Purpose – Over the last decades concepts and practices related to intangibles gained momentum at international level, especially within the economic, accounting and management arenas. However, dating back to the beginning of the 1900s, intangibles was a topic that in the USA dominated the law and taxation fields. Indeed, at that time few papers were published in accounting journals and reviews, whereas the majority populated law and taxation publications. The paper aims to discuss this issue. Design/methodology/approach – Drawing upon the sociology of the profession, the ways through which lawyers and accountants constructed a “professional competition and power” (Dezalay and Sugarman, 2005) upon this arena are here explored. In particular, an in-depth analysis of the papers published on this field from the beginning of the 1900s until the 1970s in the USA is carried out. Findings – Notwithstanding the current conceptualisation of intangibles as a field of research and practice at the margins (Miller, 1998) of accounting, the results achieved in the present research suggest that, at least historically, the topic of intangibles was highly intertwined not only within the different streams of accounting studies and practice, but also with the developments in legal and taxation fields that were surrounding the US economic, social and political institutional scenario. Originality/value – The work intends to contribute to the current literature providing insights into the “genealogy” (Foucault, 1977) of the intangibles territory and the “turf battles” (Dezalay, 1995) it went through in order to become what has been defined as “a field upon which questions of disciplinary legitimacy have been raised” (Zambon, 2006) and, consequently, as characterized by “an intrusion of ‘external’ specialists into the accounting domain” (Power, 2001).

Exploring the conceptualisation of Intangibles in law and accounting in the USA: A historical perspective / Girella, L; Bagnoli, C.; Zambon, S.. - In: JOURNAL OF INTELLECTUAL CAPITAL. - ISSN 1469-1930. - 17:1(2016), pp. 11-26. [10.1108/JIC-09-2015-0084]

Exploring the conceptualisation of Intangibles in law and accounting in the USA: A historical perspective

Girella, L
;
2016

Abstract

Purpose – Over the last decades concepts and practices related to intangibles gained momentum at international level, especially within the economic, accounting and management arenas. However, dating back to the beginning of the 1900s, intangibles was a topic that in the USA dominated the law and taxation fields. Indeed, at that time few papers were published in accounting journals and reviews, whereas the majority populated law and taxation publications. The paper aims to discuss this issue. Design/methodology/approach – Drawing upon the sociology of the profession, the ways through which lawyers and accountants constructed a “professional competition and power” (Dezalay and Sugarman, 2005) upon this arena are here explored. In particular, an in-depth analysis of the papers published on this field from the beginning of the 1900s until the 1970s in the USA is carried out. Findings – Notwithstanding the current conceptualisation of intangibles as a field of research and practice at the margins (Miller, 1998) of accounting, the results achieved in the present research suggest that, at least historically, the topic of intangibles was highly intertwined not only within the different streams of accounting studies and practice, but also with the developments in legal and taxation fields that were surrounding the US economic, social and political institutional scenario. Originality/value – The work intends to contribute to the current literature providing insights into the “genealogy” (Foucault, 1977) of the intangibles territory and the “turf battles” (Dezalay, 1995) it went through in order to become what has been defined as “a field upon which questions of disciplinary legitimacy have been raised” (Zambon, 2006) and, consequently, as characterized by “an intrusion of ‘external’ specialists into the accounting domain” (Power, 2001).
2016
17
1
11
26
Exploring the conceptualisation of Intangibles in law and accounting in the USA: A historical perspective / Girella, L; Bagnoli, C.; Zambon, S.. - In: JOURNAL OF INTELLECTUAL CAPITAL. - ISSN 1469-1930. - 17:1(2016), pp. 11-26. [10.1108/JIC-09-2015-0084]
Girella, L; Bagnoli, C.; Zambon, S.
File in questo prodotto:
File Dimensione Formato  
JIC 2016_Pubblicazione 3.pdf

Accesso riservato

Tipologia: Versione pubblicata dall'editore
Dimensione 563.2 kB
Formato Adobe PDF
563.2 kB Adobe PDF   Visualizza/Apri   Richiedi una copia
Pubblicazioni consigliate

Licenza Creative Commons
I metadati presenti in IRIS UNIMORE sono rilasciati con licenza Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal, mentre i file delle pubblicazioni sono rilasciati con licenza Attribuzione 4.0 Internazionale (CC BY 4.0), salvo diversa indicazione.
In caso di violazione di copyright, contattare Supporto Iris

Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/11380/1199068
Citazioni
  • ???jsp.display-item.citation.pmc??? ND
  • Scopus 1
  • ???jsp.display-item.citation.isi??? 1
social impact