IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/bracre/v48y2016i1p1-16.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Intellectual capital, calculability and qualculation

Author

Listed:
  • Rooney, Jim
  • Dumay, John

Abstract

The literature on accounting for intellectual capital (IC) and, in particular, IC reporting suggests a preoccupation with measurement. While foundational for a calculative practice, this may eclipse the socially embedded facets of this accounting technology. The consequences include bringing into question the usefulness of IC reporting. Accordingly, we argue for a reflexive analysis of IC as a material, social phenomenon facilitating organisational change. In this paper we examine and reflect on how IC practices influence individual understanding of organisational change, developing insights into how social relations are identified, communicated and transformed. The overall contribution of the paper is to highlight how calculative practices, such as accounting for IC, are balanced with judgment in understanding and managing IC during periods of organisational change.

Suggested Citation

  • Rooney, Jim & Dumay, John, 2016. "Intellectual capital, calculability and qualculation," The British Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 48(1), pages 1-16.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:bracre:v:48:y:2016:i:1:p:1-16
    DOI: 10.1016/j.bar.2015.07.002
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0890838915000359
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.bar.2015.07.002?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. R. G. Walker, 2009. "Public Sector Consolidated Statements—an Assessment," Abacus, Accounting Foundation, University of Sydney, vol. 45(2), pages 171-220, June.
    2. Ahrens, Thomas & Chapman, Christopher S., 2006. "Doing qualitative field research in management accounting: Positioning data to contribute to theory," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 31(8), pages 819-841, November.
    3. Quattrone, Paolo, 2009. "Books to be practiced: Memory, the power of the visual, and the success of accounting," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 34(1), pages 85-118, January.
    4. Baruch Lev & Suresh Radhakrishnan & Weining Zhang, 2009. "Organization Capital," Abacus, Accounting Foundation, University of Sydney, vol. 45(3), pages 275-298, September.
    5. Vaivio, J., 2006. "The accounting of "The Meeting": Examining calculability within a "Fluid" local space," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 31(8), pages 735-762, November.
    6. Vollmer, Hendrik, 2007. "How to do more with numbers: Elementary stakes, framing, keying, and the three-dimensional character of numerical signs," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 32(6), pages 577-600, August.
    7. Olov Olson & Christopher Humphrey & James Guthrie, 2001. "Caught in an evaluatory trap: a dilemma for public services under NPFM," European Accounting Review, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 10(3), pages 505-522.
    8. Houghton, Susan M. & Smith, Anne D. & Hood, Jacqueline N., 2009. "The influence of social capital on strategic choice: An examination of the effects of external and internal network relationships on strategic complexity," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 62(12), pages 1255-1261, December.
    9. Napier, Christopher J., 2006. "Accounts of change: 30 years of historical accounting research," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 31(4-5), pages 445-507.
    10. R. G. Walker, 2009. "Discussion of Lev, Radhakrishnan and Zhang," Abacus, Accounting Foundation, University of Sydney, vol. 45(3), pages 299-311, September.
    11. Roberts, John & Sanderson, Paul & Barker, Richard & Hendry, John, 2006. "In the mirror of the market: The disciplinary effects of company/fund manager meetings," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 31(3), pages 277-294, April.
    12. Allan Barton, 2009. "The Use and Abuse of Accounting in the Public Sector Financial Management Reform Program in Australia," Abacus, Accounting Foundation, University of Sydney, vol. 45(2), pages 221-248, June.
    13. Meer-Kooistra, Jeltje van der & Zijlstra, Siebren M., 2001. "Reporting on intellectual capital," Research Report 01E50, University of Groningen, Research Institute SOM (Systems, Organisations and Management).
    14. repec:dgr:rugsom:01e50 is not listed on IDEAS
    15. Guthrie, James & Ricceri, Federica & Dumay, John, 2012. "Reflections and projections: A decade of Intellectual Capital Accounting Research," The British Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 44(2), pages 68-82.
    16. Chenhall, Robert H., 2003. "Management control systems design within its organizational context: findings from contingency-based research and directions for the future," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 28(2-3), pages 127-168.
    17. Ditillo, Angelo, 2004. "Dealing with uncertainty in knowledge-intensive firms: the role of management control systems as knowledge integration mechanisms," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 29(3-4), pages 401-421.
    18. Esther Cheung & Elaine Evans & Sue Wright, 2008. "The adoption of IFRS in Australia: The case of AASB 138 (IAS 38) Intangible Assets," Australian Accounting Review, CPA Australia, vol. 18(3), pages 248-256, September.
    19. Vollmer, Hendrik & Mennicken, Andrea & Preda, Alex, 2009. "Tracking the numbers: Across accounting and finance, organizations and markets," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 34(5), pages 619-637, July.
    20. Kerry Jacobs & Suresh Cuganesan, 2014. "Interdisciplinary accounting research in the Public Sector," Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 27(8), pages 1250-1256, October.
    21. Edgley, Carla, 2014. "A genealogy of accounting materiality," CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ACCOUNTING, Elsevier, vol. 25(3), pages 255-271.
    22. Flamholtz, Eric G., 1983. "Accounting, budgeting and control systems in their organizational context: Theoretical and empirical perspectives," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 8(2-3), pages 153-169, May.
    23. Michel Callon & Fabian Muniesa, 2005. "Economic markets as calculative collective devices," Post-Print halshs-00087477, HAL.
    24. repec:dau:papers:123456789/1094 is not listed on IDEAS
    25. Irvine Lapsley & Riccardo Mussari & Gert Paulsson, 2009. "On the Adoption of Accrual Accounting in the Public Sector: A Self-Evident and Problematic Reform," European Accounting Review, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 18(4), pages 719-723.
    26. Suresh Cuganesan & Christina Boedker & James Guthrie, 2007. "Enrolling discourse consumers to affect material intellectual capital practice," Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 20(6), pages 883-911, October.
    27. Vollmer, Hendrik & Mennicken, Andrea & Preda, Alex, 2009. "Tracking the numbers: across accounting and finance, organizations and markets," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 27073, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    28. Fabian Muniesa & Yuval Millo & Michel Callon, 2007. "An introduction to market devices," Post-Print halshs-00177928, HAL.
    29. Marc Wouters & Diana Roijmans, 2011. "Using Prototypes to Induce Experimentation and Knowledge Integration in the Development of Enabling Accounting Information," Contemporary Accounting Research, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 28(2), pages 708-736, June.
    30. Robson, Keith, 1992. "Accounting numbers as "inscription": Action at a distance and the development of accounting," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 17(7), pages 685-708, October.
    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. H.S.M. Deghles & N.R. Kelchevskaya, 2021. "The Impact of Intellectual Capital on Performance and Investment Attractiveness of Russian Companies," Journal of Applied Economic Research, Graduate School of Economics and Management, Ural Federal University, vol. 20(1), pages 110-132.
    2. Nagwan AlQershi & Sany Sanuri Mohd Mokhtar & Zakaria Abas, 2022. "The influence of structural capital on the relationship between CRM implementation and the performance of manufacturing SMEs," International Journal of System Assurance Engineering and Management, Springer;The Society for Reliability, Engineering Quality and Operations Management (SREQOM),India, and Division of Operation and Maintenance, Lulea University of Technology, Sweden, vol. 13(3), pages 1205-1218, June.
    3. Smuda-Kocoń Marlena, 2019. "Corporate governance vs management of the intellectual capital of banks: Structural equation modeling (SEM)," International Journal of Management and Economics, Warsaw School of Economics, Collegium of World Economy, vol. 55(4), pages 319-330, December.
    4. Alexander, David & Blum, Véronique, 2016. "Ecological economics: A Luhmannian analysis of integrated reporting," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 129(C), pages 241-251.
    5. Wilder Quintero-Quintero & Ana Beatriz Blanco-Ariza & Manuel Alfonso Garzón-Castrillón, 2021. "Intellectual Capital: A Review and Bibliometric Analysis," Publications, MDPI, vol. 9(4), pages 1-23, October.
    6. Xin Long Xu & Jianping Li & Dengsheng Wu & Xi Zhang, 2021. "The intellectual capital efficiency and corporate sustainable growth nexus: comparison from agriculture, tourism and renewable energy sector," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 23(11), pages 16038-16056, November.

    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. Hall, Matthew, 2010. "Accounting information and managerial work," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 35(3), pages 301-315, April.
    2. Vollmer, Hendrik & Mennicken, Andrea & Preda, Alex, 2009. "Tracking the numbers: Across accounting and finance, organizations and markets," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 34(5), pages 619-637, July.
    3. Pollock, Neil & D’Adderio, Luciana, 2012. "Give me a two-by-two matrix and I will create the market: Rankings, graphic visualisations and sociomateriality," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 37(8), pages 565-586.
    4. Faulconbridge, James R. & Muzio, Daniel, 2021. "Valuation devices and the dynamic legitimacy-performativity nexus: The case of PEP in the English legal profession," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 91(C).
    5. Chenhall, Robert H. & Hall, Matthew & Smith, David, 2013. "Performance measurement, modes of evaluation and the development of compromising accounts," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 51294, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    6. Williams, James W., 2013. "Regulatory technologies, risky subjects, and financial boundaries: Governing ‘fraud’ in the financial markets," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 38(6), pages 544-558.
    7. Nikidehaghani, Mona & Cortese, Corinne & Hui-Truscott, Freda, 2021. "Accounting and pastoral power in Australian disability welfare reform," CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ACCOUNTING, Elsevier, vol. 80(C).
    8. Ahblom, Per & Sjögren, Ebba, 2019. "Delivering performance: the capital market framing of financial numbers from a preparer perspective," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 102819, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    9. Kornberger Martin & Pflueger Dane & Mouritsen Jan, 2017. "Evaluative infrastructures : Accounting for platform organization," Post-Print hal-02276737, HAL.
    10. Mundy, Julia, 2010. "Creating dynamic tensions through a balanced use of management control systems," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 35(5), pages 499-523, July.
    11. Huikku, Jari & Mouritsen, Jan & Silvola, Hanna, 2017. "Relative reliability and the recognisable firm: Calculating goodwill impairment value," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 56(C), pages 68-83.
    12. Graaf, Johan & Johed, Gustav, 2020. "“Reverse brokering” and the consumption of accounting: A broker desk ethnography of an investment case," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 85(C).
    13. Bay, Charlotta, 2018. "Makeover accounting: Investigating the meaning-making practices of financial accounts," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 64(C), pages 44-54.
    14. Kornberger, Martin & Pflueger, Dane & Mouritsen, Jan, 2017. "Evaluative infrastructures: Accounting for platform organization," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 60(C), pages 79-95.
    15. Le Theule, Marie-Astrid & Lupu, Ioana, 2016. "Publishing without editors or authors? Competing logics, circulation, and cultural creation in a publishing firm," CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ACCOUNTING, Elsevier, vol. 38(C), pages 14-33.
    16. Giovannoni, Elena & Quarchioni, Sonia, 2019. "Exploring the generative power of performance measurement systems design," The British Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 51(2), pages 211-225.
    17. Thiemann, Matthias & Friedrich, Jan, 2016. "Drawing the line: The political economy of offbalance sheet financing," economic sociology. perspectives and conversations, Max Planck Institute for the Study of Societies, vol. 17(2), pages 7-16.
    18. André, Kévin & Cho, Charles H. & Laine, Matias, 2018. "Reference points for measuring social performance: Case study of a social business venture," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 33(5), pages 660-678.
    19. Power, Sean Bradley & Brennan, Niamh M., 2022. "Accounting as a dehumanizing force in colonial rhetoric: Quantifying native peoples in annual reports," CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ACCOUNTING, Elsevier, vol. 87(C).
    20. Parulian Silaen & Robert Williams, 2009. "Management control systems: a model for R&D units," Accounting Research Journal, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 22(3), pages 262-274, November.

    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:eee:bracre:v:48:y:2016:i:1:p:1-16. 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: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.journals.elsevier.com/the-british-accounting-review .

    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.