Reviewed by Rodney R. Michael Michigan Technological University
There is much to admire in Booth’s indepth study of accounting processes within an Australian religious organization. His methodology and interpretations provide a tightly woven argument that could serve as a model for future archival studies by researchers with an inclination toward critical perspectives. By combining archival evidence, semiquantitative techniques and interpretive arguments, Booth leads the reader through the murky series of associations that both defines and explains the cultural origins of accounting’s rise to organizational significance.
A particularly appealing feature of this book is Booth’s forthright approach and writing style. Although lapsing occasionally into critical jargon, Booth avoids obfuscation. Assumptions are clearly stated, research techniques are selfcritiqued, and reasonable attention is given to alternative explanations. In short, although one may disagree with Booth’s philosophy, his methodology is sound.
At first reading, Booth’s work, which is based upon his doctoral thesis, appears to flirt with pedantry. For example, similar to a dissertation, the first three chapters (100 pages) are devoted to background and rationale, an overview of a critical structuralist perspective, and a description of ihe research method, respectively. However, this lengthy preamble is justifiable since it provides a necessary background for readers unfamiliar with critical perspectives.
The actual analysis begins with the fourth chapter, which defines the organization’s accounting systems and discusses the emergence of a financial crisis. The next chapter documents how the accounting system was actually used by the various stakeholders and relates such usage to the emergent financial crisis. The budgeting process, through which resources were allocated, is shown to have been the primary point of conflict between secular and sacred objectives. The sixth chapter describes in great (and mostly believable) detail, how secular concerns for financial and administrative control were unsuccessfully resisted by the sacred elements of the organization. The concluding chapter provides a succinct summary of the study, then places the organizational tensions and conflicts within a theoretical context.
Booth’s analysis of the friction surrounding the emergence of accounting control is both thoughtprovoking and insightful at the organizational level. However, this reader was left with the uncomfortable feeling that the arguments were incomplete in the absence of a critical assessment of the motivations of the participants. For example, Booth seems to accept, at face value, that resistance to financial controls was based exclusively upon the primacy of sacred objectives. It is tempting to relate Booth’s observations to similar conflicts within a corporate environment, where actions are seldom altruistic, and ask if religious organizations are immune to similar motivations.
Booth has written a fine addition to a growing body of work that challenges functionalist perceptions of accounting processes. This book is highly recommended as an excellent example of the emergent genre of deep archival studies based upon critical perspectives.
