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An exploration of the professional habitus in the Big 4 accounting firms
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Spence, Crawford and Carter, C. (2014) An exploration of the professional habitus in the Big 4 accounting firms. Work, Employment And Society, Volume 28 (Number 6). pp. 946-962. doi:10.1177/0950017013510762 ISSN 0950-0170.
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Official URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0950017013510762
Abstract
The meaning of professionalism is changing, with the commercial pressures of globalization exerting dramatic pressures on the nature of professional work and the skill sets required of professionals. This article engages with this debate by reporting on a qualitative, empirical study undertaken in a domain that has been largely neglected by sociology: professional accounting. Focusing on the elite ‘Big 4’ accounting firms, the ways in which partners and other senior accountants embody institutional logics into their habitus are analysed. It is shown that the embodiment of different logics is inextricably linked to the establishment of hierarchy within the Big 4, with a commercial-professional logic accorded a significantly higher status than a technical-professional logic. Further, the article responds to critics of Bourdieu’s notion of habitus, highlighting how habitus does not merely denote the passive internalization of external structures, but is also capable of disembodying constraining institutional logics, thereby highlighting scope for professional self-determination.
| Item Type: | Journal Article | ||||
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| Divisions: | Faculty of Social Sciences > Warwick Business School > Accounting Faculty of Social Sciences > Warwick Business School |
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| Journal or Publication Title: | Work, Employment And Society | ||||
| Publisher: | Sage Publications Ltd. | ||||
| ISSN: | 0950-0170 | ||||
| Official Date: | 16 April 2014 | ||||
| Dates: |
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| Volume: | Volume 28 | ||||
| Number: | Number 6 | ||||
| Page Range: | pp. 946-962 | ||||
| DOI: | 10.1177/0950017013510762 | ||||
| Status: | Peer Reviewed | ||||
| Publication Status: | Published | ||||
| Access rights to Published version: | Restricted or Subscription Access |
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