advance accounting theory and practice

advance accounting theory and practice
Essay topic

What motivates companies to report social and environmental information? Use a variety of accounting theories to answer this question.

Requirements:
This essay will count 20% towards your final mark. Please submit a hard copy to the General Office and an electronic copy on blackboard by Wednesday, 12th December 2012.

Word limit
The word limit is 1,500 words maximum. The essay should include a cover sheet with the name of the module, module number, essay title, word count, and a list of references containing all the materials (books and academic articles, NOT websites) you have consulted and quoted from. References in the references section should be mentioned in the text and vice versa.

Assignment of marks
You need to demonstrate the application of a range of accounting theories to answer the essay question. You are expected to read around the subject and will be rewarded, if you refer to journal articles or other authoritative sources of information to support your arguments. References in the references section should be mentioned in the text and vice versa. If you are unsure about referencing, please refer to the Emerald guide.

Suggested background reading:
A good starting point is the lists of references at the end of the relevant chapters in the two main textbooks. You may also want to read the following journal articles, but please bear in mind that this list is not exhaustive.

Deegan, C. (2002), “The legitimising effect of social and environmental disclosures: a theoretical foundation”, Accounting, Auditing, and Accountability Journal, Vol. 15 No 3, pp. 282-312. (This particular journal issue is devoted to social and environmental reporting. You might want to read some of the other journal articles as well).
Donovan, G. (2002), “Environmental disclosures in the annual report: Extending the applicability and predictive power of legitimacy theory”, Accounting, Auditing, and Accountability Journal, Vol. 15 No 3, pp. 344-371.
Islam, M. A. and Deegan, C. (2010), “Media pressures and corporate disclosure of social responsibility performance information: a study of two global clothing and sports retail companies”, Accounting and Business Research, Vol. 40 No. 2, pp. 131-148.
Moir, L. (2001), “What do we mean by corporate social responsibility?”, Corporate Governance, Vol. 1 No. 2, pp. 16-22.
Rahaman, A.S., Lawrence, S. and Roper, J. (2004), “Social and environmental reporting at the VRA: institutionalised legitimacy or legitimation crisis?”, Critical Perspectives of Accounting, Vol. 15 No. 1, pp. 35-56.
Wagner Mainardes, E., Alves, H. and Raposo, M. (2011), “Stakeholder theory: issues to resolve”, Management Decision, Vol. 49 No 2, pp. 226-252