Paradoxes of Specialist Recognition in Accounting: An Exploratory Debate

This study explores the complexity of recognising specialisations in accounting by articulating the paradox of the knowledge–specialisation conundrum when claims of higher levels of expertise among specialists threaten the general warrant of competence of the non‐specialist. Embedded in the notions of professionalisation in which professional status is sought and achieved, this study provides a discursive analysis exploring the elements of formal specialist recognition within a large and established accounting profession. The analysis in this study suggests that institutionalising the recognition of specialisations poses two significant risks to the unity of the profession: the risk that the general warrant of competence linked to non‐specialists could be seen as accountants of a lesser quality and the risk created to the profession from intra‐professional boundary ambiguity and conflict. Overall, this study brings to the fore the underexplored issues linked to understanding and recognising specialisations in accounting. This study explores the paradoxes of the knowledge–specialisation dynamic by bringing to the fore the complexity of institutionalising specialisations. Whilst specialisations bring intellectual benefits to the accounting profession, they also provoke the potential for a divided profession when the formal recognition of specialisations threatens the general warrant of competence of accounting professionals.