Accounting for transition: A literature review

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to provide a literature review analysing the effects arising from the adoption of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) in former Soviet Union countries (FSUC). The benefits and challenges identified through international accounting studies are applied as a conceptual framework to analyse the existing literature on the effects of IFRS adoption in transition economies. The article adopts a mixed-method approach that explores content by performing a qualitative analysis with quantification using NVivo software. By integrating findings and perspectives from 46 academic papers published in the English language literature from 2005 to 2020, the study highlights key achievements and limitations in FSUC, making findings readily available for scholars, policymakers and practitioners. Although adoption of IFRS is shown in the article to have a non-significant impact on practices in FSUC, the study’s conclusions contribute to the international debate on the relevance of IFRS to the national needs of different countries, particularly for those transition economies with a strong codified legal tradition rooted in the previous administrative system associated with Soviet accounting.