994.
Hendriksen, E. s. AccountingTheory.4th ed. Irinois:
Richard D. Irwin, Inc, p. 589, chap. 1_4,

Kam, V. AccountingTheory. 2nd. ed. Wiley

Inc, 1986.
o"l}l S'' The Structure of Scientific Revolutions,
1sr. ed. chicago: university of chicago press,
Lakatos' I' The Methodology of Scientific Research
Programmes. ln: The Methodology of scientiJic
Philosophical papers, v. 1. cambridge:
Cambridge University press, p.
i?i8Trr{;r{rammel
Latour, B' La science en action. paris: Les Editions
de la Ddcouuerte, p.7-g6, 7g.g.
Lopes, A; MAKTINS, E. Teoria rla contabilidade:
uma noua
abordagern. Editora Atlas, 2005.
Mueller' G; cernon, H; Meek, G. Accounting: an lnternational perspectiue.
Popper' K' R' Examen de certains problbmes
lrvin Editors 1994. ,
fondamentdux: La logique de la rldcouuerte scienfitique. paris:
Payor, p. 23-45, Ig82.
schroeder, R.; crark, M. AccountingTheory: texts
and readings.5th ed. wilrey lnc, 1995.
schroeder' R'; clark' M; cathey, J. Financial
AccountingTheory and Analysis: texts and readings.
ed. Willey Inc, 2005. Bth
ttTliS. R' R on Theory construction and Verificati on. The Accounring
Review, p. 444-452, rury

watts, R. L.; Zimmerman, J. L. positiue

Accounting^Theor. rst. ed. Englewood criffs,
Prentice-Hall, Inc, p. 3BB, chap. 1_3; I2_14, New Jersey:
1986.
*?i?l c' Revolution in Accounting Thought? The Accounting Reuiew,v.
51, p. 471-482, Jrry
whitley' R' The organizational of scientific Fields. The Intellectual and social
the Science, -structures organization of
Oxford, Clarendon press, p. fSS_jrs,
tSS+.
S'urct'" Re'"isr.l C.rr.r/riricr,tcrt:.* /:r,.r/ran-r
frniiner r007, vor.rg,.o.!5, Jrp. gJ 90.

Questions
1' outline at least two theories mentioned above
and describe the ontological and
epistemological assumptions made in each theory.

36 P,AR | 1 Act ounting theorl

 2. What do the authors mean when they say accounting theories contain 'imperative va ue
judgements'?
3. Why are accounting theories about social choices? How does accounting affect societr,?
How would you go about researching societal impact?

@. scrENTrFrc APPRoACrI APpLtED

TO ACCON.JNTING
Miseoneeptions of purpose
A great deal of misunderstanding exists about the attempt to apply a scientific approach
to accounting. Some believe that the attempt is to make scientists out of accounting
practitioners. This view is not the aim of the approach. A scientist is one who uses
the scientific method and, therefore, is mainly a researcher. The medical profession
provides a good analogy of the difference between researcher and practitioner and the
use and effect of the scientific method.
The medical researcher is a scientist, but the medical practitioner (the doctor) is
not. The latter applies the tools of medicine. He or she is a professional person who is
expected to use judgement to diagnose diseases and recommend treatments. The 'tools'
the doctor applies consist mainly of knowledge gained through scientific research by
medical investigators. But, as in many other fields, scientific research has not found all
the answers to medical questions and some of the conclusions are not as persuasive
as others. The conclusions of research are generalisations, but the practitioner is faced
with specific cases that may not conform exactly with general conclusions.
For these reasons, the practitioner's judgement is always necessary in applying the
'tools' of his or her trade. What is significant is that the practitioner takes a scientific
attitude in practice
- that is, he or she takes seriously the view that evidence to
support a diagnosis or treatment is important. Accountants who believe in a scientific
approach want empirical evidence and logical explanation to suppoft accounring
practices so that practitioners can recommend the most appropriate methods for given
situations based on this evidence. People find statements more convincing when
substantiated by objective, empirical evidence than statements based only on debatable
rationalisations.
Another common misunderstanding about the application of the scientific view in
accounting is that 'absolute truth' is desired, which of course is not possible. Therefore,
those who argue against the scientific approach to theory formulation contend that
it is fruitless to seek that which is impossible. Such an argument is based on the
misconception that science discovers absolute truth. The scientific method is not
perfect. It is a human invention to help us ascertain whether a statement should be
considered realistic or not. 'Ihe structure of the process in which this determination is
made is such that no one can claim absolute truth in science. Thus, scientific truth is
provisional. A statement or theory gains the status of 'confirmation' only after scientists
in the area from which the theory evolves decide that the evidence is sufficiently
persuasive, for example, when statistical tests show that the results obtained have less
than a 5 per cent probability of occurring by chance. The history of science discloses
that substitutions, adjustments and modifications of theories are made in the light of
new evidence.

CHAPILR 2 {tcounting theorl , onslru, tion

-*'**ii'
'

Alternative approaches to accounting

theory construction

Predicting profits is crystal_ball gazing

by Narelle Hooper and Fiona Buffini
coles Myer chief execulive
John Fletcher previously ser five-year annual
in the company,s initial revival ptrn, prolit growth rar*ets
,grinrt the advice.f f,i U"*a
'The downside risk of sharing that externaily
was th,at you get harf way through
people can check you arong the"way
,nJ if yor,ru not deriverin[.th" pr"rrrr" gutirrrirt it and
And he's missing rargers anj ail of a
sudden i-re's out
,p.
vt? rterche, ,oid.
'The five years is getting crose so as "i;l;;;
a team we,il be going through that
won't be sharing any targets again . . . . . we definitery
. I,ve done tt,ut on!"",l tig.'rrid, ,, don,t
And the risk of doing thaitwicJwith need that now.
the market r don,t want to take.,
while Mr Fletcher's experience has been
bruising than most, rivar ch.ief executives
are foilowing his read by puiling ,more
back on-,nrki"g ,p".ifi. [r;j;r;;;, about earnings.
Perpetual Trustees announced a
27 per cent rise in 2004-05 earnings but
David Devera, deferred first-harf gridan.e chief executive
untir ,r," ,nnrur ,"J;; in october.
By contrast at the same time rast
year, he said the company
operating profit after tax in excess improvement in
of 1'0 per cent, subject to market"'*p".tua
conditions.
'This time last vear' we thought we
would exceed a 'l 0 per cent increase
after tax and we ended,,ip d;ji"";,"s'r) in operating profit
0",. cenr so in our view that wasn,t very
guidance,' said perpetuar irustees helpful
.hi?f nnun.irr officer john Nesbitt.
'so this year our view was to wait a
little while until things settle and give
guidance at the ACM. r think that,s more appropriate
.onrira"r, with the pu'r."r"j iruno in the
give guidance because of the generat market not to
,n.uri"lnty.,
sankar Narayan, the CFo of
lohn Fairfax Holdings
Review said the company's practice was -. publisher of The Australian Financial
-
much more precise guidanie later in
to give*general alru.tionur guidance
followed by
,n" y*, when advertising demand was
Mr Narayan agreed that,other.companies more visible.
had been,flirry gJnerar in their guidance
reporting period and specurated
that ,it may be because or tri"?.orJ.ic this
Pacific Brands' investor rerations executive environment,.
Katherine cooper said the company
decided against providing specific had
griJ"".". problem with guidance is the market
susceptible to expectationt inut is so
ir yor-"*.".i
"rhe your own ror3.urt,
something different you can be "u"", but the market thinks
marked'ai*n,, she said.
other companies such as BHP Billiton,
IAC and Rio Tinto continue to provide
outlook statements but not specific profit broad
forecasts.
'lf you can tell us what the Australian dollar
is going to be at the end of the year and a few
what ;;;';;;"s to ,iku, r think it;s as simpre as that,, Rio
$:i:#::i:T,Y"";i::i:l.u
IAC investor relations chief Anne
o'Driscoll sajd the ins.urer never provided
," a profit forecast,
equiry portfotio ,ua* tn" figrre unpredictabte.
,0"1,:::^r_l1rge
reopre aren't very good at predicting
whal the marker wiil Jo., she addecr.
Source: The Australian Financial Review,5
September 2005, p. 19.

Questions
do businesspeople rear ir thev do not
' Yi,i:n,]|::lii,illX'l meet their rorecast earnings or
2' Mr Fletcher describes how he has learned
not to publicry disclose 5-year annual
growth lar8ets' Explain what is likely profit
to huu" .urr*d him io learn that lesson.
whar upp'o,.h'io',n;.'i .""r,,ucion In cominq
has Mr Fretcher appried? Exprain
;:l?Til:lsion'
Accounti ng theory
 3. Can the scientific approach to theory construction and testing be useful in relation to
predicting when and how investors will react to earnings announcements? Why or why not?
4. What is the importance to society of developing a theory to explain the relationship
between earnings forecasts, earnings announcements, and share price movements?

Alternative approaches to accounting theory construction

Telstra retains forecast for 2009 earnings to rise

by Andrea Tan

Telstra Corp., Australia's largest phone company, reaffirmed its forecast for earnings and sales to
climb this year on growth from its mobile and internet units amid the global financial turmoil.
Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortlzation will probably rise as much as
7 percent in the 12 months ending June 30, Telstra said today in a statement to the Australian
stock exchange. Sales this year may climb between 3 percent and 4 percent, the company said.
Telstra, based in Melbourne, stuck to its forecasts even as the credit crisis forces some
companies to cut earnings estimates. The phone operator is three years into a five-year plan
to raise profit by slashing its workforce by as much as 12,000 and has said it will invest more
than Ag'10 billion ($6.8 billion) to upgrade the speed and geographic coverage of its networks
to counter failing revenue from fixed-line operations.
"Unlike most companies at this time, Telstra is in an enviable position," Chief Executive
Officer Sol Trujillo told investors in Sydney today. "You can take it to the bank that we're
going to grow earnings."
- mobile-phone unit sales rose by a "double-digit" percentage in the fiscal first quarter ended
Sept. 30, he said.
Telstra, which has cut 9,584 jobs since it announced its five-year plan, expects to save
between Ag200 million and A$300 million in labor costs by June 2010, Chief Financial
Officer John Stanhope said. The phone operator had 46,649 workers at the end of June 30,
according to its annual report.
Source: O 2008 Bloomberg L.P. All rights reserved. Used with permission.

Questions
1. What market backlash do businesspeople fear if they do not meet their forecast earnings or
growth targets? Why?
2. Can the scientific approach to theory construction and testing be useful in relation to
predicting when and how investors will react to earnings announcements? Why or why
not?
3. What is the importance to society of developing a theory to explain the relationship
between earnings forecasts, earnings announCements, and share price movementS?

@-, rssuEs FoR AUDInNG THEoRY

CONSTRUCTION
As discussed earlier, auditing is a verification process that is applied to the accounting
inputs and processes. Auditors are not verifying outputs for conformance to one
unique economic measure of profit, but provide an opinion on whether the financial
statements are in accordance with the applicable reporting ftamework. In addition,
depending on the jurisdiction, auditors provide an opinion on whether the statements
present fairly, in all material respects, or give a true and fair view.la

CHAPTER 2 Accounting theory construction

r In general, the construction of a theory of auditing
development of accounting theory. The
has folrowed, with a lag, the

lil
early literaturJ on auditing focused on
arising in the conduct of an audit, such issues
as the emphasis on flaud detection,
of errors of principre and the nature of account discovery
verificarion. 1r th; pa;;# ,rr..";i
to auditing theory development is evident in early
principles of auditing' For example, the
tot, the p.o."r,
concept of professional "4pt"iring ".rd
scepticism has its roots
in principles laid down in nineteenth-century
legal cases, such as Kingston cotton
(in 1896) and London and Generat Bankii M1116
the Kingston cotton Mill case deflned the
1ii rsssl'*;l""or"^ent of Lopes L| in
auditor's responsibilities with respect to
detection of fraud as the right to believe the
company representatives, provided reasonable
care is taken' Further cases in various jurisdiitions
refined and developed the concept
of professionar scepticism,lB and the auditing
standards have adapted and deveroped
over time to incorporate this concept.
Today's standards still refer to the auditor,s
to accept records and documents as genuine, right
provided the
if any condition creates doubt about Lut presumption.le auditor investigates further
Mau1z and Sharaf in 1961, attempted
to generalise the existing literature and provide
a comprehensive theory of auditing.2, Their
modvation ,o *riL the monograph was
to counter the prevailing view that auditing
was a practical exercise, not only without
any theoretical underpinnings, but not requiring
theoretical developmen 1.21 Matstz
and sharaf argued that practical issues
could be ,"iorrr"a o.rry tf a"r"top_ent
of theory' They provided eight postulates and use
as a foundatio.r iorih" theory of auditing
and developed the basic concepis of such
a theory. These concepts were identified
evidence, due audit care, fair presentation, as
ira"p"ra"r." conduct. However,
although these concepts are now embedded ""j ",rrr;al and
inthe auditirgrtur;uras
the development of an auditing theory progressed regulations,
slowly in the years
folowing Maua
and Sharafs publication.zz
The normative era of accounting theory
and research also coincided with a normatiye
approach to auditing th-eory. In the early
1970s the American Accounting Association
(AAA) established the committee on
Basic Auditing concepts to investigate
and function of auditing, to make recommendations rhe role
for research projects, examine
the problems of evidence, and issue a position
paper on the scope of auditing by
accountants'23 The repoft provides a normative statement
emphasis on concepts that should be studied
on auditing with an
by students, urrarrgg"r,ions for research
which may 'lead to better fulfirment of the
rore of auditing i., ,o.i"ry ,, The resulting
Statemenr of Basic Auditing Conceprs (ASOnA6;zs
emphajsed thl of auditing
as the collecting and evaluating
of evidence withtut fury a"rr"lopi.rg"rr".r."
the
evidentiary material is usedin the reasoning theory of how
process to support the auditor,s
The growth of positive theories of accJunting opinion.zo
in the ilz0s was accompanied by a
change in direction of auditing research.
Two major streams of research developed,
both of which relied on empirical data and
were design"J i; ; positive or scienrific
framework' Experimentalists focused
on a micro-level understanding of the audit
testing/judgement process (known as
IDM, or judgement/decision making research).27
This research sought to explain how
auditors make judgements and decisions
they could predict how auditors would so that
behave when placed in certain situations.
The early research in this field provided somewhat disturbing
iudgements by auditors when presented with the same
of differing
"rria".r."
informltion,28
effects appeared at least partly due to although these
the prolt"- of creating realistic audit
experimental setting.2e tasks in an
The other major stream of empirical
auditing research that
developed in this era
examined questions of auditor ctroice
by companies and the factors affecting
the level
PART 1 Accounting theory
of fees paid by companies to their auditors. This research was particularly interested in
whether the quality of audits performed by different auditors in different circumstances
difFered. DeAngelo3o argued that audit quality is positively related to audit firm size
because larger auditors have 'more to lose' by failing to report a discoyered breach in a
particular client's records. That is, large audit firms have more clients to lose than small
audit firms from compromising their independence on an audit in order to please
the dient. This theory helps explain why large audit firms dominate the audit services
market. Simunic3l developed a theory to explain that audit fees are based on client
characteristics and reflected the forces of demand and supply. This literature is based on
economic concepts of efficient markets and the role of the auditor in resolving agency
conflicts between shareholders, managers and lenders. These theories are discussed
further in later chapters.

CHAPTER 2 Accounting theory construction