Neoliberal Economics and Small Business Accounting Research: A Critical Evaluation of Agendas and Methodologies

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Abstract

This paper examines the development of small business accounting research over the last 20 years within the context of the neoliberal debate on government policy. The paper explores how the agenda driving small business research differs from that of mainstream accounting research. Whereas the latter tends to be concerned with new technical developments and innovation (Baldvinsdottir, Mitchell, et al. 2010), small business accounting research can be seen as typically seeking practical contribution to small business growth in the form of policy development and business support (Parry 2010). Published research is critically examined within the context of the contemporary neoliberal economic agenda which has produced a hegemonic discourse of entrepreneurship as a significant constituent of economic contribution (Costa and Saraiva 2012). Successive governments in Europe, the US and other major world economies have turned to small businesses as the providers of economic growth (Cunningham 2011), employment (Varum and Rocha 2013) and innovation (González-Loureiro and Pita-Castelo 2012). The author finds that this research agenda, driven largely by the interests of venture capitalists, banks, major accounting firms and local authorities (Gibb 2000; Blackburn and Kovalainen, 2009) has resulted in a narrow focus and a restricted use of methodologies. A dominant feature of small business accounting studies is their normative nature, (Collis and Jarvis, 2002) and their predominant reliance on wide scale surveys (Deakins et al, 2002). The methodologies adopted are weak as a means of examining the complexities of owner-manager behaviour (Jarvis et al, 2000). A further consequence is that small business accounting research is under-theorised in comparison to its larger organisation counterpart (Perren et al, 2001). This in turn leads to a tendency amongst small business researchers to drawing uncritically upon mainstream management theory (Jarvis et al, 2000). The appropriateness of this is questionable.The author argues that there is both an economic and an epistemological rationale for more research which focuses on the broader social and political context of accounting within small businesses, rather than a narrow focus on quick fixes for growth. When alternative methodologies have been adopted, the results have indicated that there is still poor knowledge and understanding of the financial and business performance management strategies of small business owner-managers, and still scope for further qualitative studies (Jarvis et al, 2000; Curran et al 1997).The question of appropriate methodology for future research is raised. Two factors suggest that the predominantly quantitative, survey-based and normative approach taken by most previous studies has severe limitations. Firstly, this approach blinds the researcher to the way accounting actually enters into, and impacts on, the world of the small business. Secondly, the often tacit nature of accounting in such businesses makes access to the subject matter very difficult using a quantitative, survey-based methodology. This paper contributes to current debates on agendas and methodologies in both small business research (Blackburn and Kovalainen 2009) and accounting research (Lukka 2010; Parker 2012) by critiquing current small business accounting research paradigms within the context of contemporary neoliberal economic policy.

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Critical Accounting

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