Authors: Vijaya Murthy Jim Rooney
Publish Date: 2016/07/29
Volume: 152, Issue: 2, Pages: 323-341
Abstract
The various forms of accounting practice have a long history However the focus of historical accounting scholarship examining premodern times has tended to be the genesis of doubleentry bookkeeping techniques In particular very few scholars have examined influences on the adoption of management accounting techniques in the ancient periods of India’s long history We respond to this lacuna by examining management accounting at an organizational level within an ancient and economically successful society namely the Mauryan period 322–185 BC The aim is to explore management accounting practices implicated in the enforcement of economic and ethical behavior in the daily lives of Mauryan organizational actors Drawing on a translation of original records in the form of a collection of texts known as the Arthasastra lit the science of wealth this paper explores the intended uses of management accounting and in particular controls to persuade organizational actors to adapt the values and norms of wealth generation within the boundaries of socially acceptable roles Our contribution is to highlight the societyoriented role of management accounting within Mauryan organizations
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