Quality in qualitative management accounting research

2014 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 29-39 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hanne Nørreklit
Keyword(s):  
Cost Management ◽  
Management Accounting ◽  
Language Game ◽  
Language Games ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Four Dimensions ◽  
Accounting Research ◽  
Pragmatic Constructivism ◽  
Insight Into

Purpose – The purpose of this article is to demonstrate how the quality of Qualitative Research in Accounting & Management (QRAM) is manifested through the conceptualization of knowledge about functioning actions that are applicable for local management accounting practices. Design/methodology/approach – Drawing on language game theory and pragmatic constructivism, the paper analyzes the “practice doing” embedded in key language games of the case descriptions of three articles on intra-organizational buyer-supplier relations published in QRAM with the aim of revealing how they contribute to the development of a performativity in management accounting topos that integrates facts, possibilities, values and communication. Findings – The analysis documents that the three QRAM articles on inter-organizational cost management make a common contribution to the knowledge related to what to do to make functional actions within the practice of inter-organizational cost management. Together, the articles provide conceptual rigour with a complexity in content that can encompass the four dimensions of integration. Research limitations/implications – In providing a framework for analyzing practice relevance, the paper has implications for contemporary discussions on doing research that is relevant for practice. Originality/value – The paper provides novel insight into the analysis of quality in management accounting research. Additionally, it provides a framework for reflecting on the accumulation of practice-relevant knowledge and identifying areas requiring more research.

Understanding practice generalisation – opening the research/practice gap

2016 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 278-302 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hanne Nørreklit ◽  
Lennart Nørreklit ◽  
Falconer Mitchell
Keyword(s):  
Building Blocks ◽  
Language Games ◽  
Research Practice ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Pragmatic Constructivism ◽  
Different Types ◽  
Practice Gap ◽  
Research Criteria ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Insight Into

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to enhance the relationship between research and practice. It addresses the question: How can practitioners’ use of generalisations be understood, with a view towards producing research-based generalisations that facilitate use in practice? Design/methodology/approach Language games are used to explore generalisation in practice, and the framework of pragmatic constructivism is adopted to characterise the generation of practice generalisation. Findings Practice is conceptualised as a complex set of clusters of organised actions run by a set of applied generalisations and driven by human intentions. Practice also encompasses reflective activities that aim to create the generalisations and reflect them into the specific circumstances to create functioning practice. Generalisations depend on underlying concepts. The formation and structure of concepts is explored and used to create the construction and use of different types of generalisation. Generalisations function as cognitive building blocks in constructing strings of interconnected functioning activities. Managers make their own functioning generalisations that, however, do not satisfy the research criteria for acceptable generalisations. The research/practice gap is shaped by the very different language games played. Research limitations/implications If research is to be useful to practice, the generalisations produced must methodologically articulate the types of generalisation that pervade the methods with which practitioners construct functioning activities. Further research has to give more insight into such processes. Originality/value The paper contributes insight into both the generalisation debate and the research/practice gap debate.

A pragmatic constructivist approach to accounting practice and research

2016 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 266-277 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hanne Nørreklit ◽  
Morten Raffnsøe-Møller ◽  
Falconer Mitchell
Keyword(s):  
Conceptual Development ◽  
Management Accounting ◽  
Empirical Studies ◽  
New Paradigm ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Four Dimensions ◽  
Accounting Practice ◽  
Critical Theories ◽  
Pragmatic Constructivism

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to introduce the practice paradigm of pragmatic constructivism. Design/methodology/approach Pragmatic constructivism emphasizes the role of the actors in the construction of organized reality. For such construct to function successfully, four dimensions of reality must be integrated in the actor-world relations. Findings This includes an examination of pragmatic constructivist theory as an alternative to traditional realism and critical theories of organizational reality. The papers of the special issue include methodological, conceptual and empirical studies to expand the understanding of management accounting in relation to the actors’ construction of functioning organizational practices. Research limitations/implications As pragmatic constructivism is a relatively new paradigm, there is a need for further methodological and conceptual development and empirical studies of functioning practices. Originality/value In a discipline such as management accounting that can be theoretically polarized between the “realist” scientific mainstream and social constructivist criticism, pragmatic constructivism offers a mediating model in which realism is retained as the pragmatic criteria of success of the organizational actors’ construction.

Qualitative generalising in accounting research: concepts and strategies

2016 ◽  
Vol 29 (6) ◽  
pp. 1100-1131 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lee D. Parker ◽  
Deryl Northcott
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Research Literature ◽  
Key Factors ◽  
General Applicability ◽  
Information Systems Management ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Accounting Research ◽  
Research Findings ◽  
Quality Of Research

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to identify and articulate concepts and approaches to qualitative generalisation that will offer qualitative accounting researchers avenues for enhancing and justifying the general applicability of their research findings and conclusions. Design/methodology/approach – The study and arguments draw from multidisciplinary approaches to this issue. The analysis and theorising is based on published qualitative research literatures from the fields of education, health sciences, sociology, information systems, management and marketing, as well as accounting. Findings – The paper develops two overarching generalisation concepts for application by qualitative accounting researchers. These are built upon a number of qualitative generalisation concepts that have emerged in the multidisciplinary literatures. It also articulates strategies for enhancing the generalisability of qualitative accounting research findings. Research limitations/implications – The paper provides qualitative accounting researchers with understandings, arguments and justifications for the generalisability of their research and the related potential for wider accounting and societal contributions. It also articulates the key factors that impact on the quality of research generalisation that qualitative researchers can offer. Originality/value – This paper presents the most comprehensively sourced and developed approach to the concepts, strategies and unique deliverables of qualitative generalising hitherto available in the accounting research literature.

A learning method of trust building: beyond the performance management of artistic events

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jakob Mathias Liboriussen ◽  
Hanne Nørreklit ◽  
Mihaela Trenca
Keyword(s):  
Performance Management ◽  
Trust Building ◽  
Language Games ◽  
Learning Method ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Measurement Models ◽  
Knowledge Processes ◽  
Conceptual Structures ◽  
The People ◽  
Pragmatic Constructivism

Purpose This paper aims to address a dilemma raised in the accounting literature on how managers of creative practices can produce and use accounting measurements that support employees’ self-determination to create whilst also building trust in them to work for the interests of the organisation. Design/methodology/approach Using pragmatic constructivism as a paradigmatic setting, the paper develops a learning method of trust building as a way for organisations to produce and use accounting measurements. Empirical analysis of the European Capital of Culture Aarhus 2017 demonstrates the method in action. Findings The study displays a learning method of trust building as an effective way for organisations to account for their creative practices without intruding on the creative process of the people involved. The method involves proactive judgement and pragmatic observation of the trustworthiness of the actors’ language games, construction of quality in the conceptual structures of management narratives and measurement models, and learning that narrows the gap between the actors’ proactive judgement and the pragmatic observation of trustworthiness. Through such processes, including principles of truth, dialogical interactions, ongoing reflections and co-authorship, trust can be built in self-determining, creative actors to drive intentional results. Research limitations/implications The learning method of trust building extends the literature on trust building and on knowledge processes of performance measurement of actors in creative practices. Originality/value This is the first attempt in the accounting literature to develop a learning method of trust building.

scholarly journals Lean management in health care: a review of reviews of socio-technical components for effective impact

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Marta Marsilio ◽  
Martina Pisarra
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Implementation Process ◽  
Management Approach ◽  
Lean Management ◽  
Impact Measurement ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Four Dimensions ◽  
Support Organization ◽  
Review Of Reviews

PurposeThe aims of the implementation of lean management in health care are to improve quality of care, to eliminate waste and to increase efficiency. The purpose of this study is to contribute to the advancement of knowledge by investigating which main socio-technical factors are considered to be effective for the implementation and management of lean initiatives.Design/methodology/approachA systematic review of literature reviews on lean management in health care was conducted. The components of the socio-technical system are identified by moving from the socio-technical drivers that support organization-wide quality improvement practices and the lean implementation process in health care. The impacts of lean management are classified using the internal processes, patient, learning and financial dimensions.FindingsThe 28 reviews retrieved confirm the current and increasing interest in lean management. While more than 60% of them call for a system-wide approach, system-wide implementations have rarely been observed, and, instead, adoption in isolated units or departments, or the use of single techniques and tools, prevails. The most commonly investigated socio-technical components are organizational structure, techniques and tools and organizational culture and strategic management. Significant impacts are reported for all the four dimensions. Nonetheless, the review reveals that there is still a lack of evidence on the sustainability of lean results and a need for a standardized impact measurement system.Originality/valueThis work stands out as the first review of reviews of how the socio-technical components of the lean management approach obtain positive impacts within the patient, internal processes, learning and financial dimensions.

Envelope wages as a new normal? An insight into a pool of prospective quasi-formal workers in the European Union (EU)

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Josip Franic ◽  
Stanislaw Cichocki
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Pension System ◽  
Older Individuals ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Random Intercept ◽  
Novel Approach ◽  
Wage Earners ◽  
Insight Into

PurposeIn spite of millions of quasi-formal workers in the European Union (EU), there is still limited understanding of what motivates workers to participate in these detrimental employment schemes, and why certain groups of workers exhibit higher inclination towards it. This article takes a novel approach by putting prospective envelope wage earners in the centre of this analysis.Design/methodology/approachData from the 2019 Special Eurobarometer on undeclared work are used, and two-level random intercept cumulative logit modelling is applied.FindingsOne in seven fully declared EU workers would have nothing against receiving one part of their wages off-the-books. Manual workers and individuals whose job assumes travelling are the most willing to accept such kind of remuneration, and the same applies to workers with low tax morale and those who perceive the risk of being detected and persecuted as very small. On the other hand, women, older individuals, married persons and employees from large enterprises express the smallest inclination towards envelope wages. The environment in which an individual operates also plays a non-negligible role as the quality of the pension system and the strength of social contract were also identified as significant determinants of workers' readiness to accept envelope wages.Originality/valueThis article fills in the gap in the literature by analysing what workers think about wage under-reporting and what factors drive their willingness to accept envelope wages.

Educating management accountants as business partners

2019 ◽  
Vol 16 (4) ◽  
pp. 517-541
Author(s):  
Morten Jakobsen ◽  
Falconer Mitchell ◽  
Hanne Nørreklit ◽  
Mihaela Trenca
Keyword(s):  
Teaching Practice ◽  
Management Accounting ◽  
Accounting Education ◽  
Business Practices ◽  
Business Partner ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Business Partners ◽  
Pragmatic Constructivism ◽  
Ability To Act ◽  
Management Accountants

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate a paradigmatic foundation for educators to prepare students of management accounting for the new demands of the role of trusted business partner in practice. Design/methodology/approach The paper argues for the use of pragmatic constructivism as a basis for development of a paradigmatic foundation for educating advanced students of management accounting. Furthermore, it contains an empirical insight through a case example of how pragmatic constructivism can be used as a pedagogical tool in different management accounting educational situations. Findings The analysis shows how pragmatic constructivism can be used as a less reductionist paradigm than realism to tackle the research-teaching-practice deficiencies found in conventional thinking on accounting education. Pragmatic constructivism is shown to provide important methodological and conceptual elements in developing, understanding and guiding the application of management accounting techniques in dynamic business practices. Placing an emphasis on teaching methodological skills relevant for management accountants is shown to have an important impact on students and their ability to act as business partners. Research limitations/implications The analysis is exploratory in the sense that a new paradigmatic framework for educating students of management accounting to be business partners is outlined and illustrated through its implementation in a specific master’s degree programme. However, this analysis should be viewed as only a first step towards developing pragmatic constructivism as a paradigmatic foundation for teaching management accounting as a basis for a business partner role. Originality/value The proposed use of research on pragmatic constructivism as a basis for management accounting education to support a future business partner role is novel in the literature on management accounting. The value of its application lies in its potential to create successful utilisation of the practices of management accounting.

scholarly journals What counts for quality in interdisciplinary accounting research in the next decade

2019 ◽  
Vol 32 (1) ◽  
pp. 2-25 ◽  
Author(s):  
James Guthrie ◽  
Lee D. Parker ◽  
John Dumay ◽  
Markus J. Milne
Keyword(s):  
Core Values ◽  
Research Quality ◽  
Journal Ranking ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Accounting Research ◽  
The Core ◽  
Citation Metrics ◽  
The Impact

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to reflect upon the focus and changing nature of measuring academic accounting research quality. The paper addresses contemporary changes in academic publishing, metrics for determining research quality and the possible impacts on accounting scholars. These are considered in relation to the core values of interdisciplinary accounting research ‒ that is, the pursuit of novel, rigorous, significant and authentic research motivated by a passion for scholarship, curiosity and solving wicked problems. The impact of changing journal rankings and research citation metrics on the traditional and highly valued role of the accounting academic is further considered. In this setting, the paper also provides a summary of the journal’s activities for 2018, and in the future. Design/methodology/approach Drawing on contemporary data sets, the paper illustrates the increasingly diverse and confusing array of “evidence” brought to bear on the question of the relative quality of accounting research. Commercial products used to rate and rank journals, and judge the academic impact of individual scholars and their papers not only offer insight and visibility, but also have the potential to misinform scholars and their assessors. Findings In the move from simple journal ranking lists to big data and citations, and increasingly to concerns with impact and engagement, the authors identify several challenges facing academics and administrators alike. The individual academic and his or her contribution to scholarship are increasingly marginalised in the name of discipline, faculty and institutional performance. A growing university performance management culture within, for example, the UK and Australasia, has reached a stage in the past decade where publication and citation metrics are driving allocations of travel grants, research grants, promotions and appointments. With an expanded range of available metrics and products to judge their worth, or have it judged for them, scholars need to be increasingly informed of the nuanced or not-so-nuanced uses to which these measurement systems will be put. Narrow, restricted and opaque peer-based sources such as journal ranking lists are now being challenged by more transparent citation-based sources. Practical implications The issues addressed in this commentary offer a critical understanding of contemporary metrics and measurement in determining the quality of interdisciplinary accounting research. Scholars are urged to reflect upon the challenges they face in a rapidly moving context. Individuals are increasingly under pressure to seek out preferred publication outlets, developing and curating a personal citation profile. Yet such extrinsic outcomes may come at the cost of the core values that motivate the interdisciplinary scholar and research. Originality/value This paper provides a forward-looking focus on the critical role of academics in interdisciplinary accounting research.

Management accounting and leadership construction in family firms

2017 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
pp. 189-207 ◽  
Author(s):  
Antonio Leotta ◽  
Carmela Rizza ◽  
Daniela Ruggeri
Keyword(s):  
Family Firms ◽  
Management Accounting ◽  
Active Role ◽  
Accounting Information System ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Four Dimensions ◽  
Solar Shading ◽  
Field Evidence ◽  
New Generation

Purpose Succession in family firms may determine the survival or the failure of the business itself. Management accounting literature has added little to this issue, mainly focusing on the process of succession and change (Songini et al., 2013; Giovannoni and Maraghini, 2013; Giovannoni et al., 2011). This study aims to deal with new management accounting (MA) practices that the junior generation may introduce during the process of succession. The aim of the study is to show that the introduction of new MA practices can contribute to constructing the leadership profile of the junior generation. Design/methodology/approach Drawing on the perspective of actor-reality construction (ARC), the authors conducted a case study at a small-sized family firm producing solar shading systems. The authors examined how the construction of the successor’s leadership derives from the integration of four dimensions of reality: facts, possibilities, values and communication. Such an integration is facilitated by the introduction of a new accounting information system and cost reporting. Findings The case evidence highlights that the construction of the new generation leadership may emerge as a consequence of the introduction of new MA practices. Moreover, the field evidence highlights that the construction of a new generation leadership is a process that integrates the four dimensions of reality. Originality/value From the emergent perspective of ARC, the paper highlights how new MA practices play an active role in constructing the new generation leadership.

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