The Myth of Historical Evidence

Hurst, Beth

doi:10.2307/2504558

Cited by 11 publications

(5 citation statements)

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“…Others (the instrumentalist-constructionist school) regard historians as taking present-day objects or events and explaining their existence by constructing an account of the past (Hurst, 1981).…”

Section: Methodological Issuesmentioning

confidence: 99%

An Accounting Historiography: Subject Matter and Methodology

Previts

Parker

Coffman

1990

Abacus

136

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This paper continues t o study issues developed in a preceding manuscript which provided a definitional context for accounting history, its uses and limitations as a method of inquiry related t o educational endeavours, standard setting and practice. In this study two aspects of the development of the history of accounting, subject matter and methodology, are extensively explored within the context of a definition of historiography. A set of outline tables is provided t o assist researchers considering the topic areas as well as the process of historical inquiry, especially those scholars who d o not specialise in historical study. As in the previous paper, an extensive bibliography is provided.

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Section: Methodological Issuesmentioning

confidence: 99%

An Accounting Historiography: Subject Matter and Methodology

Previts

Parker

Coffman

1990

Abacus

136

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“…In a sense, Porter presents a bridge between realist-empiricist historians who first collect evidence and then build accounts of the past, and instrumentalist-constructionist historians who take present-day objects or events and attempt to explain them by means of accounts of the past (Hurst, 1981). Rather than Barzun's (1974) view that history is narrative-specific and non-analytical, Porter can be more closely aligned with Degler's (1987) view that explanation is a fundamental feature of history and that interpretation, rather than just a 'factual' story, must be undertaken.…”

Section: Prior Research and Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Quarter of a Century of Performance Auditing in the Australian Federal Public Sector: A Malleable Masque

Guthrie

Parker

1999

Abacus

103

167

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Utilizing Porter’s (1981) theoretical framework for historical narrative analysis, this article examines the history of performance auditing in the Australian federal public sector. The analysis considers four crucial events in the period 1973‐98 the Royal Commission on Australian Government Administration (1976), the Australian National Audit Office efficiency audit developments (1979), the Joint Committee of Public Accounts Inquiry (1989), and the struggles over the passage of the Audit Act 1997. The analysis supports the proposition that performance auditing is a malleable social construct rather than a definitive performance review technology. The construction of its technological basis has been contested, with several concepts being included or excluded by various groups. These have both reflected and influenced agendas and activities at individual, organizational, institutional, sociopolitical and socioeconomic levels in the Australian public sector. Performance auditing is therefore revealed as a masque that ultimately may defy any universal technical definition.

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“…In delivering this historical perspective, we have adopted an instrumentalist constructionist perspective where we reflect on contemporary events and interpret them through accounting for the past. By analysing the past, we seek relevant knowledge to inform the present (Hurst, 1981; Previts et al, 1990a). In particular, we seek to understand how past patterns of behaviour have shaped PMSs and accountability practices in the AHES (Previts et al, 1990a).…”

Section: Methodological Approachmentioning

confidence: 99%

Performance management in the Australian higher education system – A historically informed critique

Parker,

Guthrie,

Martin-Sardesai

2024

Accounting History

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This article aims to provide a historical perspective of neoliberalism and new public management practices in the Australian higher education system from the early 1980s to contemporary times. Drawing on historical and contemporary data sets and research articles, it evaluates historical changes in control systems and metrics applied to university teaching and research. From an audit culture framework, it examines the emerging rationales driving financially focused university governance. Organisational and individual audits of performance have become standard practice, couched in the conventional language of transparency, performance and accountability. Accounting-based performance measurement, control and audit are found to dominate university operations, fostering mass delivery of education, research outputs and knowledge commercialisation. Neoliberal performance management is shown to have dramatically altered accounting models and changed internal power relations, transforming university identities and roles into a commercialised corporate model pursuing a self-interested financial bottom line aided by a private sector performance control orientation.

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The Myth of Historical Evidence

Cited by 11 publications

References 0 publications

An Accounting Historiography: Subject Matter and Methodology

An Accounting Historiography: Subject Matter and Methodology

A Quarter of a Century of Performance Auditing in the Australian Federal Public Sector: A Malleable Masque

Performance management in the Australian higher education system – A historically informed critique

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