SYNOPSIS
This paper discusses an overall framework of Big Data in accounting, setting the stage for the ensuing collection of essays that presents the ongoing evolution of corporate data into Big Data, ranging from the structured data contained in modern ERPs to loosely connected unstructured and semi-structured information from the environment. These essays focus on the sources, uses, and challenges of Big Data in accounting (measurement) and auditing (assurance). They consider the changing nature of accounting records and the incorporation of nontraditional sources of data into the accounting and auditing domains, as well as the need for changes in the accounting and auditing standards, and the new opportunities for audit analytics enabled by Big Data. Additionally, the papers discuss the interaction of Big Data and traditional sources of data, as well as Big Data's impact on audit judgment and behavioral research. Both accounting academics and accounting practitioners will benefit from learning about the significant potential benefits of Big Data and the inevitable challenges and obstacles in the way of its utilization. Advanced accounting students would also benefit from exposure to these emerging issues to enhance their future career development.
We propose remedies to the dramatic reduction in the diversity of research topics within the academic accounting literature. As a basis for our recommendations, we apply institutional theory in the field of academic accounting research and propose that responses to identifiable institutional influences rather than competitive forces account for the current exclusion of nonfinancial accounting topics. All three processes of institutional isomorphism (mimetic, coercive, and normative) appear to shape the organizational field of accounting research. However, the field has reached a stage where it is primarily, but not exclusively, motivated by the normative isomorphism. As such, institutional pressures often eclipse theoretical relevance, individual research preferences, and practical applicability. These effects pervade aspects of the accounting academy beyond publishing. We outline programs and propose actions for enhancing diversity as prescriptions for countering the institutional forces acting within the field of academic accounting research.
This paper reviews the information systems and accounting information systems research on the effects of information presentation format on judgment and decision making. We limit our review to static (noninteractive) formats only, where the user cannot manipulate or change the characteristics of the task, including information presentation format. We provide a conceptual framework, describing the role of information presentation in individual decision making. Additionally, we develop an integrated model of information presentation research based upon the theory of cognitive fit, and use the model to summarize the prior literature and provide suggestions for future research.
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