Recent criticisms and reviews of accounting standardsetting
motivate our research. For example, Generally
Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) have come under
increased criticism as a contributing factor in several recent
accounting and business failures. Critics argue that
the standards are complex and difficult to apply. The result
is an increasing number of restatements in recent years.
Others claim that GAAP is overly ‘‘rule-based” and contains
too many bright lines and exceptions, and therefore contributes
to transaction-structuring to get desired reporting
results. If these claims are true, these attributes should result
in lower-quality accounting reports as new standards
are implemented.