Cultural Relevance in Environmental and Sustainability Management Accounting (EMA) in the Asia-Pacific Region: A Link Between Cultural Values and Accounting Values Towards EMA Values

Abstract

Despite the increasing popularity of environmental and sustainability management accounting (EMA) in corporate sustainability management, researchers in the sustainability accounting and sustainability management field neglect the importance and the relevance of national culture and its effect on the level of implementation of sustainability accounting and management practices. Yet, to our knowledge, there is no recent study of how national culture affects corporate environmental and sustainability management accounting practices in the different nations where they operate. In order to provide new insights into the link between national culture and EMA practice, we adopt Gray’s (1988) Abacus 24(1):1–15 theory of cultural relevance in national accounting systems. In brief, Gray proposed a framework to explain how national culture affects national accounting system using Hofstede’s (1986) The cultural context of accounting: accounting and culture. Paper presented to annual conference of the American Accounting Association, New York culture dimensions. An understanding of the national culture and its effect on the adoption and implementation of EMA can help us to improve the relevance of EMA practice and implementation in different countries. Based on Gray’s (1988) Abacus 24(1):1–15 framework, we develop the link between national cultural values and EMA values. As original contributions to sustainability accounting, we propose four EMA value dimensions (symbolic versus action, reactionary versus responsible, voluntary versus transparent, and integration versus differentiation).