Developing appreciation of micro-organizational processes of accounting change and indicating pathways to more ‘Enabling Accounting’ in a micro-organizational domain of research and development

Masquefa, B., Gallhofer, S. and Haslam, J. (2017) Developing appreciation of micro-organizational processes of accounting change and indicating pathways to more ‘Enabling Accounting’ in a micro-organizational domain of research and development. Critical Perspectives on Accounting, 44, pp. 59-82. (doi: 10.1016/j.cpa.2016.07.001)

Abstract

The paper contributes by developing and refining the critical theoretical framing of organizational processes implicating accounting change. This includes articulating how accounting can become more ‘enabling’ in a dynamic micro-organizational context. The latter articulation reflects a critical theoretical appreciation and mobilization of the construct ‘enabling accounting’ that begins to contextualize and reconcile aspects of differing usages of this construct in the literature. In framing organizational processes implicating accounting change, the paper furthers understanding of accounting colonization around categories building upon Laughlin (1991) and related studies, including work seeking to develop Laughlin (notably Tucker, 2013, and the Social Network Theory he promotes). Change pathways implicating colonization are in this respect seen as shaped by structural, relational and social mechanisms. The theoretical framing advanced helps to illuminate aspects of colonization processes that facilitate, as well as hinder or counter, meaningfully enabling dimensions of accounting. This enhances the critical theoretical appreciation of colonization in terms of a more complex evaluation. The theorizing is fleshed out and developed through an action research project conducted at the Research and Development (R&D) site of a multinational corporation in France during the implementation of a performance measurement system (PMS). In theorizing accounting colonization and dynamics of an enabling accounting in an R&D setting, we add to prior appreciations of the relation between creative, innovative, ostensibly intuitive and unstructured processes, and, systems of financial control.

• Item Type: Articles
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Gallhofer, Prof Sonja
• Authors: Masquefa, B., Gallhofer, S., and Haslam, J.
• College/School: College of Social Sciences > Adam Smith Business School > Accounting and Finance
• Journal Name: Critical Perspectives on Accounting
• Publisher: Elsevier
• ISSN: 1045-2354
• ISSN (Online): 1095-9955
• Published Online: 05 August 2016
• Copyright Holders: Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd.
• First Published: First published in Critical Perspectives on Accounting 44:59-82
• Publisher Policy: Reproduced in accordance with the copyright policy of the publisher