Accounting, accountability and governance in non-governmental organizations

The chapter commences with a brief introduction to the nature and context of non-governmental organizations. There follows an outline of the general definitional and research approaches which have been adopted by practitioners and academics in the prior literature. Practitioner approaches have largely been influenced by broader New Public Management. A dichotomy exists in academic approaches and primarily includes those who view accounting, accountability and governance in hierarchical terms, with an emphasis on procedures and processes, tending to regard accountability as an objective phenomenon. The other major approach involves those who take a more subjective approach and view accountability as something which is perceived and ascribed meaning by participants. The next section comprises a brief descriptive overview of the principal research which has been undertaken. This is followed by a thematic analysis of the findings of the prior research. The final section outlines issues and recommendations for future research from both practitioner and academic perspectives.