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The image of accountants: from bean counters to extreme accountants

Author

Listed:
  • Gudrun Baldvinsdottir
  • John Burns
  • Hanne Nørreklit
  • Robert W. Scapens

Abstract

Purpose - The aim of this paper is to investigate the extent to which a profound change in the image of accountants can be seen in the discourse used in accounting software adverts that have appeared in the professional publications of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants over the last four decades. Design/methodology/approach - Methodologically, the paper draws from Barthes' work on the rhetoric of images and Giddens' work on modernity. By looking at accounting software adverts, an attempt is made to investigate the image of the accountant produced by the discourse of the adverts, and whether the image produced reflects a wide social change in society. Findings - It was found that in the 1970s and the 1980s the accountant was constructed as a responsible and rational person. In the 1990s, the accountant was presented as an instructed action man. However, in a recent advert the accountant appeared as a more hedonistic person. Overall, the changes observed reflect changes in wider social practice from modernity, through high modernity, to hyper‐modernity. Research limitations/implications - The image of the accountants has implications for the development of the accounting profession. In particular, the move towards hyper‐modernity, where empathy towards others and the virtues of self‐discipline and fairness are not at stake, has implications for the trustworthiness of the accounting profession. Originality/value - Although there has been some research into the image of accountants, particularly in the media and popular movies, extant works have mostly investigated how others perceive accountants and how accountants are generally portrayed. The paper however, places more stress on the construction of the image of the accountants when appealing to the accountants.

Suggested Citation

  • Gudrun Baldvinsdottir & John Burns & Hanne Nørreklit & Robert W. Scapens, 2009. "The image of accountants: from bean counters to extreme accountants," Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 22(6), pages 858-882, July.
    • Handle: RePEc:eme:aaajpp:v:22:y:2009:i:6:p:858-882
    DOI: 10.1108/09513570910980445
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Beard, Victoria, 1994. "Popular culture and professional identity: Accountants in the movies," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 19(3), pages 303-318, April.
    2. Dimnik, Tony & Felton, Sandra, 2006. "Accountant stereotypes in movies distributed in North America in the twentieth century," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 31(2), pages 129-155, February.
    3. Bougen, Philip D., 1994. "Joking apart: The serious side to the accountant stereotype," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 19(3), pages 319-335, April.
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    Cited by:

    1. Arquero, José Luis & Fernández-Polvillo, Carmen & Hassall, Trevor & Joyce, John, 2017. "Relationships between communication apprehension, ambiguity tolerance and learning styles in accounting students," Revista de Contabilidad - Spanish Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 20(1), pages 13-24.
    2. Dunne, Neil J. & Brennan, Niamh M. & Kirwan, Collette E., 2021. "Impression management and Big Four auditors: Scrutiny at a public inquiry," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 88(C).
    3. Goretzki, Lukas & Messner, Martin, 2019. "Backstage and frontstage interactions in management accountants' identity work," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 74(C), pages 1-20.
    4. Jane Davison, 2011. "Barthesian perspectives on accounting communication and visual images of professional accountancy," Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 24(2), pages 250-283, February.
    5. Dorthe Windeck & Jürgen Weber & Erik Strauss, 2015. "Enrolling managers to accept the business partner: the role of boundary objects," Journal of Management & Governance, Springer;Accademia Italiana di Economia Aziendale (AIDEA), vol. 19(3), pages 617-653, August.
    6. Jürgen Weber, 2011. "The development of controller tasks: explaining the nature of controllership and its changes," Metrika: International Journal for Theoretical and Applied Statistics, Springer, vol. 22(1), pages 25-46, September.
    7. Daoust, Laurence, 2020. "Playing the Big Four recruitment game: The tension between illusio and reflexivity," CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ACCOUNTING, Elsevier, vol. 66(C).
    8. Richardson, Peter & Dellaportas, Steven & Perera, Luckmika & Richardson, Ben, 2015. "Towards a conceptual framework on the categorization of stereotypical perceptions in accounting," Journal of Accounting Literature, Elsevier, vol. 35(C), pages 28-46.
    9. Robert Rieg, 2018. "Tasks, interaction and role perception of management accountants: evidence from Germany," Journal of Management Control: Zeitschrift für Planung und Unternehmenssteuerung, Springer, vol. 29(2), pages 183-220, August.
    10. Claire France Picard & Sylvain Durocher & Yves Gendron, 2013. "From Meticulous Professionals To Superheroes Of The Business World: A Historical Portrait Of A Cultural Change In The Field Of Accountancy," Post-Print hal-00993019, HAL.
    11. Maroun, Warren & Solomon, Jill, 2014. "Whistle-blowing by external auditors: Seeking legitimacy for the South African Audit Profession?," Accounting forum, Elsevier, vol. 38(2), pages 109-121.
    12. Kyriacou, Orthodoxia, 2016. "Accounting for images of ‘equality’ in digital space: Towards an exploration of the Greek Accounting Professional Institute," CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ACCOUNTING, Elsevier, vol. 35(C), pages 35-57.
    13. Andrew West, 2018. "After Virtue and Accounting Ethics," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 148(1), pages 21-36, March.
    14. Bo Karlsson & Monika Kurkkio & Anders Hersinger, 2019. "The role of the controller in strategic capital investment projects: bridging the gap of multiple topoi," Journal of Management & Governance, Springer;Accademia Italiana di Economia Aziendale (AIDEA), vol. 23(3), pages 813-838, September.
    15. Dana Rad & Lavinia Denisia Cuc & Ramona Lile & Valentina E. Balas & Cornel Barna & Mioara Florina Pantea & Graziella Corina Bâtcă-Dumitru & Silviu Gabriel Szentesi & Gavril Rad, 2022. "A Cognitive Systems Engineering Approach Using Unsupervised Fuzzy C-Means Technique, Exploratory Factor Analysis and Network Analysis—A Preliminary Statistical Investigation of the Bean Counter Profil," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(19), pages 1-19, October.
    16. Ariela Caglio & Mara Cameran, 2017. "Is it Shameful to be an Accountant? GenMe Perception(s) of Accountants' Ethics," Abacus, Accounting Foundation, University of Sydney, vol. 53(1), pages 1-27, March.
    17. François Brouard & Merridee Bujaki & Sylvain Durocher & Leighann C. Neilson, 2017. "Professional Accountants’ Identity Formation: An Integrative Framework," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 142(2), pages 225-238, May.
    18. Grant Samkin, 2010. "Accounting in the media," Qualitative Research in Accounting & Management, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 7(3), pages 237-248, August.
    19. Gudrun Baldvinsdottir & John Burns & Hanne Nørreklit & Robert Scapens, 2010. "Professional accounting media: accountants handing over control to the system," Qualitative Research in Accounting & Management, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 7(3), pages 395-414, August.
    20. Jane Davison & Samantha Warren, 2009. "Imag[in]ing accounting and accountability," Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 22(6), pages 845-857, July.
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    22. Bo Karlsson & Anders Hersinger & Monika Kurkkio, 2019. "Hybrid accountants in the age of the business partner: exploring institutional drivers in a mining company," Journal of Management Control: Zeitschrift für Planung und Unternehmenssteuerung, Springer, vol. 30(2), pages 185-211, July.

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