For many years, management accounting research has paid particular attention to the design of formal rules, taking the following of such rules largely for granted. In response to this recognition, various studies have emphasised the dysfunctional nature of rules and identified instances where...

Institutional theorists in accounting have struggled a great deal with the notion of power and agency. Therefore, this paper draws on Bourdieu's sociology of practice to provide an alternative explanation of the role of power in institutional contradictions. It works from the premise that the...

Purpose – This paper aims to investigate ways in which inertia obstructs the adoption of new management accounting rules. Drawing on the view of management accounting as organisational rules and routines, it aims to suggest various ways in which inertia can become more pronounced when new...

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore the dynamics involved in the emergence and change of management accounting routines. It seeks to provide an understanding of the ways in which these complex routines foster stability and change in management accounting practices....

Purpose: This paper aims to uncover how implementation practices affect the unfolding of integration as the ideal of an enterprise resource planning (ERP) system. In this way, the authors aim to provide a better understanding of the ways in which the ideal of integration affects the complexity...

This case study looks at the effectiveness of policy instruments aimed at reducing the number of underperforming primary schools in a system with a long tradition of school autonomy. It reviews relevant Dutch policy developments in education since 1998 and provides an in-depth analysis of five...