Accounting research in Italy: second half of the 20th century

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to offer a concise survey and comparison of Italian accounting research and academic publications during the second half of the 20th century. Design/methodology/approach – The paper discusses the special relation between economia aziendale (business and public economics) and ragioneria (accounting) in Italy. The subsequent discussion on “financial accounting” includes a sub‐section on income‐orientation (vs capital‐orientation), especially important in Italy during this period, and the present crisis of economia aziendale as affecting ragioneria , contributions by major Italian accountants of the period (above all, Onida and Amaduzzi) are discussed. After a section on “cost and managerial accounting” (of less significance in Italy than financial accounting), and a look at “novel accounting trends”, the paper closes with a discussion of some representative historical studies of the period. Findings – The paper reveals the changing international position of Italian accounting research. Research limitations/implications – The paper is limited by selecting the most prominent and relevant contributions among a host of pertinent publications. Originality/value – In contrast to previous research, the paper offers an integrated survey of major Italian accounting publications of the entire second half of the 20th century.