IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/taf/euract/v10y2001i4p803-815.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Gender, the state and the audit profession: evidence from Spain (1942-88)

Author

Listed:
  • Nieves Carrera
  • Isabel Gutierrez
  • Salvador Carmona

Abstract

Extant knowledge on gender and auditing overwhelmingly relies on evidence gathered from a limited group of Anglo-Saxon countries. It is widely admitted, however, that gender issues are affected by the institutional contexts of the investigation. The Anglo-Saxon settings, we contend, embrace a number of idiosyncratic, institutional characteristics that advise caution in the generalizability of results. Our study addresses the role of gender in Spanish audit practice during the period 1942 to 1988. The environment of the Spanish audit profession witnessed the peaceful transition from a dictatorship to a full-fledged democracy as well as the emergence of a free market economy from a system characterized by stiff economic autarchy and an overriding intervention of the state in the economy. We found that the dominant role of the state in Spanish society affected the structure of the audit profession and made impossible the emergence of an autonomous project. In particular, our findings reveal that the audit profession did not have an independent strategy about the role of women at work, but mimicked the attitudes deployed by the state during our observation period.

Suggested Citation

  • Nieves Carrera & Isabel Gutierrez & Salvador Carmona, 2001. "Gender, the state and the audit profession: evidence from Spain (1942-88)," European Accounting Review, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 10(4), pages 803-815.
    • Handle: RePEc:taf:euract:v:10:y:2001:i:4:p:803-815
    DOI: 10.1080/09638180120088277
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/09638180120088277
    Download Restriction: Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1080/09638180120088277?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Linda Hantrais, 1995. "A comparative perspective on gender and accountancy," European Accounting Review, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 4(2), pages 197-215.
    2. Roberts, Jennifer & Coutts, J. Andrew, 1992. "Feminization and professionalization: A review of an emerging literature on the development of accounting in the United Kingdom," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 17(3-4), pages 379-395.
    3. Hopwood, Anthony G., 1987. "Accounting and gender: An introduction," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 12(1), pages 65-69, January.
    4. Maria Antonia Garcia-Benau & Christopher Humphrey, 1992. "Beyond the audit expectations gap," European Accounting Review, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 1(2), pages 303-331.
    5. Lehman, Cheryl R., 1992. ""Herstory" in accounting: The first eighty years," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 17(3-4), pages 261-285.
    6. Anderson, John C. & Johnson, Eric N. & Reckers, Philip M. J., 1994. "Perceived effects of gender, family structure, and physical appearance on career progression in public accounting: A research note," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 19(6), pages 483-491, August.
    7. Kirkham, Linda M. & Loft, Anne, 1993. "Gender and the construction of the professional accountant," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 18(6), pages 507-558, August.
    8. Cooper, Christine & Taylor, Phil, 2000. "From Taylorism to Ms Taylor: the transformation of the accounting craft," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 25(6), pages 555-578, August.
    9. Kirkham, Linda M., 1992. "Integrating herstory and history in accountancy," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 17(3-4), pages 287-297.
    10. Apostolos Ballas, 1999. "Privatizing the statutory auditing services in Greece," Accounting History Review, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 9(3), pages 349-373.
    11. Chua, W. F. & Poullaos, C., 1998. "The dynamics of "closure" amidst the construction of market, profession, empire and nationhood: An historical analysis of an Australian accounting association, 1886-1903," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 23(2), pages 155-187, February.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Dambrin, Claire & Lambert, Caroline, 2012. "Who is she and who are we? A reflexive journey in research into the rarity of women in the highest ranks of accountancy," CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ACCOUNTING, Elsevier, vol. 23(1), pages 1-16.
    2. Royston Greenwood & Amalia Magán Díaz & Stan Xiao Li & José Céspedes Lorente, 2010. "The Multiplicity of Institutional Logics and the Heterogeneity of Organizational Responses," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 21(2), pages 521-539, April.
    3. Agrizzi, Dila & Soobaroyen, Teerooven & Alsalloom, Abeer, 2021. "Spatiality and accounting: The case of female segregation in audit firms," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 93(C).
    4. Luis Porcuna-Enguix & Elisabeth Bustos-Contell & José Serrano-Madrid & Gregorio Labatut-Serer, 2021. "Constructing the Audit Risk Assessment by the Audit Team Leader When Planning: Using Fuzzy Theory," Mathematics, MDPI, vol. 9(23), pages 1-22, November.
    5. Rodrigues, Lúcia Lima & Craig, Russell, 2022. "Using historical institutional analysis of corporatism to understand the professionalization of accounting in Latin America," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 97(C).
    6. Nuria Reguera-Alvarado & Pilar Fuentes & Joaquina Laffarga, 2017. "Does Board Gender Diversity Influence Financial Performance? Evidence from Spain," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 141(2), pages 337-350, March.
    7. Barrainkua, Itsaso & Espinosa-Pike, Marcela, 2018. "The influence of auditors’ professionalism on ethical judgement: Differences among practitioners and postgraduate students," Revista de Contabilidad - Spanish Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 21(2), pages 176-187.
    8. Jeacle, Ingrid, 2011. "A practice of her own: Female career success beyond the accounting firm," CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ACCOUNTING, Elsevier, vol. 22(3), pages 288-303.
    9. Zhu, Jingqi & Spence, Crawford & Ezzamel, Mahmoud, 2021. "Thinking like the state: Doxa and symbolic power in the accounting field in China," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 93(C).
    10. Carmona, Salvador, 2013. "Accounting curriculum reform? The devil is in the detail," CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ACCOUNTING, Elsevier, vol. 24(2), pages 113-119.
    11. Haynes, Kathryn, 2017. "Accounting as gendering and gendered: A review of 25 years of critical accounting research on gender," CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ACCOUNTING, Elsevier, vol. 43(C), pages 110-124.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Lambert, Caroline & Dambrin, Claire, 2006. "La question du genre en comptabilité : analyses théoriques et méthodologiques," HEC Research Papers Series 843, HEC Paris.
    2. Claire Dambrin & Caroline Virginie Lambert, 2006. "Le Plafond De Verre Dans Les Cabinets D'Audit Questions Theoriques Et Methodologiques," Post-Print halshs-00558352, HAL.
    3. Claire Dambrin & Caroline Virginie Lambert, 2006. "Le Plafond De Verre Dans Les Cabinets D'Audit – Questions Theoriques Et Methodologiques," Post-Print halshs-00548047, HAL.
    4. Dambrin, Claire & Lambert, Caroline, 2012. "Who is she and who are we? A reflexive journey in research into the rarity of women in the highest ranks of accountancy," CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ACCOUNTING, Elsevier, vol. 23(1), pages 1-16.
    5. Ioana Ioan, 2009. "Women in the French accountancy profession: the test of the labyrinth," Post-Print halshs-00475216, HAL.
    6. Haynes, Kathryn, 2017. "Accounting as gendering and gendered: A review of 25 years of critical accounting research on gender," CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ACCOUNTING, Elsevier, vol. 43(C), pages 110-124.
    7. Anderson-Gough, Fiona & Grey, Christopher & Robson, Keith, 2005. ""Helping them to forget..": the organizational embedding of gender relations in public audit firms," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 30(5), pages 469-490, July.
    8. Dambrin, Claire & Lambert, Caroline, 2007. "Motherhood: The key to the glass ceiling ? the case of the big four in France," HEC Research Papers Series 862, HEC Paris.
    9. Haynes, Kathryn, 2008. "Transforming identities: Accounting professionals and the transition to motherhood," CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ACCOUNTING, Elsevier, vol. 19(5), pages 620-642.
    10. Haynes, Kathryn, 2008. "(Re)figuring accounting and maternal bodies: The gendered embodiment of accounting professionals," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 33(4-5), pages 328-348.
    11. Bitbol-Saba, Nathalie & Dambrin, Claire, 2019. "“It’s not often we get a visit from a beautiful woman!” The body in client-auditor interactions and the masculinity of accountancy," CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ACCOUNTING, Elsevier, vol. 64(C).
    12. Michèle Saboly & Rim Khemiri, 2011. "Les femmes experts-comptables en Tunisie : Perceptions et réalités," Post-Print hal-00650536, HAL.
    13. Gammie, Elizabeth & Whiting, Rosalind, 2013. "Women accountants: Is the grass greener outside the profession?," The British Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 45(2), pages 83-98.
    14. Maria-Victoria Uribe-Bohorquez & Juan-Camilo Rivera-Ordóñez & Isabel-María García-Sánchez, 2023. "Gender disparities in accounting academia: analysis from the lens of publications," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 128(7), pages 3827-3865, July.
    15. Walker, S. P., 1998. "How to secure your husband's esteem. Accounting and private patriarchy in the British middle class household during the nineteenth century," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 23(5-6), pages 485-514.
    16. Peytcheva, Marietta, 2023. "He, him, his: Masculine language in professional guidance and assessed equity and inclusion of women and LGBTQ+ people in the profession," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 106(C).
    17. Barker, Patricia C. & Monks, Kathy, 1998. "Irish women accountants and career progression: a research note," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 23(8), pages 813-823, November.
    18. Ken Shackleton, 1999. "Gender segregation in Scottish chartered accountancy: the deployment of male concerns about the admission of women, 1900-25," Accounting History Review, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 9(1), pages 135-156.
    19. Jeacle, Ingrid, 2011. "A practice of her own: Female career success beyond the accounting firm," CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ACCOUNTING, Elsevier, vol. 22(3), pages 288-303.
    20. Annisette, Marcia, 2003. "The colour of accountancy: examining the salience of race in a professionalisation project," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 28(7-8), pages 639-674.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:taf:euract:v:10:y:2001:i:4:p:803-815. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Chris Longhurst (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.tandfonline.com/REAR20 .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.