Accounting and pensions.pdf (253.41 kB)
The purgatorial shadows of war: accounting, blame and shell shock pensions, 1914–1923
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posted on 2023-06-09, 05:33 authored by Frances Miley, Andrew ReadThis research is a qualitative analysis of the role of accounting in British disablement pensions awarded to men who sustained shell shock during their Army service in the First World War. It suggests that accounting classification of shell shock for pension determination purposes supported a view of shell shock which made men with shell shock scapegoats of a system that was often unsupportive. Accounting classification contributed to the lack of support by distancing pension decision-makers from the moral consequences of pension determinations. This was able to occur because the British government used accounting classification as part of a mechanism to avoid blame for its pension determination choices. This research contributes to an ongoing debate about the role of government by suggesting that the functions of government provide opportunities for accounting to simultaneously serve a neutral role as mere inscription while being a social and moral construct.
History
Publication status
- Published
File Version
- Accepted version
Journal
Accounting HistoryISSN
1032-3732Publisher
SAGE PublicationsExternal DOI
Issue
1Volume
22Page range
5-28Department affiliated with
- Business and Management Publications
Full text available
- Yes
Peer reviewed?
- Yes
Legacy Posted Date
2017-03-27First Open Access (FOA) Date
2017-03-27First Compliant Deposit (FCD) Date
2017-03-27Usage metrics
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