In recent years, there has been a global trend of adopting International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). In 2011, Canada joined this trend by implementing mandatory IFRS adoption for publicly traded firms. Proponents of IFRS adoption claim that it will benefit investors by improving comparability and transparency of firms. At the same time, research on family firms has seen increasing focus. Because of family ties to the firm, family firms can exhibit different motivations, behaviours and performance than do non-family firms. In this research, I attempt to gain insight on the effects of IFRS adoption for a unique set of firms, namely publicly traded family firms by examining the effect of IFRS adoption on earnings informativeness. Although previous literature examines the economic consequences of IFRS adoption, my study is the first to my knowledge that examines IFRS adoption effects on the unique set of family firms. I run a pooled regression to examine the effects of IFRS adoption on earnings informativeness. I find that IFRS adoption by Canadian family firms is associated with a statistically significant higher level of earnings informativeness. The findings of this research could have implications for standard setters, minority shareholders of family firms, and academic researchers.

This dissertation consists of three separate, but related, studies on the institutionalization of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). The first study examines the relationship between the national variables and the level of IFRS adoption. Theoretical insights regarding the level of national IFRS adoption come from the world-level institutional theory (Meyer et. al., 1997). Archival data are utilized for the study. The findings indicate that countries with weaker national governance structures and lower economic development demonstrate the highest level of commitment to IFRS. Nationalism was found to influence the extent of adoption. The study contributes to IFRS adoption literature by recognizing the multi-level possibilities of IFRS adoption and discovering the factors that drive the degree of IFRS adoption on a national level. The second study examines the ongoing change in the U.S. accounting regulation related to IFRS. The specific event investigated is an historic ruling by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) made in 2007 to accept IFRS filings from foreign issuers. This move toward acceptance of IFRS by the primary U.S. regulator is of academic interest because it represents an opportunity to study regulatory institutional change. The event is analyzed using a qualitative study of the rhetoric found in the comment letters submitted to the SEC. The following theoretical frameworks were used to interpret the qualitative findings: a model of institutional change (Greenwood et. al., 2002), the role of rhetoric in legitimating institutional change (Suddaby & Greenwood, 2005), and the agents of change model (Djelic & Quack, 2003b). The conversation of opponents and proponents through the comment letters revealed the struggle of the participants to legitimize their positions. As expected, rhetorical themes associated with the moral and pragmatic legitimacy of their positions were utilized. Unexpectedly, the shifting site of regulation and the related power of SEC were troubling for proponents and opponents of the change. The study contributes to transnational accounting regulation literature in a number of ways. It presents a synthesis of different theoretical perspectives to investigate institutional change in accounting regulation. It also deepens the understanding of how institutional change is theorized by evaluating the rhetoric of domestic, foreign, and transnational participants. The third study evaluates the diffusion of IFRS in developing countries, using the specific case of Russia. The study investigates whether individual perceptions of various aspects of financial reporting and reforms are associated with IFRS adoption. Particularly of interest is whether there are differences between voluntary adopters and those for which adoption was mandated. The data were obtained from a 2007 survey exploring Russia's transition to IFRS. In general, adopters had a more positive view of transition toward IFRS and financial reforms in Russia. Further, the perceptions of reforms by adopters did not vary based on whether the adoption was required by a national or a foreign mandate. The study contributes both theoretically and empirically to the literature on IFRS in developing countries. Taken together, these three studies focus on issues that have not been addressed previously in the accounting literature. They will advance the international accounting literature on factors related to IFRS adoption, regulations, and influences.

Desde 2010, os bancos brasileiros são obrigados a publicar suas demonstrações financeiras anuais consolidadas em dois padrões contábeis diferentes, COSIF e IFRS. Este estudo buscou conhecer e apontar impactos do peculiar processo de adoção dos bancos brasileiros ao IFRS, tanto sob o ponto de vista de quem fornece as informações, quanto dos investidores. Para tanto, buscou-se inicialmente conhecer a população brasileira de bancos e quais as mudanças divulgadas em suas demonstrações financeiras. Por meio de uma análise comparativa das demonstrações financeiras, foram encontradas diferenças entre os valores publicados em praticamente todas as contas das DREs das instituições e com uma aparente independência entre as decisões de reclassificação uma vez que ocorreram em amplitudes e sentidos diferentes. Por meio de uma amostra de 16 bancos, observou-se que o Lucro Líquido apresentado em IFRS foi menor em nove e o Patrimônio Líquido aumentou em 14 bancos. Pela ótica dosinvestidores (usuários externos da informação) o impacto foi mensurado por meio de variações de valor de mercado e de um estudo de evento. Os resultados do estudo de evento evidenciaram a existência de retornos anormais acumulados (CAR) entre -16,9% e +12,5%, sugerindo que a adoção de IFRS foi Value Relevant. O relacionamento entre as variáveis foi obtido por meio de uma matriz de correlações de Spearman e indica que o mercado reagiu em sentido inverso ao risco, com correlação de -0,89. A reação do mercado foi mensurada pelo CAR e o risco pelos betas. Esta correlação fornece indícios de que o mercado reagiu mais negativamente a instituições de maior risco. Logo, pode-se supor que o novo padrão contábil apresentou informações que podem ter aumentado a percepção dos investidores ao risco. / Since 2010, Brazilian banks are required to publish their consolidated financial statements in accounting standards: IFRS and COSIF. This study aims to know and point impacts of particular adoption process of Brazilian banks to IFRS, both from the point of view of who provides the information and investors. It sought to know the population of Brazilian banks and the changes disclosed in its financial statements. The results showed differences between the values published in all accounts of Income Statement, in all institutions, with rare exceptions, and an apparent independence of the reclassification decisions as they occurred in different directions and amplitudes. Given a sample of 16 banks, net income presented in accordance with IFRS was lower in nine and equity increased by 14. From the standpoint of investors (external users of information) impact was measured through changes in market value and an event study. The results of the event study indicated the existence of cumulative abnormal returns between -16.9% and +12.5%, suggesting evidence that the adoption of IFRS was Value Relevant. The relationship between variables was obtained from a matrix of Spearman and showed evidence that the market reacted to the risk in reverse, with a correlation of -0.89. Market reaction was measured by the CAR and risk betas. This correlation points to evidence that the market reacted more negatively the greater the risk, where one can assume that the new accounting standard may have increased investors\' perception of risk.

Desde 2010, os bancos brasileiros são obrigados a publicar suas demonstrações financeiras anuais consolidadas em dois padrões contábeis diferentes, COSIF e IFRS. Este estudo buscou conhecer e apontar impactos do peculiar processo de adoção dos bancos brasileiros ao IFRS, tanto sob o ponto de vista de quem fornece as informações, quanto dos investidores. Para tanto, buscou-se inicialmente conhecer a população brasileira de bancos e quais as mudanças divulgadas em suas demonstrações financeiras. Por meio de uma análise comparativa das demonstrações financeiras, foram encontradas diferenças entre os valores publicados em praticamente todas as contas das DREs das instituições e com uma aparente independência entre as decisões de reclassificação uma vez que ocorreram em amplitudes e sentidos diferentes. Por meio de uma amostra de 16 bancos, observou-se que o Lucro Líquido apresentado em IFRS foi menor em nove e o Patrimônio Líquido aumentou em 14 bancos. Pela ótica dosinvestidores (usuários externos da informação) o impacto foi mensurado por meio de variações de valor de mercado e de um estudo de evento. Os resultados do estudo de evento evidenciaram a existência de retornos anormais acumulados (CAR) entre -16,9% e +12,5%, sugerindo que a adoção de IFRS foi Value Relevant. O relacionamento entre as variáveis foi obtido por meio de uma matriz de correlações de Spearman e indica que o mercado reagiu em sentido inverso ao risco, com correlação de -0,89. A reação do mercado foi mensurada pelo CAR e o risco pelos betas. Esta correlação fornece indícios de que o mercado reagiu mais negativamente a instituições de maior risco. Logo, pode-se supor que o novo padrão contábil apresentou informações que podem ter aumentado a percepção dos investidores ao risco. / Since 2010, Brazilian banks are required to publish their consolidated financial statements in accounting standards: IFRS and COSIF. This study aims to know and point impacts of particular adoption process of Brazilian banks to IFRS, both from the point of view of who provides the information and investors. It sought to know the population of Brazilian banks and the changes disclosed in its financial statements. The results showed differences between the values published in all accounts of Income Statement, in all institutions, with rare exceptions, and an apparent independence of the reclassification decisions as they occurred in different directions and amplitudes. Given a sample of 16 banks, net income presented in accordance with IFRS was lower in nine and equity increased by 14. From the standpoint of investors (external users of information) impact was measured through changes in market value and an event study. The results of the event study indicated the existence of cumulative abnormal returns between -16.9% and +12.5%, suggesting evidence that the adoption of IFRS was Value Relevant. The relationship between variables was obtained from a matrix of Spearman and showed evidence that the market reacted to the risk in reverse, with a correlation of -0.89. Market reaction was measured by the CAR and risk betas. This correlation points to evidence that the market reacted more negatively the greater the risk, where one can assume that the new accounting standard may have increased investors\' perception of risk.

No description available.

Cette thèse étudie les effets économiques, en termes d’instabilité, de l’adoption obligatoire par les banques des normes comptables internationales IAS/IFRS. La thèse est organisée en deux grandes parties. La première partie (Chapitre I) développe un cadre d’analyse permettant de comprendre les mécanismes par le biais desquels l’introduction obligatoire des normes IAS/IFRS dans le secteur bancaire est susceptible d’influer sur la probabilité de survenance des crises systémiques. À ce stade, nous montrons que des arguments, tant contractuels qu’informationnels, peuvent être mobilisés, en vue de justifier l’hypothèse d’une incidence positive ou négative du passage aux normes IAS/IFRS sur le risque d’instabilité. La deuxième partie de la thèse (Chapitres II, III et IV) présente trois études empiriques, fondées sur des échantillons de banques européennes, en lien avec certaines thématiques évoquées dans le cadre de la première partie. Les résultats de ces études, plus particulièrement, indiquent : (1) que les banques ont amélioré la couverture en capitaux propres de leurs risques, suite au passage aux normes IAS/IFRS, en raison d’un exercice plus efficace de la discipline de marché en environnement IFRS ; (2) que les banques contraintes en liquidité (et seulement ces banques) ont offert plus de crédits, suite à l’adoption des normes IAS/IFRS, en raison d’un accès facilité aux ressources externes en environnement IFRS ; (3) que la comptabilité en juste valeur ne contribue pas à dégrader le pouvoir explicatif d’un modèle de risque de défaut des banques fondé sur des variables financières. Ces résultats, qui vont globalement dans le sens d’une incidence positive du passage obligatoire aux normes IAS/IFRS sur la stabilité des banques, tendent à tempérer les critiques formulées à l’encontre du référentiel comptable international, en arrière-plan de la récente crise bancaire mondiale. / In this thesis, we study the economic consequences, in terms of instability, of the mandatory IAS/IFRS adoption in the banking industry. The thesis is organized as follows. In a first part (Chapter I), we develop a theoretical framework whose purpose is to understand the mechanisms through which the mandatory IAS/IFRS adoption by banks may influence the probability of occurrence of a banking crisis. At this stage, we show that several arguments, derived from the contractual and informational perspectives of accounting, can be mobilized in order to justify the hypothesis that the mandatory IAS/IFRS adoption has a positive or a negative influence on banking stability. The second part of the thesis (Chapters II, III, IV) propose three empirical studies, based on samples of European banks, related to some of the issues discussed in the first part. The results of these studies indicate that: (1) banks have improved capital adequacy following the IAS/IFRS adoption, due to a better market discipline in an IFRS environment; (2) banks constrained in liquidity (and only these banks) have increased their credit supply following the IAS/IFRS adoption, due to an easier access to external resources in an IFRS environment; (3) fair value accounting does not contribute to degrade the explanatory power of a default risk model based on accounting variables. These results, consistent with a positive influence of the IAS/IFRS adoption on bank stability, tend to moderate the criticisms expressed against IFRS accounting standards, in the background of the recent global banking crisis.

In this paper we studied the effect of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) on audit fees in Sweden. Using a classic audit fee model, with data between 2001-2019 for 100 publicly traded Swedish firms we studied the effects of IFRS on audit fees during the implementation period as well as the long-term effects of IFRS adoption. In addition to this we investigated if the adoption of IFRS affected large and small firms differently. In contrast to most previous literature, we found that the implementation of IFRS has not had any short- or long-term effects on audit fees in Sweden. However, we found small indications that changes in audit fees are lower for large firms after the implementation of IFRS but the model’s explanatory factor was low and the effect small so no definitive conclusions could be made. The results remain the same after performing several robustness tests.

In 2010, Brazil completed the convergence towards the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). As the politics of this process has been little explored, the objective of this thesis is to investigate how the field of accounting regulation was reconstituted during the convergence. Relying on the Bourdieusian concepts of field, capital and habitus, the analysis of accounting regulation in Brazil is split into two phases: firstly, the field as of the early-2000s is mapped through a literature review that identifies its main institutional agents. From the early-2000s on, when the discussions about the creation of a private standard-setter began, the linguistic habitus associated to the field is mapped through discursive analyses of several archival data, including parliamentary proceedings and documents issued by institutional agents that operate in the field. This investigation indicates that the constitution of the field was driven by a relationship of accommodation between the State and the accountancy profession. During the 1970s, an interpretative community linked to the capital markets was consolidated, including financial sector regulators and segments of the professional and academic fields, that issued and disseminated Anglo-American inspired accounting standards framed by a decision-usefulness approach. In opposition, during the 1980s the Federal Council of Accounting (Conselho Federal de Contabilidade - CFC) started to dispute the primacy within the field, issuing accounting standards framed by a discourse of scientificity that preserved the Continental-European influence on Brazilian accounting. From the early-2000s on, the efforts to approve the legislative reforms necessary for the adoption of the IFRS were characterised by a high level of discursive homogeneity: it was claimed that such an adoption would enhance the transparency, comprehensibility, comparability and reliability of the financial reports of Brazilian firms, attracting foreign investments and promoting the economic development of the country. However, none of these claims was supported by substantive empirical evidences. Initially, the CFC opposed the creation of a private standard-setter, claiming that it would undermine the self-regulation of the accountancy profession. In October 2005, though, the CFC itself created the Committee of Accounting Pronouncements (Comitê de Pronunciamentos Contábeis - CPC), apparently solving the conflict that had structured the field until then. The influence of taxation on Brazilian accounting practices played a pivotal role in this process, as a common adversary that justified the alliance between the CFC and the capital market pole. As the CPC frames itself as only a translator and interpreter of the IFRS, the field as a whole is not a space of power anymore, given that substantive decisions in the standard-setting process are not made in Brazil. Nevertheless, some regulators still challenge CPC\'s hegemony, requiring firms under their jurisdictions to prepare and disclose alternative sets of accounts. Contributing for a deeper understanding about the role of local agents in the adoption of the IFRS, this thesis suggests that in Brazil this process was conducted by an interpretative community constituted some decades ago, whose agents exchanged the symbolic capital they previously possessed for the economic capital they earned through the expansion of the market for accounting services. / Em 2010, o Brasil completou a convergência para as Normas Internacionais de Relatório Financeiro (International Financial Reporting Standards - IFRS). Como a política deste processo tem sido pouco explorada, o objetivo desta tese é investigar como o campo da regulação contábil foi reconstituído durante a convergência. Baseando-se nos conceitos bourdieusianos de campo, capital e habitus, a análise da regulação contábil no Brasil é dividida em duas fases: primeiramente, o campo no início dos anos 2000 é mapeado através de revisão de literatura que identifica seus principais agentes institucionais. A partir do início dos anos 2000, quando as discussões sobre a criação de normatizador privado começaram, o habitus linguístico associado ao campo é mapeado através de análises discursivas de vários dados de arquivo, incluindo arquivos parlamentares e documentos emitidos por agentes institucionais que operam no campo. Essa investigação indica que a constituição do campo foi conduzida por uma relação de acomodação entre o Estado e a profissão contábil. Durante a década de 1970, consolidou-se uma comunidade interpretativa ligada aos mercados de capitais, incluindo reguladores do setor financeiro e segmentos dos campos profissional e acadêmico, que emitia e divulgava padrões contábeis de inspiração anglo-americana, moldados por uma abordagem de utilidade para decisão. Em oposição, durante a década de 1980 o Conselho Federal de Contabilidade (CFC) começou a disputar a primazia no campo, emitindo padrões contábeis moldados por um discurso de cientificidade que preservava a influência europeia continental na contabilidade brasileira. A partir do início dos anos 2000, os esforços para aprovar as reformas legislativas necessárias para a adoção das IFRS caracterizaram-se por alto nível de homogeneidade discursiva: Alegava-se que tal adoção aumentaria a transparência, compreensibilidade, comparabilidade e confiabilidade dos relatórios financeiros das empresas brasileiras, atraindo investimentos estrangeiros e promovendo o desenvolvimento econômico do país. No entanto, nenhuma dessas alegações era apoiada por evidências empíricas substantivas. Inicialmente, o CFC se opôs à criação de um normatizador privado, alegando que isso debilitaria a autorregulação da profissão contábil. Em outubro de 2005, porém, o próprio CFC criou o Comitê de Pronunciamentos Contábeis (CPC), aparentemente resolvendo o conflito que havia estruturado o campo até então. A influência da tributação nas práticas contábeis brasileiras desempenhou papel central nesse processo, como um adversário comum que justificou a aliança entre o CFC e o polo do mercado de capitais. Como o CPC enquadra a si próprio apenas como tradutor e intérprete das IFRS, o campo como um todo não é mais um espaço de poder, dado que decisões substantivas no processo de normatização não são tomadas no Brasil. No entanto, alguns reguladores ainda desafiam a hegemonia do CPC, exigindo que as empresas sob suas jurisdições preparem e divulguem demonstrativos contábeis alternativos. Contribuindo para uma compreensão mais profunda sobre o papel de agentes locais na adoção das IFRS, esta tese sugere que no Brasil esse processo foi conduzido por uma comunidade interpretativa constituída há algumas décadas, cujos agentes trocaram o capital simbólico que possuíam anteriormente pelo capital econômico que obtiveram através da expansão do mercado de serviços contábeis.

In 2010, Brazil completed the convergence towards the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). As the politics of this process has been little explored, the objective of this thesis is to investigate how the field of accounting regulation was reconstituted during the convergence. Relying on the Bourdieusian concepts of field, capital and habitus, the analysis of accounting regulation in Brazil is split into two phases: firstly, the field as of the early-2000s is mapped through a literature review that identifies its main institutional agents. From the early-2000s on, when the discussions about the creation of a private standard-setter began, the linguistic habitus associated to the field is mapped through discursive analyses of several archival data, including parliamentary proceedings and documents issued by institutional agents that operate in the field. This investigation indicates that the constitution of the field was driven by a relationship of accommodation between the State and the accountancy profession. During the 1970s, an interpretative community linked to the capital markets was consolidated, including financial sector regulators and segments of the professional and academic fields, that issued and disseminated Anglo-American inspired accounting standards framed by a decision-usefulness approach. In opposition, during the 1980s the Federal Council of Accounting (Conselho Federal de Contabilidade - CFC) started to dispute the primacy within the field, issuing accounting standards framed by a discourse of scientificity that preserved the Continental-European influence on Brazilian accounting. From the early-2000s on, the efforts to approve the legislative reforms necessary for the adoption of the IFRS were characterised by a high level of discursive homogeneity: it was claimed that such an adoption would enhance the transparency, comprehensibility, comparability and reliability of the financial reports of Brazilian firms, attracting foreign investments and promoting the economic development of the country. However, none of these claims was supported by substantive empirical evidences. Initially, the CFC opposed the creation of a private standard-setter, claiming that it would undermine the self-regulation of the accountancy profession. In October 2005, though, the CFC itself created the Committee of Accounting Pronouncements (Comitê de Pronunciamentos Contábeis - CPC), apparently solving the conflict that had structured the field until then. The influence of taxation on Brazilian accounting practices played a pivotal role in this process, as a common adversary that justified the alliance between the CFC and the capital market pole. As the CPC frames itself as only a translator and interpreter of the IFRS, the field as a whole is not a space of power anymore, given that substantive decisions in the standard-setting process are not made in Brazil. Nevertheless, some regulators still challenge CPC\'s hegemony, requiring firms under their jurisdictions to prepare and disclose alternative sets of accounts. Contributing for a deeper understanding about the role of local agents in the adoption of the IFRS, this thesis suggests that in Brazil this process was conducted by an interpretative community constituted some decades ago, whose agents exchanged the symbolic capital they previously possessed for the economic capital they earned through the expansion of the market for accounting services. / Em 2010, o Brasil completou a convergência para as Normas Internacionais de Relatório Financeiro (International Financial Reporting Standards - IFRS). Como a política deste processo tem sido pouco explorada, o objetivo desta tese é investigar como o campo da regulação contábil foi reconstituído durante a convergência. Baseando-se nos conceitos bourdieusianos de campo, capital e habitus, a análise da regulação contábil no Brasil é dividida em duas fases: primeiramente, o campo no início dos anos 2000 é mapeado através de revisão de literatura que identifica seus principais agentes institucionais. A partir do início dos anos 2000, quando as discussões sobre a criação de normatizador privado começaram, o habitus linguístico associado ao campo é mapeado através de análises discursivas de vários dados de arquivo, incluindo arquivos parlamentares e documentos emitidos por agentes institucionais que operam no campo. Essa investigação indica que a constituição do campo foi conduzida por uma relação de acomodação entre o Estado e a profissão contábil. Durante a década de 1970, consolidou-se uma comunidade interpretativa ligada aos mercados de capitais, incluindo reguladores do setor financeiro e segmentos dos campos profissional e acadêmico, que emitia e divulgava padrões contábeis de inspiração anglo-americana, moldados por uma abordagem de utilidade para decisão. Em oposição, durante a década de 1980 o Conselho Federal de Contabilidade (CFC) começou a disputar a primazia no campo, emitindo padrões contábeis moldados por um discurso de cientificidade que preservava a influência europeia continental na contabilidade brasileira. A partir do início dos anos 2000, os esforços para aprovar as reformas legislativas necessárias para a adoção das IFRS caracterizaram-se por alto nível de homogeneidade discursiva: Alegava-se que tal adoção aumentaria a transparência, compreensibilidade, comparabilidade e confiabilidade dos relatórios financeiros das empresas brasileiras, atraindo investimentos estrangeiros e promovendo o desenvolvimento econômico do país. No entanto, nenhuma dessas alegações era apoiada por evidências empíricas substantivas. Inicialmente, o CFC se opôs à criação de um normatizador privado, alegando que isso debilitaria a autorregulação da profissão contábil. Em outubro de 2005, porém, o próprio CFC criou o Comitê de Pronunciamentos Contábeis (CPC), aparentemente resolvendo o conflito que havia estruturado o campo até então. A influência da tributação nas práticas contábeis brasileiras desempenhou papel central nesse processo, como um adversário comum que justificou a aliança entre o CFC e o polo do mercado de capitais. Como o CPC enquadra a si próprio apenas como tradutor e intérprete das IFRS, o campo como um todo não é mais um espaço de poder, dado que decisões substantivas no processo de normatização não são tomadas no Brasil. No entanto, alguns reguladores ainda desafiam a hegemonia do CPC, exigindo que as empresas sob suas jurisdições preparem e divulguem demonstrativos contábeis alternativos. Contribuindo para uma compreensão mais profunda sobre o papel de agentes locais na adoção das IFRS, esta tese sugere que no Brasil esse processo foi conduzido por uma comunidade interpretativa constituída há algumas décadas, cujos agentes trocaram o capital simbólico que possuíam anteriormente pelo capital econômico que obtiveram através da expansão do mercado de serviços contábeis.

Diese kumulative Dissertation besteht aus drei eigenständigen Arbeiten aus dem Bereich der Rechnungslegungsforschung. Die erste Arbeit ist eine Befragungsstudie von 137 internationalen Rechnungslegungsforschern über die Fair-Value-Orientierung von 28 lokalen Rechnungslegungssystemen. Anhand der Umfrageergebnisse war es möglich, einen internationalen Fair-Value Score zu bilden. Dieser zeigt, dass das portugiesische, slowenische und das russische Rechnungslegungssystem am meisten und das österreichische, deutsche und italienische Rechnungslegungssystem am wenigsten Fair-Value orientiert ist. Die zweite Arbeit untersucht die Determinanten der Wahl von Rechnungslegungssystemen mittels eines Prinzipal-Agenten-Models. In dem Model kann ein risikoneutraler Entrepreneur (Prinzipal) mit einem Anreiz zur Konsumglättung zwischen zwei Rechnungslegungssystemen wählen. Das Rechnungslegungssystem wird genutzt, um eine effiziente vertragstheoretische Lösung mit dem Manager herbeizuführen und um Informationen über das Unternehmen für Kapitalmarktteilnehmer bereitzustellen. Die Modellergebnisse zeigen, dass der Entrepreneur eher gewillt ist das Fair-Value-orientierte Rechnungslegungssystem zu wählen, wenn die Bedeutung von Eigenkapitalmärkten steigt, die Opportunitätskosten des Managements steigen, die Produktivität des Managements sinkt und die Qualität des Enforcements von Rechnungslegungsregeln abnimmt. Die empirischen Ergebnisse bestätigen größtenteils die theoretischen Erwartungen. Die dritte Arbeit untersucht, ob die verpflichtende Einführung der IFRS bei gleichzeitiger Anpassung des Enforcements zu einer Verbesserung der Ergebnisqualität geführt hat. Die empirischen Ergebnisse sind uneinheitlich und können daher den vermuteten Effekt nicht bestätigen. / This cumulative PhD-thesis consists of three papers within the field of empirical accounting research. The first paper provides descriptive evidence on the fair value orientation of existing local GAAP systems by surveying the perception of 137 international accounting academics about the fair value orientation of 28 local GAAP systems. The survey results enable us to rank countries’ local GAAP systems by their fair value orientation. The score ranking shows that Portuguese, Slovenian and Russian GAAP are the top three and Austrian, German and Italian GAAP are the bottom three of the fair value orientation. Furthermore, we are able to show that the fair value orientation of IFRS is higher than any of the 28 local GAAP systems. The second paper investigates the determinants of financial accounting regime choice in a principal agent setting. The model considers a risk-neutral entrepreneur who needs financial accounting information for contracting with a managerial agent and for communicating the firm value to a risk-averse secondary capital market. The comparative static results indicate that the preference of the entrepreneur for a fair value accounting regime increases with the relative importance of the secondary capital market and the opportunity costs of the managerial agent, while it decreases with the overall quality of the accounting signal, the effectiveness of the enforcement process and managerial productivity. Empirical evidence, which is based on country-year and country-level and US time series analysis, provides support for most of the theoretical predictions. The third paper investigates whether earnings quality effects are more pronounced post mandatory IFRS adoption in countries that substantially changed their enforcement system of accounting standards in comparison to countries that already had a strict enforcement system in place. The empirical analysis gives inconclusive results for the earnings quality measures.