A call for "better" governance of the public sphere informed by reliance on management and accounting expertise has recently arisen in connection with a variety of legislative initiatives enacted in Italy. This paper looks at the nature and role of this "reform", and in particular the call for...

Purpose – This paper aims to identify the study of cities as an important and neglected focus for accounting researchers. Design/methodology/approach – The paper is based on a case study approach to visualizing and calculating the city. Findings – There is a major preoccupation with the...

Culture is a key word in the story of Italy. The richness of its cultural past together with the present and future potential of its creativity has given culture a central role in the agenda of public policies. As a new element in this pattern, most recently the word ÒcultureÓ has been...

The exploration of accounting practices reported in this paper illustrates how perceptions of financial problems and notions of economic accountability develop within cultural and institutional environments that substantially differ from those of the business firm. The paper seeks to oppose a...

This paper examines the ways in which accounting has intervened in the process of reforming the original 'reform' of the Italian health care system. By stepping into an ongoing process accounting has been asked not only to foster efficiency, effectiveness and value for money, but to correct as...