The Value of Theory-Based Research in Accounting
基于2025年AAA总统学者讲座，主张基于理论的科学研究是解决威胁会计职业的实践和存在问题的最佳途径，并以审计师对复杂估计的判断研究为例，鼓励研究者独立发展可推广知识，呼吁从业者支持研究。
ABSTRACT This essay is based on my American Accounting Association (AAA) Presidential Scholar Lecture delivered at the 2025 AAA Annual Meeting in Chicago. In this essay, I assert that theory-based scientific research is the best way to solve the practical—and existential—problems that threaten the accounting profession. I provide an example based on my own research into auditors’ judgments about complex estimates. I further argue that, although academic researchers and accounting practitioners share goals regarding the success and legitimacy of the accounting profession, their roles and responsibilities differ. I encourage accounting researchers to address the big problems facing the profession through independent development of generalizable knowledge, and I ask practitioners to support the research endeavor.