Accounting Research and Accounting Policy: What Kind of Gap?

Abstract

This paper is a response to Singleton-Green's examination of the relationship between scholarly financial accounting research and financial accounting policymaking and, in particular, the failure of policymakers to make much use of contemporary research (Accounting in Europe, 7(2), pp. 129–145, 2010). He argues that a major cause of this failure is a communication gap between academics and policymakers but this paper suggests that there is a major gulf between the interests and approaches of the academic and policymaking communities that will not be overcome by improving communication. Thus, his conclusion is too optimistic and may lead policymakers to expect much more from engagement with academic research than they are likely to obtain and academics employing contemporary research paradigms to believe that their work will be received by policymakers with more enthusiasm than is likely to be the case.

Notes

Over a third of the studies covered include the author of the review as a named author. Given the small number of studies available, this is unsurprising and clearly makes the author an expert in the field. Nonetheless, the possibility of such an outcome does somewhat undermine in principle Singleton-Green's faith that an expert reviewer can be relied upon to discriminate appropriately between important and insignificant work. It should be emphasised that the current author does not suggest in any way that any bias intruded in the particular case discussed here.

Some studies used more than one method.

Watts' paper is probably too polemical to qualify as a review (2006).