The introduction of IFRS (International Financial Reporting Standards) in the EU in 2005 was perceived to be a major step towards greater global harmonisation of accounting leading to better comparability and uniformity of financial statements (Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu, 2005). However, prior literature suggests that there are significant national differences in de facto application of the international standards (Kvaal and Nobes, 2010; Krzywda and Schroeder, 2007). This thesis, supported with empirical data, contributes to knowledge by rejecting the argument commonly put forward by the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) and other policy setters that the adoption of IFRS will in itself be sufficient to achieve harmonisation of accounting practice. The research uses a case study of Poland to address three main research questions. Firstly, whether the accounting standards as promulgated by IASB (International Accounting Standards Board) have been fully adopted by Polish listed companies? Secondly, the thesis addresses the question that if Polish companies are not compliant with IFRS what are the reasons for the non-compliance? The thesis draws on the sociological perspective of new institutional theory as put forward by Meyer and Rowan (1977) and DiMaggio and Powell (1983) to explain the reasons for the deviation in accounting practice from IFRS in Poland. The response of the Polish companies to the external demands to adopt IFRS has been evaluated using the model developed by Oliver (1991) where responses may vary from full acquiescence to defiance. Thirdly the thesis addresses the question to what extent is new institutional theory adequate for explaining the motives driving the behaviour of various actors in the field of financial reporting? The study contributes to knowledge by linking institutional theory to organisational behaviour and accounting practice in a transition economy in a novel and previously unexplored way in order to gain a better understanding of the role of accounting in Poland. The study of Poland provides a particularly insightful and novel approach for the study because Poland is a post-communist economy and so its national institutional orientation is significantly different to the Anglo-Saxon origins of IFRS. Poland is also a recent entrant to EU and so the interaction of communist legacy with market orientation allows better understanding of the institutional and economic factors that shape accounting. The thesis maintains that financial reports produced by Polish companies are rationalised ‘myths’ due to the largely ceremonial adoption of IFRS. Furthermore, the quality of accounting is affected by various competing institutional forces. The thesis makes a contribution to the theory by challenging the narrow perspective of mainstream new institutional theory which focuses on the homogeneity and permanency of existing practices. In contrast this research focuses on the dynamic conflict between the existing structures and new regulatory pressures that lead to the breakdown of old institutional arrangements. In particular the study addresses two aspects of institutional theory that have been neglected in prior research. Firstly, drawing on Lounsbury (2008) the notion of multiple logics and therefore different concepts of rationality have been mobilised to explain variation in accounting practice. Secondly, the role of power and conflict are used to explain the current institutional arrangements in Poland and the changing role of the accountancy profession (Lawrence, 2008). In adopting the power and multiple logics perspectives, which are not addressed in the earlier seminal works, a better insight has been gained into the heterogeneity of organisations rather than accepting the notions of order and stability. Using institutional perspective it is argued that companies are failing to comply fully with IFRS because they face a multiplicity of expectations arising from different institutional origins. Their strategic response to these pressures is to ‘compromise’ to satisfy the competing demands of the accounting profession, investors and the tax authorities. The power and resource dependency constructs were also utilised to explain how major firms of accountants attempt to penetrate the existing accounting structures in Poland and so influence the role that accounting plays in Poland. The analysis also highlights the tensions between the various bodies and the impact that has on company reporting. In particular both the state and other stakeholders utilise a common set of financial statements and the extent to which they meet the objectives of each user group is explained using the power construct. Following call by (Suddaby, 2010) and DiMaggio (1985) for greater research focus on actions at actor level this research considers individual organisational responses to the requirement to introduce IFRS into Polish accounting framework. The thesis finds that that Polish companies will change their established practices in response to the external influences and their actions are rationally determined based on different logics and the relative influence of coercive forces which either promote or hinder change. The research has found that in Poland coercive pressure was the primary mechanism for achieving isomorphism whilst prior literature indicates that in market economies mimetic mechanism was far more important. This coercive mechanism was particularly potent due to the strong influence of the state which was a legacy of the communist system leading to weak accountancy profession. In contrast, increasing influence of the global accountancy firms and EU regulation are forcing the changes to the accounting regulation, governance structures and education of accountants in Poland. The research finds that in spite of the fact that all companies examined purport to comply with IFRS there are significant deviations in de facto compliance. The findings provide strong evidence of decoupling through superficial compliance. Organisations are not however decoupling in a uniform manner but appear to selectively decide on areas where they comply or not. In particular lack of compliance with disclosure requirements appear to be related to cultural characteristics of secrecy and power distance which were prevalent in the communist era. Research confirms that companies compromise by making explicit statement of compliance with IFRS whilst in many cases failing to meet the spirit of IFRS in failing to fully provide useful information for the stakeholders. Even where there is compliance the introduction of IFRS has not improved uniformity due to the use of alternative treatments permissible under IFRS. The research utilises a mixed methodology to gain a deeper understanding of the complexity of the factors implicated in shaping of accounting. In order to identify the level of compliance with IFRS published financial data for 2005 for 40 Polish companies that are listed on the Warsaw Stock Exchange is analysed and then explained with in-depth interviews held with representatives of the institutions implicated in the study. The differences between Polish accounting regulation and IFRS were measured using comparability index first proposed by Gray (1980).

This thesis consists of three self-contained studies on economic consequences of accounting standards. The first study jointly examines the informational value of pension liability recognition mandated in France under IFRS and its effect on firms’ financing decisions. We argue that changes in pension accounting information have affected firms’ required cost of capital and/or investing decisions. Consistent with our hypothesis, we find that changes in financial leverage in the adoption period are negatively related to the surprise component of IFRS pension liability for financially constrained firms, suggesting that despite the existence of informational transfers from early adopters of IAS 19, universal mandatory adoption carries incremental informational content. The second study investigates the performance of the accounting comparability measure introduced in De Franco, Kothari and Verdi (2011). Using Monte Carlo simulations we show that the design of the DKV measure introduces unnecessary variation in estimated cross- firm and period comparability; and further that it cannot successfully identify comparable accounting systems when accounting incorporates information in returns with a lag, particularly so when firms differ in terms of their cost of capital. We suggest the inclusion of lag returns as explanatory variables in the original earnings-return relation in order to increase the measure’s ability to rank firms based on accounting comparability. The third study examines comparability and relevance of published IFRS financial statements, by examining the magnitude and nature of cross-country analyst pro-forma adjustments. We find evidence that accounting earnings comparability is increased among IFRS adopters, but the degree to which real economic performance is captured in accounting earnings still varies considerably across countries. Our analysis also indicates that IFRS adoption increased street adjustments, but less so in countries already requiring high level of disclosures. Finally, we find that analysts adjust reported earnings for fair valuing of financial instruments and expensing of research costs.

Researchers have long called for broader perspectives of performance evaluation style (Ferreira and Otley, 2009; Noeverman and Koene, 2005; Hartmann, 2000; Vagneur and Peiperl, 2000). Trust is relevant to performance evaluation and meaningful to other aspects of management control. However, little research exists on the relationship between trust and aspects of management control (Hartmann & Slapnicar, 2009; Noeverman, 2007). The primary purpose of this thesis is to explore the linkage between trust and performance evaluation style from a multidimensional perspective. Evaluation style encompasses perceptions of use at three stages of the evaluation process (i.e. target-setting, evaluating, and rewarding). Similarly, trust encompasses perceptions of beliefs about self, beliefs about other, and behavioural outcomes in the superior-subordinate relationship. This thesis reports on a field study conducted within subsidiaries of two multinational firms in the financial services industry. The study of trust and performance evaluation style followed an innovative middle range research approach. Using vignettes and probing questions in semi-structured in-depth interviews, meanings around the constructs of trust and performance evaluation style were elicited. Such a multidimensional context-specific perspective answers calls for further development within both literatures, and therefore contributes to a better theoretical understanding of how evaluation style is linked to trust. The results of the research project reveal a bi-directional association between trust and performance evaluation style. In so doing, it highlights contributions towards further theory development through relating performance evaluation style as influential to trust, and likewise, trust as influential to performance evaluation style. Moreover, trust and performance evaluation style can be both complements and substitutes. A theoretical matrix is also developed which provides useful insight into the potential linkages. Additionally, this thesis shows the importance of context and functional role in defining individual perceptions on trust and evaluation style.

The objectives of the thesis are: (1) to contribute to the literature on the issue of accountability in public sector organisations in a developing country; and (2) to explore the relationship between accountability theory and accountability aspects implemented and reflected in a developing country. There are three general research questions: How is accountability as defined in a western context reflected by public sector organisations in a developing country?; How do government departments in a developing country implement accountability?; and How does the experience of implementation in a developing country help us think about theories of accountability? In order to achieve these objectives, this thesis explores accountability in the Thai public sector with a particular focus on Thai government departments. It is motivated by the implementation of public sector reform in Thailand and the promulgation of the Royal Decree on Criteria and Procedures for Good Governance B.E. 2546 (2003) following the Asian Economic Crisis in 1997 in order to recover Thailand from the crisis and to enhance accountability in operations. From the literature review, a practical guideline, based on four concepts of accountability in practice, is developed for conducting interviews, and an analytical framework of coding schemes is developed for analysing the interview data. There are two main empirical parts. The first part is an interview-based case study, where semi-structured interviews were conducted, while the second examines communications in the public domain, where the content analysis was conducted. The implementation of the aspects of accountability from western society does not lead to the creation of an entirely new system. It helps people in society to realise what they had in the past and clarifies the aspects of accountability that should be implemented. To enhance accountability in government departments, some improvement is needed. There are some factors such as cultural perspectives, incentives, motivations, pressures, systems, and organisational culture that influence the accountability relationship. The contribution is (1) to discuss the literature on accountability issues in a developing country and (2) to link the findings with accountability theory in the public sector in a developing country. The findings show that the understanding of the aspects of accountability, the focus on types of accountability, qualification and educational training, and cultural perspectives, including motivations and incentives of accountors and accountees, affect the accountability relationship and how a developing country implements accountability.

Pressures for the harmonisation of accounting practice in Cameroon arose out of UDEAC Acts which had already been incorporated into Cameroon law and required all companies in the Anglophone and Francophone provinces of the country to adopt the OCAM Plan, a variant of the continental European uniform accounting systems. The aim of this study is threefold: (i) to assess whether or not the characteristic features of the OCAM Plan are compatible with indigenous cultural values; (ii) to investigate the implementation problems associated with the OCAM Plan; and (iii) an inquiry into the factors which affect compliance with the Plan's extensive mandatory disclosures by domestic and transnational companies. The research design involved some degree of triangulation - i.e. both qualitative (case study) and positivist (questionnaire survey) modes of inquiry were used to study the same problem. The findings of the case studies and questionnaire survey indicate a broad dichotomy between the accounting values of the Anglophones on the one hand and those of the Francophones on the other. These results led to the conclusion that, by and large, the advantages or disadvantages of the OCAM Plan are not absolute as suggested in the literature. Rather, the way in which individuals of different backgrounds perceive its pros and cons seem largely dependent on their own accounting sub-culture values. Overall, the results indicate that the design of the Plan is more positively in tune with the accounting values of the French/Francophone Cameroonian groups than those of their Anglo-American/Anglophone Cameroonian counterparts. Whilst this appears inconsistent with the linkage between accounting and societal values postulated by Gray (1988) and the cultural determinism models enunciated by some scholars (e.g. Perera, 1989; Belkaoui, 1990; Belkaoui and Picur, 1991), the mismatch was explained in terms of some ecological and institutional influences within a cybernetic paradigm. (Now unrestricted)

In the context of a changing world, and faced with a scientific analysis that unequivocally links corporate activity with climactic changes which might threaten humankind, any study of financial reporting needs to be placed in perspective. If the science is correct, then it is the contention of this thesis that capital market activity is complicit in the destruction of the Earth’s biosphere and that accounting, in terms of the rules that govern corporate activity and the financial reporting, is an essential link in this chain. Previous research has sought to demonstrate links among social disclosure, social performance and financial performance and this thesis seeks to extend that literature by conducting two further studies, not to aid investors in their quest for further abnormal returns, but to understand the potential for financial markets to contribute to responsible business practice and the quest for sustainable development. The first study was a statistical examination of the relationships between social and environmental disclosures and market performance of the UK’s largest companies. It utilised longitudinal and cross-sectional data over a 10 year period and was tested for linear and non-linear relationships. As expected, no direct relationship between share returns and social disclosure was detected but, on further examination, the longitudinal data revealed a relationship between consistently high (or low) returns and a predisposition to high (or low) disclosure. The second study was a qualitative, interview based inquiry into what companies report in terms of social and environmental information and how markets gather and utilise that information. Senior executives from twelve FTSE companies were interviewed to gain an understanding of why this practice had grown so significantly over the last two decades, who their intended audience might be and the place such information had in their interactions with capital markets. Thereafter, senior executives from three Mutual Assurance Companies were interviewed to seek an understanding of the nature of information they required, and upon which their investment decisions were based. The findings of this study confirmed that social and environmental issues are of limited interest to markets except where they can be identified as relevant in terms of risk or governance. It also confirmed that there is a strong PR motivation in releasing social and environmental reports, which has little to do with improving social performance. On the market side there was confirmation that financial returns, even in ethical funds, were the main driver behind portfolio selection. The rather depressing conclusion from these studies is that serious moral and ethical issues are eschewed by companies and markets alike, where the focus remains on short-term performance measures.

The English brewing trade continues to be of social and economic significance having played an important cultural role well into the 21st century. It was, albeit it in 18th century London, initially at the forefront of the British Industrial Revolution. This required unprecedented levels of capital investment to finance the porter breweries that proved highly profitable and created long lasting brewing family dynasties such as Whitbread. This pattern was replicated in provincial 19th century England supported by an effective transport infrastructure, which led to the formation of national companies such as Bass Ratcliffe and Gretton at Burton upon Trent Staffordshire. Although the brewing sector has been covered in several trade and individual brewing company narrative histories the role of brewery management and particularly the role of accounting in the management process has remained a `mystery' (Gourvish and Wilson 1994: 397). The brewery accounting agenda has also been absent from the accounting history debates without any substantive academic work having been devoted to this important industry. The thesis has been constructed within a disciplinary framework, which has been derived from the work of the French philosopher and historian of thought Michel Foucault (1977), and developed further by the leading Foucauldian accounting historians Hoskin (1993), Hoskin and Macve (1986) and Loft (1986). Modern discipline is perceived as a duality of knowledge and power, which is exercised through disciplinary processes whereby performance and behaviour is conditioned by strategies of power. This becomes an omnipresent web of power relations which are the micro-physics of power within which Foucauldian accounting historians include the accounting discipline. This disciplinary approach is used here to explore accounting as an historical process in the English brewing industry from 1700 until 1939 as a management tool in the decision making process. Arguably this disciplinary approach will provide a body of historical accounting knowledge where none currently exists and also examine the robustness of the Foucauldian paradigm within this particular industrial context. It will be shown that this approach unsuccessfully explains accountings role within the English brewing industry between 1700 and 1939.

The thesis takes a disciplinary approach derived from the work of Foucault (1977), but further developed by Hoskin (1993) and Hoskin and Macve (1986), to emphasise how disciplinarity has a double positive meaning as knowledge and power. Modern disciplinarity is produced through the exercise of certain key 'disciplinary practices', in particular those of writing, examining and grading, which engender both the modern forms of powerful expert knowledge and the application of expertise-based power to the forming of humans as individuals and populations. This disciplinary approach is used here to re-theorise the study of professionalisation as a historical process, and the constitution of professionals as powerful individuals through qualification in knowledge-powerful professions. The growth of the ACCA is studied as an exercise in disciplinarity, in part because it constitutes such an anomaly for the jurisdictional approach developed by Abbott (1988). It has staked a successful claim to professional independence and now claims to be the largest global professional accountancy body. The study traces the history of the ACCA's development through four major stages of growth. At inception, the ACCA's founder bodies set up an examination-based education and training system like that of the chartered bodies, but with expedient differences, e.g. no requirement for articles or to work in practice. Later various ways of becoming 'more disciplinary' were developed, including the use of more active forms of pedagogy in exam-preparation, and expanding institutional linkages with colleges and then universities. While status differences survived, the ACCA became increasingly undifferentiable from the old chartered bodies. The ACCA capitalised on this lack of difference to grow the organisation. At the same time, it has bought into the higher-level disciplinary knowledge that accounting has become, and now examines potential entrants on that knowledge, and maintains its jurisdictional space on that basis.

This thesis addresses the following research questions: 1. How is the process of corporate tax compliance changing for large groups of companies? 2. How is this process being managed by the Inland Revenue? The empirical evidence consists of 33 interviews conducted in 2002-04 with IR officials; tax directors and tax managers of large corporates; and tax partners from a Big 4 accounting firm. This· thesis also draws upon archival data including state papers and documentary data from the IR. Theoretically this thesis draws from the new public management, administration, and the tax compliance literatures. However I argue that an approach grounded purely i!1 these literatures does not adequately explain the changing tax compliance environment for large groups. Therefore I utilise other literatures which draw 'on Foucault's work on multiple expertise constructing subjects engaging with disciplinary knowledge and power, to assist in filling this gap. Against a backdrop where new organisational structures and processes are shifting a once bureaucratic Inland Revenue to a more strategic and marketing-based organisation, the corporate tax compliance process for large corporates has changed. Where the process was previously a long (in terms of time scale), formal and distant relationship with the IR carried out principally in writing, it has, while retaining aspects of this past, shifted towards being a mixture of the written and the oral, generating a more incll;lSive dialogue with the taxpayer, frequently in the form of meetings based on targeted yet potentially open-ended questioning. This has opened up what is described here as a new kind of 'truth game', which is less one based on inquisitorial practices but more based on examination techniques, played by knowledge experts: the IR official and the corporate taxpayer. Drawing on a governmentality framework as articulated by Foucault and his latter works, I argue that the nature of the corporate tax compliance game resembles a truth game between two kinds of subject generated in this transdisciplinary world: the new shape tax official and the visible customer (the taxpayer). The IR official - the lIM Inspector of Taxes, has been remoulded from one type of knowledge expert to another, which is a 3 dimensional transdisciplinary T shaped tax official. This is a tax official who both has the detailed deep technical knowledge as a knowledge expert but also has to relate, in a broader sense, to the new way of operating in a strategic and marketing organisation. The emergence of the corporate taxpayer as a visible customer has changed the process of corporate tax compliance for large corporates whereby they exercise certain power in the relationship by virtue ofthis visibility. This research tracks a new kind of interaction of the interplay between subjectivization and objectivization which seems to have become established and develops a theoretically informed way of looking at emergent governmental and more wide ranging forms of application.

This study provides evidence on accounting conservatism based on a large sample of publicly-quoted UK companies over the period 1969-2001. The effects of conservation accounting are studied both indirectly and directly by using earnings measures containing varying levels of accruals and by further decomposing earnings into its operating cash flows and distinct accruals components. The analyses are also separated according to the sign of earnings and earnings components, and account for the effects of asset-recognition rules. Even though conservatism is an accruals phenomenon, this is the first study to provide direct empirical evidence on the role of accruals in accounting conservatism. The thesis addresses the following issues. First, under conservative accounting, earnings-decreasing changes in performance measures (reflecting economic losses) that contain more accruals mean-revert more and earnings-increasing changes (reflecting economic gains) are persistent. Working capital accruals and special items are particularly strongly mean-reverting when they are earnings-decreasing. Depreciation accruals are persistent. Second, direct tests by earnings components show that operating cash flows exhibit low timeliness overall and, given that they contain no accruals, no asymmetry in reflecting bad news. Earnings figures with more accruals exhibit more asymmetry in reflecting bad news. Working capital accruals and special items are important in this asymmetry, but depreciation is not. Interestingly, good news results in a small earnings-decreasing charge, consistent with smoothing. Lagged tests on accruals reveal that bad news from as much as three previous periods is reflected in current earnings through special items, inconsistent with conservatism. Evidence indicates that conservatism is increasing through time. The sensitivity to good news has decreased over time. To capture these changes, higher-moments measures are developed. Third, the analysis by the sign of “bottom-line” earnings does not reveal any differences in reflecting good/bad news for the profit/loss firms. Separating earnings observations by sign of cash flow also reveals no differences. In contrast, separating observations by the sign of accruals (other than depreciation) reliably shows that the asymmetric timeliness is significantly higher in the negative-accruals groups, as expected. The accruals components determine this asymmetry, rather than the operating cash flow (or, earnings by itself). Finally, less conservative recognition rules lead to stronger responsiveness of earnings to bad news, as reflected in working capital accruals and special items. Asset-specific measures of conservative recognition rules reinforce these findings. A puzzling result is that operating cash flows reveal a significant asymmetric response to bad news in the group of observations where it is least-likely to be observed (low book to market). A selection of other results by size, industry, extremity of news, methods, accounting year-ends, market-wide returns, yields, method of estimation, etc., not only corroborates, but generally strengthens the results obtained.