A comparative history of earnings management literature from Italy and the US

Abstract

Using the comparative international accounting history approach advocated by Carnegie and Napier (2002), this study compares US and Italian earnings management (EM) literature published in the second half of the twentieth century and identifies the main similarities and differences in the research topics and methodologies. The historical comparison finds that although Italian and US contributions to EM literature grew in notably different contexts and research settings, they both recognized the issue of EM, agreed on its origins and shared some research topics. However, the two bodies of literature differed in respect of the research topics addressed and research methodologies adopted to analyse the EM issue. The discussion of these results provides also initial evidence of areas of potential contribution to the international debate on EM through cross-fertilization. The analysis demonstrates the fundamental role of comparative international accounting history in uncovering the potential contributions of national literatures to the development of accounting research at a genuinely international level. It also contributes to EM literature by bringing to international attention fifty years of Italian EM research that was previously unknown beyond Italian borders.