Accounting, paper shadows and the stigmatised poor

The social implications of accounting are explored through an historical study of spoiled identities in state welfare systems. The processing, recording, classification and communication inherent in the accounting practices deployed in such systems have the potential to (re)construct identities, inform perceptions of self and impact on the social relationships of the welfare claimant. The paper examines these potentialities through an investigation of the accounting regime attending the system of poor relief in Victorian England and Wales. Informed primarily by the work of Goffman it is suggested that accounting processes comprised degradation ceremonies which compounded the stigmatisation of the recipient of relief, accounting classifications served to inscribe existing and create additional spoiled identities of the pauper, and individualized forms of accounting disclosure compromised the management of stigma by the poor

Occupational expansion, fertility decline and recruitment to the professions in Scotland 1850-1914 (with special reference to the chartered accountants of Edinburgh).

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'All sorts and conditions of men':The social origins of the founders of the ICAEW

The early organisation of accountants in Scotland during the 1850s and 1860s has excited the intellectual curiosity and research endeavour of a number of students of professionalisation. By contrast, until recently there was a dearth of academic interest in institutional developments in England and Wales during the 1870s and 1880s. Yet, organisations such as the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW) which emanate from this period soon became the most significant players on the British professional scene and were to exert considerable influence on the development of accountancy institutions and professional ideologies in several locations. Exploiting a variety of genealogical sources this paper seeks to fill a void in the literature by analysing the social origins of the founding members of the principal professional association in England and Wales. It provides evidence of early chartered accountancy as a destination for long distance, upwardly mobile males, both intergenerationally and intragenerationally. The rate of self-recruitment among the founders of the ICAEW is shown to be low. The proportion of founders deriving from the upper and upper-middle classes is revealed to have been markedly less than that of their Scottish counterparts. The paper contributes to understandings of the complex professionalisation of British accountants, the extent of social mobility in Victorian Britain, the pathways to social advance in a class-based society, and illuminates the social complexion of one of the ‘new’ professions which emerged during the nineteenth century

Occupational differentiation and exclusion in early Canadian accountancy

Canada’s 1881 census enumerators posed a range of questions that provide scope for an in–depth investigation of the identity of its accounting functionaries (accountants and bookkeepers) in that year. The significance of our findings is explained by applying the concept of closure through exclusion and occupational differentiation. We discover that Canada’s accounting community, at the dawn of professional organisation, was dominated by people originating from Great Britain & Ireland. The rural/urban divide for Canada’s accountants is the inverse of that for the population as a whole and, as in Britain, congregation occurs around the major commercial ports. Significant differentiation exists between the demographic profile of Canada’s accounting functionaries compared with its entire population and between that of accountants compared with bookkeepers. Strong evidence of exclusionary closure is revealed through an analysis of the demographic characteristics of the initial leaderships of Canada’s early accounting associations. The paper concludes by identifying opportunities for further research

Accounting and international relations:Britain, Spain and the Asiento treaty

The boundaries between accounting and law are contingent on time–space intersections. Here, these margins are explored in the realm of international relations by focusing on the Asiento, an 18th century treaty granting Britain the monopoly to trade slaves with the Spanish American colonies. Although a relatively minor concern of treaty-makers, noncompliance with provisions of the Asiento by the South Sea Company placed accounting centre stage in conflicts between Britain and Spain. In combination with geo-strategic and domestic political circumstances, reporting failures exacerbated the commercial dispute between the two nations which culminated in war in 1739. The accounting provisions of the Asiento are examined by drawing on managerialist and realist theories of treaty compliance. It is shown that British noncompliance with accounting obligations under the treaty was driven by realist self-interest and the maximisation of material gain. Given that such motivations dominated behaviour attempts to manage noncompliance through the routine processes and structures of international politics proved unsuccessful. Managerial devices such as diplomatic exchanges over treaty ambiguity and securing greater informational transparency merely provided further opportunities for the pursuit of self-interest. It is suggested that divergent perceptions of the role of accounting in international relations stem from the unique political, legal, social and cultural configurations of nation states. The study highlights the limitations of accounting as an instrument of treaty verification. Its effectiveness in that capacity is diminished where there is no shared understanding of the significance, purpose, content and interpretation of accounting information

Coping responses as predictors of psychosocial functioning amongst individuals suffering from chronic pain

Background: Research on coping with chronic pain has focused on exploring the impact of different coping responses on various aspects of living with chronic pain. The aim of this study is to determine whether certain coping responses can be identified as predictors of the level of pain intensity reported by the chronic pain patient, as well as predictors of these individuals’ psychosocial functioning.Methods: One hundred and seventy-two individuals suffering from chronic pain completed both the West Haven-Yale Multidimensional Pain Inventory and the Coping Responses Inventory – Adult Form. The prevalence of the use of Avoidance and Approach Coping, and the relationship between these responses and psychosocial functioning (Pain Severity, Interference, Support, Life Control, and Affective Distress) were explored. Hierarchical regression analyses were performed in order to determine the amount of variance explained by the specific predictor variables.Results: The findings of this research suggest that coping responses do impact upon the psychosocial functioning of individuals with chronic pain, and more specifically, on the level of interference, severity of pain, perceived amount of control over life and the amount of emotional distress experienced by these patients.Conclusion: The outcomes of this study appear to contradict the general consensus in literature that regards Approach Coping responses as being associated with decreased pain severity and improved psychosocial functioning. The manner in which specific components of each type of coping response relates to specific aspects of psychosocial functioning wasinvestigated; an aspect that was found to be lacking in most research regarding coping and chronic pain.Keywords: chronic pain; psychosocial functioning; pain severity; affective distress; avoidance coping; approach copin

The role of psychosocial variables in physician judgement of pain-related disability

Objective: The current study aimed to determine the extent to which physicians take psychosocial factors into account when making pain-related judgements of disability. Subjects and Method: 228 chronic pain patients completed the West Haven-Yale Multidimensional Pain Inventory (WHYMPI), while 69 completed both this instrument and the Addiction Potential, Anxiety, Health Concerns and Depression supplementary subscales of the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory – 2 (MMPI-2). Physicians were required to provide diagnoses, as well as ratings of functional ability for each patient. Hierarchical regression analyses were conducted in order to determine the degree to which psychosocial variables predicted physician ratings of patient functional ability. Results: Psychosocial variables were found to predict physician assessments of patients’ level of occupational functioning, general satisfaction with life and physician perceptions of the role that psychosocial their risk of analgesic dependence. Depression and anxiety symptoms predicted factors played in patients’ pain experiences. Health concerns were predictive of physician assessments of analgesic dependence amongst patients. Conclusion: While certain psychosocial factors appear to be considered by physicians during pain-related disability assessment, psychiatric symptoms and physical pathology seem to weigh heavier in the process.Key Words: Disability, functional ability, chronic pain, psychosocial, psychopathology, health concerns, WHYMPI, MMPI-

Child accounting and 'the handling of human souls'

Child accounting texts published in the US during the early to mid-20th century are utilised to reveal the potency of Foucauldian analyses of accounting as a disciplinary technology. It is contended that child accounting – a voguish technique for recording, monitoring and governing the school pupil – provides a compelling illustration of Foucault’s emphasis on individualisation as a foundation for the exercise of disciplinary power. Further, child accounting encompassed mundane practices which could activate disciplinary power such as continuous hierarchical surveillance and normalising judgment. Centred on the child in the place of instruction rather than the employee in the corporation, the study offers a socio-historical exploration of accounting at its margins and in a domain where Foucault’s work on discipline has particular resonance

Innovation, convergence and argument without end in accounting history

Purpose – This paper seeks to review the accounting history content of Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal (AAAJ) over the last 20 years and to identify distinctive research themes therein. Observations and suggestions are offered in relation to future accounting history research. Design/methodology/approach – The study comprises an analysis of the content of AAAJ and related literature. Findings – Histories appearing in AAAJ have focused on technical issues, accounting in business organisations, cost and management accounting, accounting historiography, professionalisation, and socio-cultural studies of accounting. The journal has been an important medium for the pursuit of interdisciplinarity, the promotion and practical application of new research methods, methodological pluralism, and searches for convergence in historical debates. Research limitations/implications – The paper discusses the potential for advancing established research agendas in accounting history and identifies some new subjects for investigation by accounting historians. Originality/value – It is suggested that, while methodological innovation and plurality are to be applauded, the sustained application of new approaches should also receive greater encouragement. Searches for rapprochement in accounting history debate run the risk of stultifying historical controversy. It is argued that histories of management accounting, gender, class, professionalisation are far from “complete” and should be reignited through the adoption of broader theoretical, temporal and spatial parameters. An emphasis on the performative aspects of accounting in socio-cultural histories is encouraged, as is clearer recognition of the significance of contemporary understandings of the boundaries of accounting. Also emphasised is the desirability of more indigenously sensitised histories of the profession, greater engagement with the “literary turn”, and a renewed commitment to interdisciplinarity