Conceptual Framework

Arthik Davianti, Ph.D. Ak. CA. CSP.

The Regulation of Financial Accounting
Regulation of financial accounting

• Beberapa peraturan akuntansi menjadi bagian legislasi (regulasi),

sementara yang lain tidak
• Pandangan atas faktor-faktor politis bisa jadi telah mempengaruhi
pengembangan berbagai peraturan
• Accounting standard-setting is a very political process
• Diskusi tentang regulasi atas akuntansi keuangan – diskusi peraturan-
peraturan yang dikembangkan oleh lembaga otoritatif independen yang
diberi kewenangan untuk mengatur – praktik akuntansi
Regulation of financial accounting
Perbedaan perspektif:
• The free-market view – kita tidak membutuhkan regulasi apapun,
perlakukan akuntansi seperti barang lainnya
• The pro-regulation perspective – regulasi penting untuk mengurangi
pengaruh kegagalan pasar (market failure)
Arguments in free-market view
• Private economic-based incentives
• ‘Market for managers’
• ‘Market for corporate takeovers’
• ‘Market for lemons’
Arguments for pro-regulation perspective

• Informasi akuntansi adalah barang public atau free good

• Seharusnya tidak diperlakukan sama dengan barang pada umumnya
• Adanya free riders, permintaan sebenarnya (true demand) atas informasi
akuntansi tidak sepenuhnya dinyatakan (understated)
• Menyebabkan kurangnya produksi informasi
• Terdapat pandangan free goods are often overproduced as a result of
regulation – information overload
Adam Smith’s invisible hand
• In favour of free market
• Uses market mechanism
• Argumen free-market mengabaikan kegagalan pasar dan tidak
berimbangnya distribusi kekuatan (distribution of power)
• Pandangan atas monopolistic powers muncul dengan adanya intervensi
pemerintah
• Advocates regulatory intervention in some instances
Theories to explain the introduction of
regulation in accounting
• Pihak manajemen memiliki insentif untuk secara sukarela menyajian
informasi akuntansi. Lalu mengapa kita mempelajari regulasi dalam
pelaporan keuangan?
• Penjelasan diperoleh melalui:
• theory of efficient markets
• agency theory
• theories of regulation
 Theory of efficient markets
• Kekuatan penawaran dan permintaan mempengaruhi perilaku pasar dan
membantu menjaga pasar efisien
• Argumen ini menjelaskan pasar untuk informasi akuntansi dan
seharusnya menentukan data akuntansi apa yang harus disajikan dan
praktik akuntansi apa yang seharusnya digunakan untuk mempersiapkan
data tersebut
Theory of efficient markets
Akan tetapi:
• The market for accounting data is not efficient
• The ‘free-rider’ problem distorts the market
• Users cannot agree on what they want
• Accountants cannot agree on procedures
• Firms must produce comparable data
• The government must therefore intervene
Agency theory
• Perminataan atas informasi akuntansi ditujukan untuk:
• for stewardship purposes
• for decision-making purposes
• Agency theory merupakan rerangka yang mempelajari hubungan antara
para pihak yang menyajikan informasi akuntansi, sebagai contoh;
• a manager - and those who use it – such as a shareholder or creditor
Agency theory
• Hal tersebut disebabkan ketidakseimbangan antara penyaji data dan
pengguna data (data suppliers and data users), serta keberadaan
ketidakpastian dan risiko
• Sumber daya dan risiko – besar kemungkinan tidak dialokasikan dengan
benar antar para pihak
• To the extent the market mechanism is inefficient, accounting regulation is
required to reduce inefficient and inequitable outcomes
Theories of regulation
• Terdapat tiga teori-teori regulasi:
• public interest theory
• regulatory capture theory
• private interest theory
Public interest theory
Regulasi pemerintah dibutuhkan untuk kepentingan publik (public
interest) ketika pasar gagal (tidak efisieen) karena:
• lack of competition
• barriers to entry
• information asymmetry
• public-good products
Asumsi: pasar, dalam konteks ekonomi, adalah subjek serangkaian
ketidaksempurnaan pasar dan kegagalan transaksi
Public interest theory
Campur tangan pemerintah dalam:
 Regulatory bodies/politicians are considered to represent the interests of
the society in which they operate, rather than the private interests of the
regulators/politicians
 because public interest groups – agents, there is demand for intervention
in pursuit of public interest objective
 Asumsi: Pemerintah memiliki peran independen karena merupakan
neutral arbiters (do you agree?) – intervene costlessly
Regulatory capture theory
• Tujuan untuk melindungi kepentingan publik tidak tercapai
• Kepentingan pubik tidak terlindungi karena pihak yang diregulasi
dapat mengendalikan atau mendominasi regulator
• The regulated protect or increase their wealth
• Asumsi: regulator tidak memiliki peran independen tetapi hanya
menjadi penengah antara kelompok-kelompok dengan kepentingan
berbeda
Regulatory capture theory
• Asumsi:
• All member of society are economically rational – private marginal benefit
from lobbying
• Government has no independent role in the regulatory process
Regulatory capture theory
• Situasi-situasi yang terjadi – entitas yang diregulasi:
• Control the regulation and regulation agency
• Succeed in coordinating the regulatory body’s activities
• Neutralise or ensure non-performance
• In a subtle process of interaction
• Badan-badan profesi akuntansi atau korporasi mencari kendali untuk menyusun
standar akuntansi
Private interest theory
• Pemerintah bukan penengah independen, tetapi secara rasional self-
interest
• They seek re-election
• They will ‘sell’ their power to coerce or transfer wealth to those most
likely to achieve their re-election (if they are elected officials) or increase
their wealth (if they are appointed officials) or both
• This theorists believe – a market for regulation with similar supply and
demand (with many bidders)
• Only the highest bidder will be successful
Private interest theory
Kelompok-kelompok penyusun regulasi dapat menggunakan kekuasaan
pemerintah untuk kepentingan mereka:
1. Organised interest group – seeking political protection. Other groups
(more diffuse) have limited ability to bid effectively (due to
organisation and information cost)
2. Government officials are rationally self-interested
Teori ini memprediksi – regulator akan menggunakan kekuasaannya
untuk transfer income dari mereka yang memiliki kekuatan politis
rendah ke yang lebih
Standard setting as a political process
• Penyusunan standar adalah proses politis karena dapat mempengaruhi
berbagai kelompok kepentingan
• Regulator harus membuat pilihan politis
• Regulator harus memiliki mandat untuk membuat keputusan social
• Lingkungan akuntansi keuangan terbentuk dalam: legal setting, economic
setting, political setting, social setting
The Conceptual Framework
The role of a conceptual framework

• Berupaya menyajikan teori akuntansi yang berstruktur

• Menyatakan lingkup dan tujuan pelaporan keuangan
• Mengidentifikasi dan mendefinisi karakteristik kualitatif informasi
keuangan dan elemen-elemen dasar akuntansi
• Mencakup prinsip-prinsip dan aturan-aturan pengakuan dan
pengukuran, dan pelaporan dalam pengungkapan
The role of a conceptual framework
… a coherent system of interrelated objectives and fundamentals that
is expected to lead to consistent standards and that prescribes the
nature, function and limits of financial accounting and reporting
(Statement of Financial Accounting Concepts No. 1: Objectives of
Financial Reporting by Business Enterprises 1978)
 Coherent and consistent – a theoretical and non-arbitrary
framework
 Prescribes – normative approach
The role of a conceptual framework

Isu-isu:
1. Apakah kita membutuhkan teori akuntansi umum?
2. Apakah akuntansi sekarang terlalu permisif?
3. Apakah praktik akuntansi saat ini terlalu tidak konsisten?
4. Apakah campur tangan politis mengaburkan netralitas laporan
akuntansi?
The role of a conceptual framework

1. Argument: a conceptual framework is not necessary, because

accounting profession has survived without a formally
constructed theory. However, problems have arisen.
2. Accounting practice is overly permissive – “… leave every
corporation free to choose its own methods of accounting…
(NYSE, 1934).
The role of a conceptual framework

3. Inconsistency of practice – lack of a conceptual framework.

4. Accounting practice based on judgements – the conceptual
framework as a defence against political interference

The objective of having

a generally accepted accounting principle
The role of a conceptual framework

Manfaat:
• Konsisten dengan aturan pelaporan logis
• Kepatuhan yang lebih besar
• Meningkatkan akuntabilitas
• Standar spesifik lebih sedikit
• Meningkatkan pemahaman peraturan pelaporan
• Penyusunan standar yang lebih ekonomis
Objectives of conceptual frameworks

FASB paragraph 34 (1978):

Financial reporting should provide information that is useful to present
and potential investors and creditors and other users in making rational
investment, credit and similar decisions.
Objectives of conceptual frameworks

Information should be …

• useful in making economic decisions

• useful in assessing cash flow prospects
• about enterprise resources, claims to those resources and changes
in them
SAK per 1 Januari 2015 – Kerangka Dasar Penyusunan dan Penyajian
Laporan Keuangan (KDPPLK):
Konsep dasar yang mendasari penyusunan dan penyajian laporan keuangan
bagi para pemakai ekternal
Tujuan menjadi acuan bagi:
• Penyusun standar akuntansi keuangan dalam tugasnya
• Penyusun laporan keuangan untuk menanggulangi masalah akuntansi
yang belum diatur dalam standar
• Auditor dalam memberikan pendapat audit
• Pemakai laporan keuangan dalam menafsirkan informasi dalam laporan
keuangan
SAK per 1 Januari 2017 – Kerangka Konseptual Pelaporan Keuangan
(Pendahuluan par. 01)
Objective embraced within
the IASB Conceptual Framework
• According to the IASB Conceptual Framework released in September 2010:
(paragraph OB2):

The objective of general-purpose financial reporting is to provide

financial information about the reporting entity that is useful to existing
and potential investors, lenders and other creditors in making decisions
about providing resources to the entity. Those decisions involve buying,
selling or holding equity and debt instruments, and providing or settling
loans and other forms of credit.
• Objective of decision usefulness can call into question the usefulness of
historical cost information
Qualitative characteristics of financial information
• To ensure financial information is useful for economic decision making,
we need to consider the attributes or qualities that financial information
should have
• The IASB Conceptual Framework identifies:
Fundamental qualitative characteristics
• relevance
• faithful representation
Enhancing qualitative characteristics
• comparability
• verifiability
• timeliness
• understandability
 Components of
a conceptual framework of accounting
Objectives of conceptual frameworks
(SFAC No 2, FASB, 1980)
Objectives of conceptual frameworks
(IAS 1, 2011, & IAS 8, 2012)
 Developing a conceptual framework

Pengembangan rerangka konseptual dipengaruhi oleh dua isu pokok:

• principles versus rules-based approaches to standard setting
• information for decision making and the decision-theory approach
Principles-based and rule-based standard setting
• IASB mostly produces consistent, coherent principles-based
standards
• Rule-based standards may increase comparability and verifiability
and may reduce earnings management
Principles-based and rule-based standard setting

• The standards of the FASB have traditionally been rule-based

• Emphasis now being given to principles
• Timely given the IASB/FASB convergence program
• Convergence project between IFRS and US GAAP
Information for decision making and
the decision-theory approach

• Data akuntansi dibutuhkan untuk pembuatan keputusan atau

tujuan akuntabilitas:
• stewardship
• decision making – users

The decision-theory approach maps the process by which the

outputs of the accounting system provide inputs to the decision
model of a user
International developments:
the IASB and FASB Conceptual Framework
• Tahun 2004 FASB dan IASB sepakat untuk mengerjakan projek
bersama untuk:
• Mengembangkan rerangka konseptual umum yang lebih baik
• Pengembangan standar berdasarkan prinsip, yang secara internal
konsisten dan secara internasional bertemu
• Sebuah Exposure Draft dihasilkan pada 2009
• Menangguhkan isu sektor not-for-profit
A critique of conceptual framework projects

Pendekatan untuk pengembangan rerangka konseptual:

• scientific
recourse to logic and empiricism or both
• professional
prescribes the best course of action by recourse to professional
values
A critique of conceptual framework projects
Scientific criticisms:
• prescriptive
• unspecified rules and conventions
• do not resolve contemporary disclosure issues
• vague definitions
• do not address measurement issues
• risk of mechanical decision making
• framework may become an end in itself
• overreliance on definitions
Circularity of reasoning
Objective of a conceptual framework: guide the everyday practice of
accountants
A superficial view – deducing principles from generalised theory

Existing frameworks typified by internal circularity:

e.g. FASB Statement No. 2
qualitative characteristics are often stated in terms of other qualities
which are non-operationalised
The conceptual framework as a policy document

• As a generalised body of knowledge, conceptual frameworks fail a

number of ‘scientific’ tests
• The distinction between theories and policies is important
• CFs not produced in a political vacuum
• CFs may just be a reflection of the dominant group’s will
Professional values and self-preservation
• ‘Self-preservation’
implies the pursuit of self-interest
• ‘Professional values’
suggests idealism (ideal) and altruism (selfless)
• Gerboth (1987)
sense of personal responsibility – the best obtainable
approximation of accounting truth
• Hines (1989)
to retain professional legitimacy – a strategic manoeuvre to assist
in socially constructing a knowledge base accounting standard
We will continue to
the next topic

Arthik Davianti, Ph.D. Ak. CA. CSP.