TY - JOUR

T1 - Accounting for Goodwill: An Examination of Factors Influencing Management Preferences

AU - Taib, F

AU - Taylor, Paul

AU - Gore, Pelham

PY - 2000

Y1 - 2000

N2 - Abstract—This paper investigates factors that influenced the position of managements of UK-listed companies in the heated debate that surrrounded proposals for a new standard on goodwill accounting, i.e. the factors influencing whether managements preferred immediate write-off or capitalisation-based approaches. The factors investigated are derived from contracting cost theory, and include those associated with debt covenant restrictions and profitbased management schemes. They also include non-agency contracting costs. A key feature of the design is that, compared to prior research, we specify more rigorously circumstances where such contracting cost effects are, or are not, likely to be binding. In addition, the paper investigates the effects on management preferences of their beliefs about revisions in market perceptions of their companies resulting from changes in goodwill accounting. Our results support certain contracting cost-based hypotheses, but they also indicate that management beliefs about changes in market perceptions of their companies constitute a strong influence on their preferences.

AB - Abstract—This paper investigates factors that influenced the position of managements of UK-listed companies in the heated debate that surrrounded proposals for a new standard on goodwill accounting, i.e. the factors influencing whether managements preferred immediate write-off or capitalisation-based approaches. The factors investigated are derived from contracting cost theory, and include those associated with debt covenant restrictions and profitbased management schemes. They also include non-agency contracting costs. A key feature of the design is that, compared to prior research, we specify more rigorously circumstances where such contracting cost effects are, or are not, likely to be binding. In addition, the paper investigates the effects on management preferences of their beliefs about revisions in market perceptions of their companies resulting from changes in goodwill accounting. Our results support certain contracting cost-based hypotheses, but they also indicate that management beliefs about changes in market perceptions of their companies constitute a strong influence on their preferences.

M3 - Journal article

VL - 30

SP - 213

EP - 226

JO - Accounting and Business Research

JF - Accounting and Business Research

SN - 2159-4260

IS - 3

ER -