An outstanding article by Simon Dermarkar

Simon Dermarkar, a Professor in the Department of Accounting Studies, has received an award for the best article published in Comptabilité Contrôle Audit (CCA) in 2019. He shares the award with his co-author, Professor Yves Gendron of Université Laval.

The article was chosen by the Research Committee of the Board of Directors of the Association francophone de comptabilité (AFC), at the most recent AFC Annual General Meeting in November 2020.

CCA, published by the AFC, is a world-renowned French scientific journal for accounting educators, scholars and professionals.

Neoliberal influence on auditing

The winning article, “L’incursion du néolibéralisme dans les arènes de la normalisation en audit : une influence démesurée ?” (The incursion of neoliberalism into audit standard-setting arenas: A disproportionate influence?) was based on Professor Dermarkar’s doctoral dissertation, supervised by Professor Gendron. The authors show how neoliberalism is influencing the audit standard-setting process. Their analytical approach revolves around 3 principles frequently associated with neoliberal thinking:

• the need to conduct a cost-benefit analysis before adopting any new standard,
• the desire not to interfere with the process of capital accumulation, and
• the promotion of competition on the markets.

The study found that these 3 principles are often cited to oppose the adoption of new standards intended to strengthen auditors’ independence. In short, the study points up the disproportionate influence of neoliberalism in the auditing field.