The mainstream positivistic approach to management accounting research seeks to provide essentially rational explanations to social phenomena. Reviewing the recent issues in this approach to provide some directions for future research is the main aim of this paper. Various recent issues surrounding the use of this approach in management accounting research have been reviewed in this paper, including the recent debate around empirical positivistic research in management accounting, the sound definition of management accounting constructs, the closure of gap between surveys and case studies in management accounting research, the appropriate use of statistical methods for testing hypotheses in management accounting and the use of graphics to map theory-consistent empirical research. Based on this review, some guidelines and recommendations have been offered.
Dr. Ahmed Othman Rashwan Kholeif
Assistant Professor in Accounting
Department of Accounting
Faculty of Commerce
Alexandria University
