Accounting and Auditing Research and Databases

Practitioner's Desk Reference

Thomas R. Weirich, Natalie Tatiana Churyk, Thomas C. Pearson

• Publisher: Wiley
• Year: 2012
• ISBN:
  9781118416877
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Business
• Subtopic: Auditing
• Index: Business

The easy-to-use, do-it-yourself desk accounting and auditing research database

FASB's online GAAP Codification system. The convergence of U.S. GAAP and International Financial Reporting Standards. EDGAR filing and research system. RIA Checkpoint and CCH. Accounting professionals and practitioners need to understand these research databases to reach solutions and achieve maximum results for the organization. Highlighting each pertinent database, Accounting and Auditing Research Databases shows you how to conduct research using a host of databases including RIA, CCH, AICPA's Online Library, FASB Codification, GARS, and eIFRS.

• Highlights each specific database
• Step-by-step guidance to research resources
• Explains how to conduct research using databases including AICPA's Online Library, FASB Codification, and eIFRS
• Enables you to understand accounting and auditing research to reach solutions

Accounting and Auditing Research & Databases: A Practitioner's Desk Reference focuses on the practical aspects of professional accounting and auditing research with step-by-step guidance to research resources to provide you with the skills you need to improve within your organization.

Chapter 1

An Introduction to Applied Professional Research

Professional accountants, with their specialized knowledge and skills, attempt daily to solve a variety of complex client issues. However, the accounting profession, like other professions, is witnessing major changes due to developments in the law, new services, technologies, and an ever-increasing number of professional standards. In addition to accounting, auditing, and tax compliance services, accountants are involved in such services as attestation reviews, forensic accounting, fraud examinations, and tax planning. Even the types and nature of the problems facing accountants are changing and often becoming more complex. Professional accounting and auditing research is a critical skill for the practitioner. Knowledge of how to utilize major databases to gain an understanding of how to access the professional literature is essential in today's environment. The professional accountant must possess the knowledge to remain current and the skills to critically analyze various problems. Listening effectively, understanding opposing points of view, and applying professional judgment are also critical skills for accountants. Often one must present and defend his or her own views through formal and informal communications. Professional research and communication skills are vitally important in this environment.

Varying views and interpretations exist as to the meaning of the term research. In the accounting profession, research points to what the accounting practitioner does as a normal, everyday part of his or her job. Research in general is the means or methodology of systematically obtaining necessary information related to the issue or problem at hand. In today's environment, to become proficient in accounting, auditing, and tax research one must also possess the skills to use various professional databases, which are increasingly available on the Internet.

The professional accountant, whether in public accounting, industry, or government, frequently becomes involved with the investigation and analysis of an accounting, auditing, or tax issue. Resolving these issues requires a clear definition of the problem, using professional databases to search for the relevant authorities, reviewing the authoritative literature, evaluating alternatives, drawing conclusions, and communicating the results. This research process often requires an analysis of very complex and detailed issues. Therefore, researching such issues will challenge the critical thinking abilities of the professional. That is, the professional must possess the expertise to understand the relevant facts and render a professional judgment, even in some situations where no single definitive answer or solution exists. In such cases, the researcher would apply professional judgment in the development of an answer to the issue or problem at hand. This practitioner's desk reference will provide you with an overview of the steps in the research process (this chapter), and the major databases to access the professional literature (Chapters 2–6).

What Is Research?

The objective of conducting any type of research, including professional accounting, auditing, and tax research, is a systematic investigation of an issue or problem utilizing the researcher's professional judgment. Following are two examples of generalized research problems that can provide insight as to the types of research questions confronting the accounting practitioner:

1. A recent client has requested your assistance with the following issue: The client manufactures precision parts to customers’ specifications. Parts that are produced by the client are inspected by a quality control representative and then held in a secured area in the plant. The client is entitled to full contract payment on parts inspected and held in the secured area. In the past, there has been a short time span between completion date and scheduled shipment. However, recently, production efficiency has improved to the extent that contracts are completed well in advance of scheduled shipment dates. Based on the recent experience of the client, what is the proper date for revenue recognition?

2. A controller for a construction contracting company faces the following problem: The company pays for rights allowing it to extract a specified volume of landfill from a project for a specified period of time. How should the company classify the payments for such landfill rights in its financial statements?¹

Research is often classified as either theoretical research or applied research. Theoretical research investigates questions that appear interesting to the researcher, generally an academician, but may have little or no practical application at the present time. In conducting theoretical research, one attempts to create new knowledge in a particular subject. Sometimes theoretical research uses empirical data based upon experimentation or observation. For example, a theoretical researcher may conduct a controlled experiment to determine the relevance of fair value for financial instruments.² Thus, theoretical research adds to the body of knowledge in a particular field and may ultimately contribute directly or indirectly to practical problem solutions. Theoretical research using empirical research studies based on experimentation or observation are frequently reviewed and evaluated by standard-setting bodies in drafting authoritative accounting and auditing pronouncements.

Applied research, which is the focus of this text, investigates an issue of immediate practical importance. Professional accounting research is a process of carefully obtaining information from various sources that aid in the solution to a problem/issue. This process focuses on the identification of the issue, searching the authoritative literature, interpreting the standards, which often includes professional judgment, and finally communicating the results. One type of applied research is known as a priori (before the fact) research. This research is conducted before the client actually enters into the transaction. For example, assume that a public accounting firm needs to evaluate a client's proposed new accounting treatment for environmental costs. The client expects an answer within two days as to the acceptability of the new method and its impact on the financial statements. In such a case, a member of the accounting firm's professional staff would investigate to determine if the authoritative literature addresses the issue. If no authoritative pronouncement exists, the accountant would develop a theoretical justification for or against the new method.

Applied research relating to a completed event is known as a posteriori (after the fact) research. For example, a client may request assistance preparing his or her tax return for a transaction that was previously executed. Frequently, many advantages accrue to conducting a priori rather than a posteriori research. For example, if research reveals that a proposed transaction will have an unfavorable impact on financial statements, the client can abandon the transaction or possibl...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Series Page
• Title Page
• Copyright
• Dedication
• Preface
• Acknowledgments
• Chapter 1: An Introduction to Applied Professional Research
• Chapter 2: The Environment of U.S. Research—the SEC and the FASB
• Chapter 3: The Environment of International Research
• Chapter 4: Other Research Databases and Tools
• Chapter 5: Tax Research for Compliance and Tax Planning
• Chapter 6: Assurance/Auditing Research
• About the Authors
• Index