Book-Tax Conformity and Earnings Management: Insights from European One- and Two-Book Systems
利用2004-2011年欧洲公司数据，比较单一账簿体系（财务与税务高度一致）和双重账簿体系对合并报表盈余管理的影响，发现单一账簿体系下企业更显著地进行向下盈余管理。
ABSTRACT: There is an ongoing debate in the U.S. about the effect of book-tax conformity on earnings management in consolidated statements. Although both one- and two-book systems are present in Europe, European data have not been used to contribute to this debate. In this study, we examine the influence of one- and two-book systems on earnings management using consolidated statements and single financial statements of European firm-years from 2004 to 2011. A one-book system is defined as a situation in which financial accounting income and taxable income are highly conformed, whereas a two-book system is characterized by differences between consolidated financial income and taxable income. We find that firms in one-book systems show significantly more (downward) earnings management in their consolidated statements than do firms in two-book systems. With these findings, we contribute to the U.S. policy debate on book-tax conformity and earnings management.