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Making transparency real? Accounting and popular participation in corruption control

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  • Johnston, Michael

Abstract

Accounting, broadly defined, has been the focus of high hopes and expectations for centuries. Classic works of art from The Netherlands, for example, depict the settling of accounts as not only a personal but a civic virtue—as a critical factor in the nation's development and prosperity. In that light it is not surprising that today's anti-corruption groups often see accounting and accountants as obvious parts of the reform repertoire, and as more or less inevitably helping produce better government. But the early successes of accounting had as much to do with the interests and interactions of a small class of elites as with any inherent redemptive qualities of the techniques themselves. A similar logic applies to the contemporary anti-corruption uses of accounting: because the techniques themselves can serve and conceal all manner of interests and agendas, their effectiveness in controlling corruption will depend upon support from active and sustainable reform constituencies. Skilled and rigorous accounting techniques can become a powerful anti-corruption force, but active support from elites and citizens alike must demand that they be dedicated to that agenda.

Suggested Citation

  • Johnston, Michael, 2015. "Making transparency real? Accounting and popular participation in corruption control," CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ACCOUNTING, Elsevier, vol. 28(C), pages 97-101.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:crpeac:v:28:y:2015:i:c:p:97-101
    DOI: 10.1016/j.cpa.2015.01.009
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    Cited by:

    1. Ferry, Laurence & Funnell, Warwick & Oldroyd, David, 2023. "A genealogical and archaeological examination of the development of corporate governance and disciplinary power in English local government c.1970–2010," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 109(C).
    2. Bertrand Venard & Kezang Tshering, 2021. "Barriers to transparency in Bhutan's public administration: A new typology of opacity," Public Administration & Development, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 41(4), pages 203-216, October.
    3. Hackett, Franki & Janský, Petr, 2023. "Incremental improvement: Evaluating the emancipatory impact of public country-by-country reporting," CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ACCOUNTING, Elsevier, vol. 96(C).
    4. Reshma Kumari Tiwari & Jasojit Debnath, 2021. "Joint Provision of Non-audit Services to Audit Clients: Empirical Evidences from India," Vikalpa: The Journal for Decision Makers, , vol. 46(3), pages 153-165, September.
    5. Mauro, Sara Giovanna & Cinquini, Lino & Pianezzi, Daniela, 2021. "New Public Management between reality and illusion: Analysing the validity of performance-based budgeting," The British Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 53(6).
    6. Pianezzi, Daniela & Ashraf, Muhammad Junaid, 2022. "Accounting for ignorance: An investigation into corruption, immigration and the state," CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ACCOUNTING, Elsevier, vol. 86(C).
    7. Finér, Lauri & Ylönen, Matti, 2017. "Tax-driven wealth chains: A multiple case study of tax avoidance in the finnish mining sector," CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ACCOUNTING, Elsevier, vol. 48(C), pages 53-81.
    8. Changwony, Frederick Kibon & Paterson, Audrey S., 2019. "Accounting practice, fiscal decentralization and corruption," The British Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 51(5).

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