Accounting professionals and whistleblowing: a typology of the influence of institutional logics

Abstract

The main objective of this article is to understand how institutional logics (ILs) - family, religion, community, state, profession, organization, and capital and labor market - influence (or not) the Brazilian accounting professional in their intention to report irregularities. The study helps fill an epistemic gap by using the theory of ILs to comprehensively understand the professional in their world, in contrast with the whistleblowing studies that are generally based on behavioral theories. Most of those studies are quantitative, using the vignette technique (elaborated by researchers), which highlights the relevance of this paper, as it chooses to allow the accountants to reflect on the phenomenon and elaborate explanations for their actions and the dimensions that surround them. The main contribution lies in the theoretical advancement in accounting by extending the classic whistleblowing model, in order to socioinstitutionally recognize the individual’s reflection process (at the micro level) and the structuring elements (macro and meso levels) involved. In methodological terms, the study is qualitative and interpretative, based on content analysis (CA) through the lens of the hermeneutic circle. Standing out among the results are: (a) a typology of the influence of ILs on the accounting professional’s intention to report irregularities; (b) the differentiation of influences that favor whistleblowing or lead to the avoidance of it according to various logics; and (c) discussions about the premises that greater protection and support for the whistleblower would favor whistleblowing or, in contrast, that recognition and financial reward would be considered as factors that would not favor whistleblowing, among other aspects. The impact and applicability of the study derive from an alternative approach in epistemic-methodological terms, enabling an understanding of the socioinstitutional structure that influences whistleblowing intentions, thus allowing for the construction of mechanisms that increase the potential for whistleblowing.

Lógicas institucionais em estudos organizacionais: o que mostram as pesquisas nacionais?

“…A explicação da realidade, por meio das lógicas institucionais, pode se dar nos mais diversos ambientes, como em organizações humanitárias (Chatwani & Islam, 2020), financeiras (Russo & Guerreiro, 2017), cooperativas (Teixeira & Roglio, 2015), do setor privado (Soeiro, Miranda & Araújo, 2016, Paiva & Brito 2019Alves & Silva, 2020), entidades ou programas do setor público (Klein & Mascarenhas, 2016, Gonçalves, Fregonesi & Moreira, 2020, Lino & Aquino, 2020, Aguiar & Aguiar, 2020, Ferreira, Rossoni & Oliveira, 2022, Cotrim & Ryngelblum, 2023, instituições de ensino (Felix & Guarido Filho, 2015;Lima & Amancio-Vieira, 2017, Fávero & Guimarães, 2019, Moutinho & Rabechini Junior, 2021, profissionais (Ayres, Sauerbronn & Fonseca, 2022), área da saúde (Picheth & Aquino, 2019), entre outros. O amplo leque de possibilidades de aplicação das lógicas institucionais evidencia diversas possibilidades de explorá-las em diferentes contextos e problemáticas.…”

“…Diversos são os fenômenos que podem ser investigados com o uso das lógicas institucionais, cujas discussões podem refletir na evolução e adaptação das instituições à medida que as sociedades e o ambiente global mudam. Sob a perspectiva das lógicas institucionais, algumas abordagens têm sido objeto de discussões como sustentabilidade e meio ambiente (Ren & Jackson, 2020), tecnologia e transformação digital (Aguiar & Aguiar, 2020), a dinâmica entre lógicas dominantes e a inserção de novas/emergentes (Teixeira & Roglio, 2015;Chaerki, Ribeiro e Ferreira, 2020), o papel dos valores e das emoções nas lógicas (Paiva & Brito, 2019;Fernandes et al, 2020;Ayres et al, 2022), contradições entre as lógicas (Soeiro, Miranda & Araújo, 2016;Russo & Guerreiro, 2017;Gonçalves et al, 2018;Lino & Aquino, 2020;Ferreira et al, 2022) desafios societais (Picheth & Aquino, 2019) etc.…”

“…Uma temática latente observada no portifólio bibliográfico investigado é a que aborda o papel dos valores das emoções nas lógicas institucionais. Esses pontos estão presentes nos artigos de Paiva e Brito (2019), que descreveram a configuração das lógicas institucionais no campo organizacional da cachaça alambique em Minas Gerais; de Fernandes et al (2020) que investigaram o papel das emoções na lógica institucional do contexto político brasileiro e a forma como influencia as emoções de mulheres candidatas a cargos políticos; e de Ayres et al (2022) que buscaram compreender como as lógicas institucionais podem influenciar o profissional contador na intenção de denunciar irregularidades. Constata-se que as abordagens permeiam o papel dos valores e emoções e como influenciam nas lógicas institucionais quando abordam a tradição e a cultura que remetem aos valores e emoções do cenário.…”

Whistleblowing and interpretation, addressing organizational challenges: a conceptual reflection from Nigeria

“…For instance, resource-based organizations tend to apply whistleblowing and interpretation as relevant tools for building fairness and equality required for sustainable competitive advantage that can support the commitment of members across the organizational structure (Gueler and Schneider, 2021;Ullah et al, 2023). These are relevant for the optimum use of acquired resources and promote accountability, through a process of evaluation that can herald continuous improvement (Ayres et al, 2022). This is done through a reliable system of reporting and balances that includes whistleblowing and interpretation (Beardwell and Claydon, 2007;Cooper et al, 2023).…”

“…, 2023). These are relevant for the optimum use of acquired resources and promote accountability, through a process of evaluation that can herald continuous improvement (Ayres et al. , 2022).…”