- Email: [email protected]
Special Issue: “The role of accounting technologies in the creation of social and societal risk”
Critical Perspectives on Accounting 35 (2016) III–IV
Contents lists available at ScienceDirect
Critical Perspectives on Accounting journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/cpa
Call for Papers
Special Issue: “The role of accounting technologies in the creation of social and societal risk” Darinka Asenova (Guest Editor), Andrea Coulson (Guest Editor), Alex de-Ruyter (Guest Editor), Stephen J. Bailey (Guest Editor) Glasgow Caledonian University, United KingdomStrathclyde University, United Kingdom
Theme Over recent years, the accounting profession has increasingly engaged with issues such as social and sustainable accounting, accountability and risk. This coincides with conceptual shift beyond the traditional New Public Management approach (Bryson, Crosby, & Bloomberg, 2014) towards broader interpretation of human value, reflected in the concepts of social and societal risk. While both social and societal risks are concerned with impacts on human value, the former emphasises the need for social protection and the latter emphasises the public nature of those risks (Asenova, Bailey, & McCann, 2013, Asenova, McKendrick, McCann, & Reynolds, 2015; Asenova & Stein, 2014; Navicke, 2014). Both types of risk have been linked with experience of unemployment, increased health inequalities, financial instability, reduced educational attainment, loneliness and a breakdown of support networks, both formal and informal (ibid.). Taking the example of the UK, emerging evidence suggests austerity measures impact more acutely on disadvantaged groups and communities (Hastings et al., 2013, Hastings, Bailey, Bramley, Gannon, & Watkins, 2015). Cuts to public services and complex on-going changes to welfare provision are making daily existence in some UK communities ever more challenging. These changes not only imply budget and resource constraints; collectively, they intensify existing societal problems by a redistribution of risk from the state to individuals and communities with less capacity to absorb or mitigate them. It has become increasingly apparent that public finance and budgetary and accounting decisions entail social risks which have been exacerbated by the cumulative impact of on-going austerity measures. As public sector budget cuts on a global scale and welfare reforms increasingly transfer responsibility for dealing with risk away from the state, institutions such as regional and local governments play an important role in managing, mitigating and redistributing social and societal risk. Reduced provision of services such as educational support, youth services, leisure and social care, coupled with the welfare reform agenda, are likely to induce and deepen poverty for many vulnerable groups and exacerbate both the social and societal risks which these groups appear insufficiently skilled and equipped to handle. Accounting professionals are closely involved in such decision making with explicit and implicit risk implications. However, the risk impacts of those decisions typically do not feature in financial accounts or audits, these typically only consider explicit costs (see for example Audit Scotland, 2014; Brewer, 2011). Hence both academia in the widest sense and accounting professionals in particular have the opportunity to make important contributions to the creation and abatement of social and societal risks. As such, we are pleased to announce a special issue of CPA with the general theme of The role of accounting technologies in the creation of social and societal risk. Considering the role of accountants and the transformative potential of the accounting profession during a period of increased service needs, resource constraints and social vulnerability, this special
E-mail addresses: [email protected] (D. Asenova), [email protected] (A. Coulson), [email protected] (A. de-Ruyter), [email protected] (S.J. Bailey). http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S1045-2354(16)00018-6 1045-2354/
IV
D. Asenova et al. / Critical Perspectives on Accounting 35 (2016) III–IV
issue will adopt a multi-disciplinary perspective to explore topics on social and societal risk across a range of empirical contexts and from a number of theoretical angles. Possible themes will include: • • • • • • •
accounting, auditing and the treatment of risk inequality and risk within a prolonged austerity scenario alternative professional approaches to accounting for risk risk, decision making and accountability regulation, accountability and risk resilience and local public finances methodological and theoretical aspects of accounting and auditing to manage and mitigate social and societal concerns
Guidelines for authors All submissions should adhere to the format and style guidelines of the Critical Perspectives on Accounting Journal. A guide for authors, sample copies and other relevant information for Submitting papers are available at: http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/journaldescription.cws home/622813/authorinstructions Please note that manuscripts for this special edition should be submitted through the CPA ees hub – http://ees.elsevier.com/ycpac/ by 31st October, 2016. Early submissions and communications with the guest editors are encouraged. All papers will be blind reviewed by at least two anonymous referees. Please approach any or all of the guest editors is you wish to explore the possibilities of submitting a paper. We would also appreciate your bringing this call to the attention of colleagues in other disciplines who might wish to contribute. References Asenova D, McKendrick J, McCann C, Reynolds R. Redistribution of social and societal risk: The impact on individuals, their networks and communities; 2015, Available at: http://www.jrf.org.uk/sites/files/jrf/social-societal-risk-full.pdf. Asenova D, Stein B. Assessing social and community risks of council spending cuts in Scotland; 2014, Available at: http://www.jrf.org.uk/sites/files/jrf/Risk Spending cuts Scotland FULL.pdf. Asenova D, Bailey SJ, McCann C. Managing the risks of public spending cuts in Scotland; 2013, Available at: http://www.jrf.org.uk/sites/files/jrf/ public-spending-cuts-scotland-full.pdf. Audit Scotland. An overview of local government in Scotland 2014. Accounts Commission; 2014, Available at http://www.audit-scotland.gov.uk/docs/local/ 2014/nr 140327 local government overview.pdf. Brewer M. Discussion paper: Developing effective ex ante social impact assessment with a focus on methodology tools and data sources. Colchester: Institute of Social and Economic Research, University of Essex; 2011. Bryson J, Crosby B, Bloomberg L. Public Value Governance: Moving Beyond Traditional Public Administration and the New Public Management. Public Administration Review 2014;74(4):445–56. Hastings A, Bailey N, Besemer K, Bramley G, Gannon M, Watkins D. Coping with the cuts? Local government and poorer communities. York: Joseph Rowntree Foundation; 2013. Hastings A, Bailey N, Bramley G, Gannon M, Watkins D. The cost of the cuts? The impact on local government and poorer communities. York: Joseph Rowntree Foundation; 2015. Navicke J. EUROMOD Working Paper Series, EM 4/14 edn Between a risk society and a welfare state: social risk resilience and vulnerability to poverty in Lithuania EUROMOD Working Paper Series, EM 4/14 edn. Colchester: Institute of Social and Economic Research; 2014.
Contents lists available at ScienceDirect
Critical Perspectives on Accounting journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/cpa
Call for Papers
Special Issue: “The role of accounting technologies in the creation of social and societal risk” Darinka Asenova (Guest Editor), Andrea Coulson (Guest Editor), Alex de-Ruyter (Guest Editor), Stephen J. Bailey (Guest Editor) Glasgow Caledonian University, United KingdomStrathclyde University, United Kingdom
Theme Over recent years, the accounting profession has increasingly engaged with issues such as social and sustainable accounting, accountability and risk. This coincides with conceptual shift beyond the traditional New Public Management approach (Bryson, Crosby, & Bloomberg, 2014) towards broader interpretation of human value, reflected in the concepts of social and societal risk. While both social and societal risks are concerned with impacts on human value, the former emphasises the need for social protection and the latter emphasises the public nature of those risks (Asenova, Bailey, & McCann, 2013, Asenova, McKendrick, McCann, & Reynolds, 2015; Asenova & Stein, 2014; Navicke, 2014). Both types of risk have been linked with experience of unemployment, increased health inequalities, financial instability, reduced educational attainment, loneliness and a breakdown of support networks, both formal and informal (ibid.). Taking the example of the UK, emerging evidence suggests austerity measures impact more acutely on disadvantaged groups and communities (Hastings et al., 2013, Hastings, Bailey, Bramley, Gannon, & Watkins, 2015). Cuts to public services and complex on-going changes to welfare provision are making daily existence in some UK communities ever more challenging. These changes not only imply budget and resource constraints; collectively, they intensify existing societal problems by a redistribution of risk from the state to individuals and communities with less capacity to absorb or mitigate them. It has become increasingly apparent that public finance and budgetary and accounting decisions entail social risks which have been exacerbated by the cumulative impact of on-going austerity measures. As public sector budget cuts on a global scale and welfare reforms increasingly transfer responsibility for dealing with risk away from the state, institutions such as regional and local governments play an important role in managing, mitigating and redistributing social and societal risk. Reduced provision of services such as educational support, youth services, leisure and social care, coupled with the welfare reform agenda, are likely to induce and deepen poverty for many vulnerable groups and exacerbate both the social and societal risks which these groups appear insufficiently skilled and equipped to handle. Accounting professionals are closely involved in such decision making with explicit and implicit risk implications. However, the risk impacts of those decisions typically do not feature in financial accounts or audits, these typically only consider explicit costs (see for example Audit Scotland, 2014; Brewer, 2011). Hence both academia in the widest sense and accounting professionals in particular have the opportunity to make important contributions to the creation and abatement of social and societal risks. As such, we are pleased to announce a special issue of CPA with the general theme of The role of accounting technologies in the creation of social and societal risk. Considering the role of accountants and the transformative potential of the accounting profession during a period of increased service needs, resource constraints and social vulnerability, this special
E-mail addresses: [email protected] (D. Asenova), [email protected] (A. Coulson), [email protected] (A. de-Ruyter), [email protected] (S.J. Bailey). http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S1045-2354(16)00018-6 1045-2354/
IV
D. Asenova et al. / Critical Perspectives on Accounting 35 (2016) III–IV
issue will adopt a multi-disciplinary perspective to explore topics on social and societal risk across a range of empirical contexts and from a number of theoretical angles. Possible themes will include: • • • • • • •
accounting, auditing and the treatment of risk inequality and risk within a prolonged austerity scenario alternative professional approaches to accounting for risk risk, decision making and accountability regulation, accountability and risk resilience and local public finances methodological and theoretical aspects of accounting and auditing to manage and mitigate social and societal concerns
Guidelines for authors All submissions should adhere to the format and style guidelines of the Critical Perspectives on Accounting Journal. A guide for authors, sample copies and other relevant information for Submitting papers are available at: http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/journaldescription.cws home/622813/authorinstructions Please note that manuscripts for this special edition should be submitted through the CPA ees hub – http://ees.elsevier.com/ycpac/ by 31st October, 2016. Early submissions and communications with the guest editors are encouraged. All papers will be blind reviewed by at least two anonymous referees. Please approach any or all of the guest editors is you wish to explore the possibilities of submitting a paper. We would also appreciate your bringing this call to the attention of colleagues in other disciplines who might wish to contribute. References Asenova D, McKendrick J, McCann C, Reynolds R. Redistribution of social and societal risk: The impact on individuals, their networks and communities; 2015, Available at: http://www.jrf.org.uk/sites/files/jrf/social-societal-risk-full.pdf. Asenova D, Stein B. Assessing social and community risks of council spending cuts in Scotland; 2014, Available at: http://www.jrf.org.uk/sites/files/jrf/Risk Spending cuts Scotland FULL.pdf. Asenova D, Bailey SJ, McCann C. Managing the risks of public spending cuts in Scotland; 2013, Available at: http://www.jrf.org.uk/sites/files/jrf/ public-spending-cuts-scotland-full.pdf. Audit Scotland. An overview of local government in Scotland 2014. Accounts Commission; 2014, Available at http://www.audit-scotland.gov.uk/docs/local/ 2014/nr 140327 local government overview.pdf. Brewer M. Discussion paper: Developing effective ex ante social impact assessment with a focus on methodology tools and data sources. Colchester: Institute of Social and Economic Research, University of Essex; 2011. Bryson J, Crosby B, Bloomberg L. Public Value Governance: Moving Beyond Traditional Public Administration and the New Public Management. Public Administration Review 2014;74(4):445–56. Hastings A, Bailey N, Besemer K, Bramley G, Gannon M, Watkins D. Coping with the cuts? Local government and poorer communities. York: Joseph Rowntree Foundation; 2013. Hastings A, Bailey N, Bramley G, Gannon M, Watkins D. The cost of the cuts? The impact on local government and poorer communities. York: Joseph Rowntree Foundation; 2015. Navicke J. EUROMOD Working Paper Series, EM 4/14 edn Between a risk society and a welfare state: social risk resilience and vulnerability to poverty in Lithuania EUROMOD Working Paper Series, EM 4/14 edn. Colchester: Institute of Social and Economic Research; 2014.