Reviewed by Cheryl S. McWatters McGill University
This volume is a collection of papers dealing with the history of Canadian accounting institutions, standard setting and practice. The title is misleading in that the volume does not examine in depth “Canadian accounting thought.” The latter is dismissed in the introduction [p. 1] by stating that neither the academic literature not its setting are included. The anthology is divided into five groupings: Early Records; The Profession; Standard Setting; Inquiries and Regulation; and Chronologies. The introduction provides a brief overview of the articles and the rationale for their inclusion.
The “Early Records” section contains four articles dealing with earlyCanadian accounting practice. One article is a reprint of an early bookkeeping primer. The introduction states that it “is quite likely the earliest extant version of its kind in Canada” [p. 2]. Apart from antiquarian interest, this appears to be the primary justification for its inclusion, as there is no analysis of the document. The remaining three articles, all of which are written or coauthored by the same individual, are descriptive in nature. The articles have a notable tendency to compare past and presentday practice in terms of their relative sophistication and merit. The archival study by Felton and Mann does provide some limited comparison of the source records to textbooks and other documents from the period under review.
Section II examines “The Profession” with emphasis upon the development of chartered accountancy and auditing. A striking contrast is the tone of the articles written by practitioners and of those by Richardson. The former clearly state the professional responsibility of accountants in terms of (a) the financial wellbeing of clients, and (b) ethical obligation. Richardson is more critical, presenting professionalization in terms of intraprofessional competition, professional identity and segmentation. Increased educational standards are viewed as a means of closing the profession, rather than as the professions aim to better serve the client and the public interest. Three articles by Richardson are included here. They are somewhat repetitive, and their emphasis upon sociological theory diminishes their readability for those less than wellversed in the theoretical constructs and vocabulary. Murphy’s article on financial statement disclosure is out of place here, and overlaps to some degree with other articles in the anthology.
Section III reviews “Standard Setting” with articles which are more complementary. Gray’s article provides insight into prevalent financialstatement presentation of the earlytwentieth century. Quite simply, practice went beyond the legislative requirements of the period. Zeffs article contributes a comparative analysis of international developments which have influenced Canadian standard setting. Other articles examine the continued debate over a conceptual framework, including the efforts to develop a homegrown Canadian version. The resulting CICA Handbook “Financial Statements Concepts” (included in the volume) reflect parallel FASB concepts, but with the caveat that these concepts do not establish standards nor overrule any specific Handbook recommendation or any other generally accepted accounting principle.
“Legislation, Inquiries and Regulation,” the topic of Section IV, broadly reviews these issues in terms of the gap between the expectations of the profession and those of the public. An article from the 1930s reinforces the longstanding nature of the issue, while the remaining articles are more contemporary in nature. One paper does compare two events separated chronologically by several decades. Overall, the emphasis is upon the required adaptation of the auditing profession and the standardsetting process in light of demands for greater quantity and quality of financial analysis and disclosure. The role of professional judgment must be soundly exercised and selfdiscipline strengthened in order to preserve the profession’s credibility and to reduce the threat of increased regulation. In a number of articles, interesting parallels are drawn between the Canadian and U.S. experience, chiefly the greater tendency for litigation in the United States and the recent trend of the Ontario Securities Commission to use its powers (similar to those of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission) to influence the standardsetting process and disclosure requirements.
The final section contains two chronologies: the first of corporate financial reporting; the second of the development of accounting associations. The chronologies and their respective bibliographies are a useful starting point for future research.
Overall, the anthology suffers some limitations. The intended audience is not selfevident. Repetition and overlap, especially the reliance upon three authors, have contributed to a lengthy and expensive tome. The quality of the typesetting and the reproduction of the articles make for difficult reading. The volume does not meet the title’s claim to be a history of Canadian thought and practice. However, the selected material does serve to provoke interest in certain elements in need of further research.
