Accounting and the Enterprise: A Social Analysis

Written from a sociological perspective, this book is concerned with ways in which social theories and analyses can inform our understanding of accounting in modern enterprises. More people, in more places, and more often, are being counted, accounted for and held accountable. As accounting has come increasingly to pervade modern life, there is a perceived need for a wide-ranging critical review of the current role of accounting in our society. In relating general (social science) debates to the specific (accounting) case, four aspects are considered in particular: the influence of social theories on accounting practice; the way that changes in enterprises have affected accounting practice; the way in which accounting practice has influenced business practice; and how a study of accounting theory and practice may lead us to revise the social science theories with which we began. By challenging the view that accounting should be left for accountants to study, the author asserts that the study of accounting is an important element in understanding the way in which modern enterprises and societies operate.