The professional journal as a signal of movement to occupational ascendancy and as legitimation of a professional project: the early history of The Accountant's Magazine 1897–1951

Abstract

This article chronicles the early history of The Accountant's Magazine and provides explanations of its role within the professional project of the first generations of Scottish chartered accountants. The journal appeared in 1897 as part of a federal structure constructed to promote a unified image of chartered accountancy in Scotland in response to challenges to its occupational ascendancy. Between 1897 and 1951, the journal was managed and edited on a part-time basis by practitioners and required continuous financial support from its three sponsoring professional bodies. Also during this period, its content portrayed public accountancy as a profession of diverse skills and marketable services. However, the journal's subscription membership included only a small minority of members of the three sponsoring bodies. The article argues that the early history of TAM is consistent with sociological explanations of the professional project. At the time of its creation, it was a signal of movement to occupational ascendancy. Subsequently, it became part of a more general process to establish the legitimacy of the professional project of Scottish chartered accountants within the wider business community. In the absence of prior sociological theory to explain the role of the journal in the professional project, the article also provides several propositions to construct such a theory.