Research on financial accounting and uncertainty: developments and departures
Ó hÓgartaigh, Ciarán
(1996)
Research on financial accounting and uncertainty: developments and departures.
DCU Business School Research Paper Series.
(Paper No. 11). Dublin City University Business School, Ireland. ISSN: 1393-290X
This paper is concerned with uncertainty and accounting. Research carried out in the area to date and the proposed future direction of the research are explored. Potential
hypotheses concerning user reaction to disclosures of uncertainty in financial statements are discussed. These hypotheses suggest that increased information regarding uncertainty may be relevant to userss and may change their confidence concerning their decisions. It may also contribute to a firmer social, `intersubjective' reality. An experimental framework within which such hypotheses might be explored is developed. The paper then discusses the problems foreseen with the future implementation of these experiments and how these problems might be minimised.
The paper concludes by briefly commenting on the role of accounting disclosure in an uncertain world.