Reviews some recent contributions to “alternative” accounting research in relation to the changes which have taken place in the public sector, and which have altered the structure of the sector. An important task for the authors therefore has been to define what they view as comprising the...

Seeks to provide an overview of the direction of change and to assess the “success” of performance auditing in Australia in the last decade. Identifies the tension between the concepts of “administrative effectiveness” and “policy”. Reviews the recent Australian National Audit Office...

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present a structured literature review of the public sector intellectual capital (IC) literature. It is, in part, motivated by a recent review of the IC literature by Guthrie et al . (2012, p. 74), who found that the public sector is one of the least...

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present an overview of the articles presented in this special issue. The Special Issue is inspired by our recent review of the intellectual capital (IC) literature in Guthrie et al . (2012, p. 74), in which the authors found that the public sector is...

Purpose This paper aims to explore the linkages between integrated reporting (IR) and organisations’ internal processes, specifically focusing on investigating the internal mechanisms of change that can lead organisations to adopt IR disclosure and how this impacts on integrated thinking...

Purpose This paper aims to explore the disclosure of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by megacities. Three dimensions were considered. First, what communication channels are used by world megacities to disclose their emissions reduction target (ERT) and emissions reduction actions (ERA)? Second,...

Purpose This paper aims to examine the non-financial information disclosed in social reports by an Italian provincial government over time to determine its relevance, contribution and evolution. Design/methodology/approach Through a case study analysis, the authors examine 10 years of social...

In this decade we have witnessed in the Australian public sector tremendous pressures for change in the name of accountability and efficiency. Changes have occurred in public sector management and in public sector accounting. Techniques such as programme budgeting, financial management...

Performance measurement and programme evaluation have been promoted as a central mechanism of recent Australian public sector (APS) reform. Outlines recent reforms in the APS and identifies links between evaluation and performance information. Identifies the major issue of credibility, when...

Australian and international public sector organisations have faced, and continue to encounter, a plethora of reforms under the umbrella of 'New Public Management' (Guthrie et aI., forthcoming). Underpinning these reforms have been imperatives of budget surpluses and reduced government debt,...