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CREATIVITY IN ACCOUNTING VERSUS ACCOUNTANTВ’S BEHAVIOURISM

M. Bak

Abstract

Accounting is an applied science, with its theories/methodology practically applied in business entities, and also its well-defined practical main purpose - meeting information needs of stakeholders. The information generated in accounting system, and later disclosed to outside recipients, is diverse in scope, form and value/quality, which results e.g. from the possibility of making creative financial and accounting decisions (so-called “the right to choose” in the accounting policy) and from accountants’ behaviours. Human capital located in human resources (e.g. accountants) in the form of knowledge, skills, experience and personal predispositions plays a significant role in the functioning of accounting. The behaviour presented by an accountant, which depends e.g. on his/her professional awareness and the desire to achieve the set goals in an enterprise, has impact on the creativity in financial and managerial accounting. An accountant can make well-thought over, deliberate choices between different variants/instruments possible to apply in accounting. The theory and practice of accounting (and also its characteristics: universality and flexibility) provide an accountant with the possibility of creative acting, the framework of which is defined by the goals set by the management/board of directors of an economic entity and the accounting policy (international and national legal regulations). An accountant’s behaviour (taking into account the creativity factor in accounting) depends predominantly on the preferences of the selected group of stakeholder (addressees of the information), emotions, involvement, optimism, internal and external environment pressure. An accountant’s behaviourism revolves primarily around the following dilemmas: information manipulating vs. creating, rational vs. irrational decisions, optimal choice vs. satisfying choice. The purpose of the article is to analyse mutual dependencies between creativity in accounting and accountant’s behaviourism. Therefore it is crucial to answer the following questions: When is creativity in accounting possible and what exactly it is? What factors affect an accountant’s behaviour? Does an accountant’s behaviour restrict or stimulate creativity in the accounting system? The research methods used in the article are: the subject literature analysis, an interview in the accounting environment and the author's reflections from scientific and practical perspective, based on the deduction method.

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DOI resolver: doi.org/10.5593/sgemsocial2017/13/S03.021

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