27 July 2016
In his recent paper ‘’, published as part of the celebrations of the 40th anniversary of Accounting, Organisation and Society (AOS), Professor Stephen Walker examines ways of invigorating the study of the roles of Accounting in society.
Walker’s motivation for the research is based on the fact that historical studies often tend to presume, rather than analyse, the relationships between accounting and the social. The paper was inspired by, and builds on, the work of key contributors such as , who, during the 1970s, courageously attempted to chart ways of studying the social roles of accounting. Whilst such classic papers have laid some groundwork, it has often been a daunting task for researchers to establish an agenda that intertwines accounting and the social. In his paper Walker revisits this complex interface and attempts to encourage renewed explorations.
The paper starts by exploring previous attempts to develop a robust research agenda which unlocks the socio-political nature of accounting. It also considers ways in which the ‘troublesome’ social is understood in other disciplines and the issues this poses for accounting researchers. The study praises the role of AOS in shaping this research agenda and offers some suggestions for taking it forward.
There are numerous opportunities for accounting historians to re-examine the social especially by revisiting those points of intersection where accounting meets central sociological concepts. The nature of the social is under frequent review and new ‘social futures’ are constantly being imagined. These ongoing developments provide new opportunities for accounting researchers.