Siriwardane, Harshini, and Durden, Chris (2013) A critical review of empirical studies on the communication skills of accountants. In: Proceedings of the 7th Asia Pacific Interdisciplinary Research in Accounting Conference. From: APIRA 2013: 7th Asia Pacific Interdisciplinary Research in Accounting Conference, 26-28 July 2013, Kobe, Japan.

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Abstract

The importance of communication skills to the accounting profession has been well established since the 1960s. Over the past decades, numerous communication skills studies related to the accounting profession have been conducted from different perspectives. This paper critically reviews literature related to the communication skills of accountants. After an initial screening of 53 articles, 18 that were published between 1972 and 2012 and reported results of empirical studies conducted to capture a practitioner perspective were selected for review. Studies were analysed across various dimensions including geographic location, subjects, skills studied, objectives, and findings. Due to inconsistencies and incompatibilities of prior studies, firm conclusions could not be formed about the relative importance of specific communication skills. The existing literature is fragmented and does not identify communication skills considered to be important at different career stages and for different career paths in accounting. Attention is also drawn to differences in perceptions about importance and effectiveness of communication skills. This paper contributes to the literature by providing a focussed analysis of empirical studies on the communication skills of accountants published in the past 40 years. It also discloses information gaps and exposes future research opportunities.

Item ID:	31547
Item Type:	Conference Item (Research - E1)
Keywords:	communication skills; oral communication; written communication
Related URLs:	Organisation
Date Deposited:	11 Mar 2014 06:28
FoR Codes:	15 COMMERCE, MANAGEMENT, TOURISM AND SERVICES > 1501 Accounting, Auditing and Accountability > 150199 Accounting, Auditing and Accountability not elsewhere classified @ 100%
SEO Codes:	91 ECONOMIC FRAMEWORK > 9104 Management and Productivity > 910499 Management and Productivity not elsewhere classified @ 100%
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