One of the most recent studies on international accounting practice was done by Doupnik
and Salter (1995), who formulated a general model of accounting development by
combining institutional structure (legal system, educational system, regulatory agencies,professional organizations) and culture. An important result of the study was that two
classes of accounting systems emerged on the basis of the type of legal system: micro-based
and macro-uniform. The legal system of the U.S., Canada, Australia, and the Philippines are
micro-based, while Germany and Thailand are macro-uniform. An earlier study by Nobes
(1983) classified countries as “micro” and “macro.” His classifications were consistent with
Doupnik and Salters. Mueller (1968) and Mueller, Gemon and Meek (1994) are the only
studies that include the former communist countries. This study creates a third category for
the former communist countries and examines these countries along with Doupnik and
Salter’s (1995) classification.