A Standard setter’s framework for selecting
between fair value and historical cost measurement
attributes: a basis for discussion of ‘‘Does fair value
accounting for nonfinancial assets pass the market
test?’’
Abstract This paper describes an income-statement-focused framework for
selecting between between the fair value and historical cost measurement attributes
that differs from the balance-sheet-focused relevance versus reliability tradeoff
perspective that is common to most academic research. This income-statementfocused
framework is then applied to the Christensen and Nikolaev setting in Rev
Account Stud 18(3), (2013) to suggest that most of the study’s findings are not
surprising and can be explained by differences in the income-relevance of fair value
and historical cost measures for nonfinancial assets rather than issues with the
reliability of fair value measurements, which is the perspective taken by the authors.
The paper closes by suggesting additional research on the use of fair value and
historical cost measures for nonfinancial assets that would be most relevant to
current standard-setting activities of the Financial Accounting Standards Board.
Keywords Fair value Historical cost Nonfinancial assets FASB