Non-accountants and Accounting
On the Emancipatory Mobilization of Accounting by Sustainability Managers
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 19446227 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Michelle Rodrigue (0000-0003-4083-8505, École de comptabilité, Université Laval, Pavillon Palasis-Prince, Québec, QC, Canada, corresponding author), Claire-France Picard (0000-0002-6206-9260, École de comptabilité, Université Laval, Pavillon Palasis-Prince, Québec, QC, Canada) |
| Year | 2023 |
| Volume | 32 |
| Issue | 5 |
| Pages | 1217-1245 |
| Publication date | 2023-10-20 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | European Accounting Review (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0963-8180 • E-ISSN: 1468-4497 |
| Publisher | Informa UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1080/09638180.2022.2052921 |
| OpenAlex | W4223648478 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 1 |
| References cited | 59 |
Our study explores emancipatory manifestations of accounting through the experiences of sustainability managers. Specifically, drawing primarily on interviews with sustainability managers working in Canadian companies, it aims to better understand how they mobilize conventional accounting in their day-to-day activities in pursuit of socio-environmental progress. Informed by the pragmatist perspective on emancipation (Gallhofer & Haslam, 2003 Gallhofer, S., & Haslam, J. (2003). Accounting and emancipation: Some critical interventions. Routledge. [Google Scholar], 2019 Gallhofer, S., & Haslam, J. (2019). Some reflections on the construct of emancipatory accounting: Shifting meaning and the possibilities of a new pragmatism. Critical Perspectives on Accounting, 63, 101975. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cpa.2017.01.004[Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]), our analysis first reveals the global context in which our interviewees evolve and the aura of accounting therein. It then details how three local contextual dynamics shape the form, content, and usage of conventional accounting, making some accounting manifestations more emancipatory than others. Working in organizations receptive to sustainability initiatives, piloted by a small, resource-constrained department, seems to lead sustainability managers to generate more emancipatory progress in and through multiple forms, contents, and usages of accounting. The legitimacy of the sustainability department and the level of uncertainty experienced also play roles in the extent of progress reached. Through an empirical investigation, we contribute to a better understanding of accounting particularities shaping sustainability progress within organizations. Our study also offers valuable insights into the ways ‘non-accountants’ use accounting, therefore contributing to an understanding of how ‘peripheral’ business actors mobilize accounting to advance their sustainability agenda
Accounting information system · Accounting research · Business · Environmental Accounting · Epistemology · Financial accounting · Legitimacy · Management accounting · Political science · Politics · Positive accounting · Pragmatism · Public relations · Sociology · Sustainability · Accounting and Organizational Management · Corporate Social Responsibility Reporting · Law · Management and Organizational Studies · Accounting
W(h)ither Ecology? The Triple Bottom Line, the Global Reporting Initiative, and Corporate Sustainability Reporting
“Hippies on the third floor”
Employees, Non-financial Reports and Institutional Arrangements
Legitimation Strategies Used in Response to Environmental Disaster
Framing Engagement that Resonates
Naturalistic inquiry
| Unique citing works | 1 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 1 |
| Citation span | 2026 - 2026 (1) |
| Citation velocity | current |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 1 |