Topics in Management Accounting Research

Topics in Management Accounting Research

管理会计研究专题

Summer 2012

Southwestern University of Finance and Economics

Professor Xi (Jason) Kuang

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COURSE OBJECTIVE

This is a doctoral-level seminar course. We will discuss a series of important research topics in management accounting, with a focus on experimental research. The main purpose of the course is to help you: 1) understand the theoretical framework and related empirical findings documented in the experimental management accounting literature, 2) develop abilities and skills necessary to critically evaluate others’ research, and 3) generate potential ideas/topics for your own research. In this course, I will also introduce relevant theories and research advances from other fields, including behavioral economics and psychology, and discuss their implications for management accounting research.

SCHEDULE (TENTATIVE)

Class 1

Topic

General discussion: Theoretical paradigms and experimental methods of management accounting research

Background readings

(1)Baiman, S. 1982. Agency research in managerial accounting: A survey. Journal of Accounting Literature 1: 154-213.

(2)Baiman, S. 1990. Agency research in managerial accounting: A second look. Accounting, Organizations and Society 15(4): 341-371.

Class 2

Topic

Solving the moral hazard problem(I): Information matters

Required readings

(1)Sprinkle, G.B. 2000. The effect of incentive contracts on learning and performance. The Accounting Review 75(3): 299-326.

(2)Hannan, R.L., R. Krishnan, and A.H. Newman. 2008. The effects of disseminating relative performance feedback in tournament and individual performance compensation plans. The Accounting Review 83(4): 893-913.

Class 3

Topic

Solving the moral hazard problem(II): Social motives matter

Required readings

(1)Libby, T. 1999. The influence of voice and explanation on performance in a participative budgeting setting. Accounting, Organizations and Society 24: 125-137.

(2)Kuang, X., and D.V. Moser. 2009. Reciprocity and the effectiveness of optimal agency contracts. The Accounting Review 84(5): 1671-1694.

Class 4

Topic

Solving the adverse selection problem(I): Are people honest?

Required readings

(1)Evans, J.H., R.L. Hannan, R. Krishnan, and D.V. Moser. 2001. Honesty in managerial reporting. The Accounting Review 76(4): 537-559.

(2)Rankin, F.W., S.T. Schwartz, and R.A. Young. 2008. The effect of honesty and superior authority on budget proposals. The Accounting Review 83(4): 1083-1099.

Class 5

Topic

Solving the adverse selection problem(II): The role of institutional factors

Required readings

(1)Fisher, J.G., L.A. Maines, S.A. Peffer, and G.B. Sprinkle. 2002. Using budgets for performance evaluation: Effects of resource allocation and horizontal information asymmetry on budget proposals, budget slack, and performance. The Accounting Review 77(4): 847-865.

(2)B.K. Church, R.L. Hannan, and X. Kuang. 2012. Shared interest and honesty in budget reporting. Accounting, Organizations and Society, forthcoming.

Class 6

Topic

Management control in team/group settings

Required readings

(1)Towry, K.L. 2003. Control in teamwork environment: The effect of social ties on the effectiveness of mutual monitoring contracts. The Accounting Review 78(4): 1069-1095.

(2)Rankin, F.W. 2004. Coordinating effort under team-based and individual incentives: An experimental analysis. Contemporary Accounting Research 21(1): 191-222.

Class 7

Topic

Performance measurement: The adoption of multiple performance measures

Required readings

(1)Farrell, A.M., K. Kadous, and K.L. Towry. 2008. Contracting on contemporaneous versus forward-looking measures: An experimental investigation. Contemporary Accounting Research 25(3): 773-802.

(2)Kachelmeier, S.J., and M.G. Williamson. 2010. Attracting creativity: The initial and aggregate effects of contract selection on creativity-weighted productivity. The Accounting Review 85(5): 1669-1691.

Class 8

Topic

Biases in management accounting decision making(I): Are people rational decision makers?

Required readings

(1)Chang, L., M. Cheng, and K.T. Trotman. 2008. The effect of framing and negotiation partners’ objective on judgments about negotiated transfer prices. Accounting, Organizations and Society 33: 704-717.

(2)Bol, J.C., and S.D. Smith. 2011. Spillover effects in subjective performance evaluation: Bias and the asymmetric influences of controllability. The Accounting Review 86(4): 1213-1230.

Class 9

Topic

Biases in management accounting decision making(II): The use of the balanced scorecard

Required readings

(1)Lipe, M.G., and S.E. Salterio. 2000. The balanced scorecard: Judgment effects of common and unique performance measures. The Accounting Review 75(3): 283-298.

(2)Cardinaels, E., and P.M.G. van Veen-Dirks. 2010. Financial versus non-financial information: The impact of information organization and presentation in a balanced scorecard. Accounting, Organizations and Society 35: 565-578.

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