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For decades, management accounting and control (MAC) researchers have employed a diverse set of source disciplines to predict and examine behavior, and psychology is among the most frequently drawn upon. Although the literature confirms that psychological theories are highly relevant to MAC research, the existing knowledge on this field remains fragmented. Given this background, we examine recent MAC research through a systematic review of the different subfields of psychology to investigate the development of this stream of research. To do so, we collect 125 relevant articles from nine leading accounting journals between 2000 and 2019 and analyze their contents. On this basis, we provide a detailed overview of the use of psychological theories in recent literature and identify links between specific theories and MAC topics. We find that the quantity and proportion of psychology-based MAC research and the diversity of psychology subfields all increase during our investigation period, especially between 2015 and the first half of 2019. Overall, most studies address performance measurement and evaluation topics, and social psychology concepts are the most frequently applied. However, we find considerable differences in the application of psychological theories across different MAC topics. Our review provides insights into the content of this research stream and, thus, serves as a valuable source for researchers seeking an overview of previous investigations drawing on different subfields of psychology.

PurposeThis study explores the relations among corporate sustainability strategies, the intense use of sustainability control systems (SCSs) to implement these strategies and the emergence of organizational capabilities for sustainability.Design/methodology/approachUsing survey data from a sample of 157 European firms across different industries, the authors explore differences between reactive and proactive sustainability strategies in their impact on the intense use of SCSs. The authors analyze the joint impact of a proactive sustainability strategy and an intense use of SCSs on the emergence of the organizational capabilities of sustainable market orientation, sustainable organizational learning and sustainable innovation. Furthermore, we explore the relevance of single levers of control for these capabilities.FindingsThe results show that a proactive sustainability strategy is associated with an intense use of SCSs and with the development of the three organizational capabilities. The authors provide evidence that the intensity of use of SCSs mediates the association between proactive sustainability strategy and the emergence of the three organizational capabilities. An interactive use of controls is constantly more important than a diagnostic use of controls in the emergence of the three capabilities.Originality/valueThe findings provide novel empirical evidence on the mechanisms through which corporate sustainability strategy is implemented in European organizations. The results contribute to an improved understanding of the organizational determinants underlying the development of organizational capabilities for sustainability.

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