Impact of research assessment exercises on research approaches and foci of accounting disciplines in Australia

O’Connell, Brendan; Lange, Paul De; Stoner, Greg; Sangster, Alan

doi:10.1108/aaaj-12-2019-4293

Cited by 19 publications

(21 citation statements)

References 52 publications

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“…The search covered articles on countries within the WEO classifications of emerging and developing in journals ranked as A*, A and B in the ABDC accounting Field of Research category 1,501 from 2009 to 2018. The procedure matches that in O'Connell et al (2020) over a similar period. Several journals had less than ten years of publication or did not publish articles for some years, hence their information does not span all years in our sampling period [11].…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 75%

“…Also, ranking lists influence performance assessments of individuals and departments, e.g. the Australian research assessment exercise has increasingly favoured departments producing positivist research and narrowed research agendas and foci (O'Connell et al, 2020). If academics must meet the dictates of such performance evaluations to survive in academia, this deters accounting research on DCs (Martin-Sardesai et al, 2020).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…She attributes this to beliefs that quantified knowledge is apolitical, unbiased and enables complex, emotive and moral choices to be made, especially when communities and voters distrust centralised government and public officials; and those trained in statistics/mathematics can use standardised quantitative research methods to produce purportedly generalisable results across different places and times; it is easier for non-English speakers to use numbers rather than the complex arguments and language in Western social theory; and mimicking disciplines such as finance and economics will gain similar prominence for accounting research. Also, ranking lists influence performance assessments of individuals and departments, for example, the Australian research assessment exercise has increasingly favoured departments producing positivist research and narrowed research agendas and foci (O'Connell et al , 2020). If academics must meet the dictates of such performance evaluations to survive in academia, this deters accounting research on DCs (Martin-Sardesai et al , 2020).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Accounting articles on developing countries in ranked English language journals: a meta-review

Moses

Hopper

2021

AAAJ

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PurposeThe paper conducts a metadata analysis of articles on developing countries in highly ranked “international” accounting journals, the topics covered, research methods employed, their authorship and impact, across countries and continents.Design/methodology/approachA database of the publications of accounting journals ranked A*, A and B in the Australian Business Dean Council (ABDC) journal rankings from 2009 to 2018 was constructed. A structured literature review, partly using NVivo and Leximancer, analysed the 1,317 articles on developing countries. A parallel online repository contains the research data.FindingsArticles on accounting in developing countries increased by 36% over the ten years but remained a small proportion of all published articles (i.e. 1,317 of 13,805 representing 9.5%). They have concentrated on quantitative market-based studies of financial reporting and auditing, especially in larger and relatively richer developing countries in Asia and Africa, with developed capital markets. Broader topics deemed important in recent reviews of the area, for instance, on achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and on smaller, poorer countries, which have been neglected, albeit less so in qualitative studies. The research identifies important jurisdictional differences. Many authors held positions in British Commonwealth universities. The most cited articles overall, all quantitative, were in highly ranked North American journals, whereas most qualitative studies came from journals located in richer British Commonwealth countries.Research limitations/implicationsThe study only covers English language journals. Journals in other languages and lesser ranked journals, especially those based in developing countries, may be important sources too.Practical implicationsMore research on a broader range of accounting issues, especially in smaller and poorer developing countries, is needed. Although quantitative work is valuable, more recognition of the value of qualitative studies is needed, especially given the disappointing results of market-based policies prescribed by foreign institutions and their shift to advocating good governance reforms and achieving SDGs.Originality/valueTo the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the most exhaustive analysis of recent accounting research on developing countries. It traces which journals have published such research, when, on which countries, on what topics and by whom. This is of interest to journal editors, course designers and researchers in the area. The authors hope that making the raw data and detailed analyses available online, consistent with protocols adopted in science disciplines, will encourage accounting researchers to do likewise to enable further testing of results and claims and build knowledge cumulatively.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 75%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Accounting articles on developing countries in ranked English language journals: a meta-review

Moses

Hopper

2021

AAAJ

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“…Previous studies have also shown clear changes occurring in the performance measurement (PM) of universities. Among other topics, scholars have studied the assessment of academic performance (Argento et al, 2020), the use of key performance indicators (Guthrie and Neumann, 2007), research management (Agyemang and Broadbent, 2015), steering (Boitier and Rivi ere, 2013), and the measurement and evaluation of institutional and individual performance (Dobija et al, 2019;Kallio and Kallio, 2014;Ter Bogt and Scapens, 2012;Englund and Gerdin, 2019;Chatterjee et al, 2020;Martin-Sardesai et al, 2020;O'Connell et al, 2020a). A common factor in all these studies seems to be the transition in the studied organizations' institutional logic (IL) (Grossi et al, 2020a).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Institutional logic and scholars' reactions to performance measurement in universities

Kallio

Grossi

et al. 2021

AAAJ

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PurposeEmploying institutional logic and institutional work as its theoretical framework, this study analyzes scholars' reactions to performance measurement systems in academia.Design/methodology/approachLarge datasets were collected over time, combining both quantitative and qualitative elements. The data were gathered from a two-wave survey in 2010 (966 respondents) and 2015 (672 respondents), conducted among scholars performing teaching- and research-oriented tasks in three Finnish universities.FindingsThe analysis showed statistically significant changes over time in the ways that the respondents were positioned in three major groups influenced by different institutional logics. This study contributes to the international debate on institutional change in universities by showing that in Finnish universities, emerging business logics and existing professional logics can co-exist and be blended among a growing group of academics. The analysis of qualitative open-ended answers suggests that performance measurement systems have led to changes in institutional logic, which have influenced the scholars participating in institutional work at the microlevel in academia.Social implicationsWhile most scholars remain critical of performance measurement systems in universities, the fact that many academics are adapting to performance measurement systems highlights significant changes that are generally occurring in academia.Originality/valueWhile most extant studies have focused on field- and organizational-level analyses, this study focuses on understanding how the adoption of performance measurement systems affects institutional logic and institutional work at the microlevel. Moreover, the study's cross-sectional research setting increases society's understanding of institutional evolution in academia.

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“…., 2017a). In effect, universities have adopted the aspirations and performance measures set out for them by the government's ERA policies(Martin-Sardesai et al, 2017b;O'Connell et al, 2020). Thus, the accountingisation Power and Laughlin wrote about in 1992 has occurred for managers and academic staff.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

The neoliberal reality of higher education in Australia: how accountingisation is corporatising knowledge

Martin-Sardesai

Guthrie

Parker

2020

MEDAR

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Purpose As accounting academics, the authors know that performance measurement is well-trodden ground in the literature. Yet rarely have they turned their gaze inwards to examine the performance controls which they are subject to in the own everyday working life. Over the past 40 years, the rise of the New Public Management paradigm and neoliberalism has intensified changes in the way universities, disciplines and individual academics justify the quality of their work. This paper aims to explore the impact of accountingisation on the field and the Australian public sector higher education sector. Design/methodology/approach The perceptions of accounting academics in Australia’s 37 business faculties and schools were collected via an online survey. Additionally, a document analysis of annual reports, internal reports, strategy documents and other confidential material were also used. Findings The changes have included the use of corporate and individual research metrics aimed at increasing institutional status, brand reputation and revenue generation. These changes have transformed business schools and universities into commercial enterprises and commoditised education. What this analysis demonstrates is the apparent relationship between various government agendas, the commercialisation of universities and the distortion of the research activities by individual academics. For increased profits and efficiencies, individual scholars have paid the highest price. Practical implications If the accounting discipline is to be sustainable in the long term, business schools in Australia must reconfigure their performance measurement systems. Originality/value To date, research on “accountingisation” has previously been primarily conducted in the health and social services sectors. This research raises rarely heard voices to expose the actual social and human costs of accountingisation in Australia’s higher education sector.

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Impact of research assessment exercises on research approaches and foci of accounting disciplines in Australia

Cited by 19 publications

References 52 publications

Accounting articles on developing countries in ranked English language journals: a meta-review

Accounting articles on developing countries in ranked English language journals: a meta-review

Institutional logic and scholars' reactions to performance measurement in universities

The neoliberal reality of higher education in Australia: how accountingisation is corporatising knowledge

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