Realising the richness of psychology theory in contingency-based management accounting research

Hall, Matthew

doi:10.1016/j.mar.2015.11.002

Cited by 82 publications

(87 citation statements)

References 71 publications

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“…This call fits well with a general interest in the accounting research to focus more on an understanding of accounting practices at the individual level of analysis, e.g. by examining relations between accounting practices and individual psychological processes (Hall, 2016).…”

Section: Introductionsupporting

confidence: 61%

Mental models and cognitive discomfort

Bourmistrov

2017

PAR

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Purpose -The purpose of the study is to examine whether public servants as users of accounting information are responsive to changes in the content of an accounting report and, if so, how responsive they are. Design/methodology/approach -The study applies a theoretical framework, linking accounting information and accounting use by focusing on users' "mental models". The empirical context for the study is a municipality located in Northwest Russia. Three public servants were followed over several days for the purpose of studying their use of a formal accounting report. Later, those users were also presented with a different version of the same accounting report that was re-constructed by the researcher based on normative accounting theory. The study documents the responses of public servants and presents those in a narrative form. Findings -The study reveals that though the original formal financial accounting report is extensively used, the public servants mostly reject the usefulness of the modified version of the report. The modified accounting report puts public servants in a "discomfort" zone, where the users' mental models come in conflict with the information in the modified report. Following that, the study uncovers that the use of the traditional accounting report is based on three different mental models developed by users over time and guiding the use of accounting. Those mental models are described by three metaphors: "balanced matrix", "water tank" and "fair rules". Originality/value -There is an unreasonable expectation that change in the public sector accounting system from cash toward accrual information will improve the quality of decisionmaking by public servants. The claim needs evidence that change in the accounting information supply will actually lead to change in information use. The paper demonstrates that change in use requires more substantial change in the users' mental models. This change is difficult, timedemanding and requires the development of tailor-made training programs. The paper is also a response to van Helden's (2016) call for more observational studies that can give a more accurate picture of use.

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Section: Introductionsupporting

confidence: 61%

Mental models and cognitive discomfort

Bourmistrov

2017

PAR

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“…Such interest in the use and effects of PMM tools and techniques, rather than just in their existence and structure, has begun to illuminate the 'behavioural assumption' (de Leeuw and van den Berg 2011 ;Hall 2008), which presupposes that PMM systems directly influence people's behaviours (Bititci et al 2012). However, existing studies have largely neglected to consider and theorize how individuals engaged in measurement processes -with their cognitive, emotional and social expressions -contribute, or not, to organizational performance (Hall 2016). Indeed, while PMM systems have gained credence as useful managerial and accountability tools, there is a lack of consensus on why, in some circumstances, they generate expected behaviours, whereas in others they result in unanticipated actions, such as gaming and manipulation of performance information (Gray et al 2014;Pavlov and Bourne 2011).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This review is significant for two main reasons: (1) the assumptions and findings identified in the SVM literature are used to illuminate the psychological and social dynamics called for in recent PMM studies (Hall 2016;Micheli and Mari 2014;Smith and Bititci 2017) and to highlight for further research specific areas that better recognize and integrate subjects into PMM theory; (2) it outlines the theoretical foundations of SVM research and points scholars towards issues requiring further investigation in this field. This paper starts by briefly reviewing the history of SVM, and then presents the approach to literature search, selection and analysis (Hart 1998).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Advancing Performance Measurement Theory by Focusing on Subjects: Lessons from the Measurement of Social Value

Beer

Micheli

2018

Int J Management Reviews

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Performance measurement and management (PMM) researchers have recently called for a closer inspection of social controls – the cultural and behavioural aspects of PMM inside organizations – as a complement to longstanding inquiries into technical controls – the rational and structural processes that enable measurement. The authors address this call by first reviewing the principal findings obtained in the field of social value measurement (SVM), which focuses on the measurement of how and to what extent individuals and groups perceive and realize subjective changes (i.e. in knowledge, access and health) from interactions with organizations. Subsequently, the authors distil the main characteristics of SVM research (i.e. the basic conceptualizations, stated purposes and normative principles). They find that SVM tends to highlight the importance of individual and group wellbeing and welfare, aim to understand how organizational actions influence these conditions, and focus on individuals’ lived experiences of measuring or being measured. In comparison, PMM research concentrates on technical controls, relies mainly on notions of systems and structured processes, and assumes people's behaviours are impacted by measures, but does not fully explore their responses. The authors argue that to acknowledge and integrate social aspects of PMM properly into research and practice, subjects – with their thoughts, emotions and experiences – should be included more explicitly in future studies and theorizations.

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“…We know from prior contingency-based management accounting research (Chenhall 2003;Hall 2016) that the operating context of organizations influences the extent to which pre-defined financial and nonfinancial measures such as revenues, profit or customer satisfaction are used for performance evaluation (objective performance evaluations, OPE). According to this research, OPE are used to greater extent, when outcomes are easily measured, tasks are less programmable and when firm size increases (Chenhall 2003).…”

Section: Ceo Characteristics and The Use Of Opementioning

confidence: 99%

Everything Under My Control: CEO Characteristics and the Evaluation of Middle Manager Performance in Small and Medium-Sized Firms

Haas

Speckbacher

2017

Schmalenbach Bus Rev

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Studies of small and medium-sized enterprises have provided evidence that CEOs of such firms can have a dominating influence on firm activities. Drawing on upper echelons theory, we analyze the influence of CEO personality (CEO internal locus of control), CEO ownership and CEO education on the evaluation of middle manager performance. In line with our expectations, we find evidence for a direct effect of CEO ownership (negative) and CEO education (positive) on the use of objective performance evaluations and for a direct effect of the CEO's internal locus of control on the use of subjective performance evaluations. Moreover, we provide evidence for a moderating role of both CEO ownership and education with respect to the influence of the CEO's locus of control on the use of subjective evaluations. We use a sample of 247 small and medium-sized manufacturing firms to test our hypotheses.

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Realising the richness of psychology theory in contingency-based management accounting research

Cited by 82 publications

References 71 publications

Mental models and cognitive discomfort

Mental models and cognitive discomfort

Advancing Performance Measurement Theory by Focusing on Subjects: Lessons from the Measurement of Social Value

Everything Under My Control: CEO Characteristics and the Evaluation of Middle Manager Performance in Small and Medium-Sized Firms

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