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A theoretical primer for evaluating and conducting historical research in accounting

John Carroll University

Patti A. Mills

Indiana State University

Thomas N. Tyson

St. John Fisher College

Historical research in accounting is flourishing as prestigious journals worldwide encourage authors to incorporate history into their submissions. Although a number of accounting academics are aware of these opportunities, others may be reluctant to participate because they lack an understanding of the rudiments of historical scholarship. This paper is geared to those scholars who seek to write about accounting's past but are unacquainted with historical methods, unsure how to begin, and generally unfamiliar with the debates that are now taking place in the field.

In this paper we discuss the formal theoretical structures of history as a discipline; differentiate history as event, story, and way of knowing; consider the problem of historical facticity and the subjectivity of the historian; examine the role historical evidence plays in the reconstruction of the past, and identify the forms of historical construction and alternate historical methods. We also distinguish between history and social science and summarise the current debate between conventional and critical accounting historians. Publication possibilities are also addressed.

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