Accounting norms preceded generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP), but little is known about how and why these norms emerged. We hypothesize that private-sector institutions aimed at building a knowledge base among practicing accountants fostered accounting norms before formal...

We develop the hypothesis that culturally evolved accounting principles will be ultimately explained by their consilience with how the human brain has evolved biologically to evaluate social and economic exchange. We provide background on the structure and evolution of the brain, the measurement...

We critically evaluate Sprouse's 1966 Journal of Accountancy article, which prodded the FASB towards a balance-sheet approach. We highlight three errors in this article. First, Sprouse confuses necessary and sufficient conditions by arguing that good accounting systems must satisfy the...

We critically evaluate Sprouse (1966 Journal of Accountancy), which prodded FASB towards a balance sheet approach. We highlight 3 errors in this article. First, Sprouse confuses necessary and sufficient conditions by arguing that good accounting systems must satisfy the balance sheet equation....

This study investigates (a) why some IPO firms proactively disclose internal control weaknesses (ICWs) and remediation progress in their prospectuses before going public, despite being exempt from the requirements of Sections 302 and 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act at the time of IPO, and (b) the...

Research shows that bank competition affects general economic and banking-related outcomes, but much less is known about how it impacts firms' risk-taking. By exploiting staggered regulatory reforms across different U.S. states, we show that bank competition significantly reduces borrowers'...

We study non-officer directors' influence on the accounting conservatism of U.S. public firms. Between 1986 and 2002, all 50 U.S. states enacted laws that limited non-officer directors' litigation risk without changing officer directors' litigation risk. We find that conditional conservatism...

We develop new distribution discontinuity tests conditional on multiple explanatory variables for analyzing meet-or-just-beat behavior around benchmarks. These tests combine Burgstahler and Dichev's (1997) meet-or-just-beat intuition with a flexible statistical model that addresses important...