Determinants of the use of accounting information in public sector budgetary decision making processes for efficiency and legitimacy gain
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Date
2015
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Publisher
University of Dar es Salaam
Abstract
This study investigates the use of accounting information in the public sector budgetary decision making processes. Moreover, it seeks to identify the factors influencing the use for efficiency and legitimacy gain in the public sector. The study is motivated by the current move on adoption and implementation of accounting techniques under the umbrella of New Public Management (NPM) in the developing countries public sector. Moreover, the peculiar role of LGA in the implementation of such accounting techniques and its role in delivering public services to the citizens through the budgeting processes are the major motivations of this study. The study employed multiple theoretical perspectives that included institutional theory, contingency theory, and public choice theory together with decision usefulness concept to develop the initial model, and the overall interpretation and discussion of findings. This study based mixed research approach and employed the case study strategy and survey strategy in sequential manner in order to accomplish research objectives. The findings revealed conceptual use, decision relevant, and recommendations use as the main dimensions of instrumental-conceptual use of accounting information in budgetary decisions related to estimations and collections of own source revenue. The study further revealed that, legitimating use was the main dimension of the symbolic use of accounting information in the budget approval and on the decision about estimating and collecting revenue from external sources. 23 factors influencing the use of accounting information in the budget decision-making processes were identified. However, statistically, the critical factors among them were only 16 under three main dimensions. The strongest were internal organization’s institutional and contingency factors, followed with individual actors’ related factors and last were external institutional related factors. The positive relationships were found between each dimension of factors with instrumental-conceptual use. The positive relationships were also found between each dimension of factors with symbolic use with significant moderation effect of nature of actors. The study findings also revealed the positive relationship of instrumental-conceptual use of accounting information with organisational budget performance that includes the organisation’s budget efficiency and external financial legitimacy. The positive relationship was found between the symbolic use of accounting information with well informed intuitions with organisational budget performance aspects with high moderation effects of nature of actors. The moderation effects of nature of actors were contributed with the fact that political and administrative actors make decisions under political and rational models of decision making respectively. Moreover, the study findings revealed the significant indirect role of external institutional pressure to the use of accounting information and organisation’s budget performance through creation of positive change to the organisation institutional and contingency structure and individual actors’ characteristics. The study established the model of the determinants of the use of accounting information in budgetary decision-making processes for budget efficiency and external financial legitimacy as organisation performance aspects. The model informs reformers, practitioners, policy-makers and researchers about the necessary measures to undertake to ensure that NPM reforms, especially accounting reforms enhance both efficiency and financial legitimacy in the developing countries public sector through the use of accounting information.
Description
Available in print form, East Africana Collection, Dr. Wilbert Chagula Library, Class mark (THS EAF HF5681.B2M3253)
Keywords
Financial statements, Budget in business, Decision making
Citation
Mbelwa, L. (2015) Determinants of the use of accounting information in public sector budgetary decision making processes for efficiency and legitimacy gain, Doctoral dissertation, University of Dar es Salaam, Dar es Salaam