Ideology diffusion and the role of accounting: A Gramscian approach to understanding China’s transition from 1949 to 1957

Abstract

Using Gramsci’s concept of hegemony, the aim of this article is to explore the role of ideology diffusion in creating and maintaining Mao’s political hegemony during the period 1949 to 1957, and to consider how accounting practices were reflected in this period of transition in China. In particular, we provide an understanding of how accounting systems have changed under the influence of various political ideologies in China, being the New Democracy and the socialist ideology adopted from the Soviet Union, by considering the relationships and struggles between organic and traditional intellectuals that Gramsci has theorized. We find that the diffusion of political ideologies is reflected in the accounting systems used in these particular periods of transition.

KONFRONTASI IDEOLOGI, PERANAN TOKOH INTELEKTUAL, DAN PERANAN FORMATIF ANTOLOGI SAKSI MATA KARYA SENO GUMIRA AJIDARMA (Ideological Confrontation, The Role of Intellectual Characters, and Formative Roles of Anthology Saksi Mata Written by Seno Gumira Ajidarma)

“…Sehubungan dengan itu, menurut Xu, Cortese, & Zhang (2014) dominasi politik diperoleh dengan membangun dan menyebarkan budaya hegemonik, sehingga ideologi kelas penguasa pada gilirannya akan dianggap sebagai akal sehat oleh subjek individu politik. Oleh karena itu, akhirnya kelas hegemonik dapat menciptakan relasi persekutuan dalam masyarakat melalui kepemimpinan intelektual dan moral.…”

“Forging accounting principles” in France, Germany, Japan, and China: A comparative review

“…Kwang, 1966), but not in any great numbers until the 1990s. 21 Studies taking a historical perspective on the 1950s-1970s are rare (notably Ezzamel et al, 2007; parts of Huang and Ma, 2001;Liu and Eddie, 1995;Xu et al, 2014). These studies show that, following the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949 and the transition to a centrally planned economy achieved by the mid-1950s, the notion of uniform accounting requirements was more effectively developed, compared to the tentative and sporadic application during the republican period.…”

“…Cooke, 1991). Regarding China, the works of Ezzamel et al (2007), Ezzamel and Xiao (2015), and Xu et al (2014) are notable instances of theory-driven historical research, but again not triggering a dialogue on the transferability of the approach to other settings. Overall, the relative paucity of theory-based research on financial reporting regulation is evident, when it is compared with research on the audit profession where studies in many different countries draw on shared frameworks from institutional theory and the sociological literature on the professions.…”

The interplay between accounting professionals and political ideologies: The emergence of Chinese accounting standards from 1978 to 1992

“…9. He is one of the authors who criticised views concerning the technical nature of accounting during Mao's rule (see Xu et al, 2014).…”

“…Several studies, such as Graham and Li (1997), Van Hoepan (1995) and Yapa and Hao (2007), describe accounting systems in the period of the Great Leap Forward as 'simplified accounting' and 'accounting without books' (Graham and Li, 1997: 249). The formal Uniform Accounting System used during the Cultural Revolution deteriorated to such an extent that it eventually became dysfunctional (Van Hoepan, 1995;Xu et al, 2014;Yapa and Hao, 2007). In the following subsection, we further outline the change of Mao's political ideologies during the research period, which is the immediate ideological context in which our empirical analysis is placed.…”