The Value of Theory-Based Research in Accounting

ABSTRACT This essay is based on my American Accounting Association (AAA) Presidential Scholar Lecture delivered at the 2025 AAA Annual Meeting in Chicago. In this essay, I assert that theory-based scientific research is the best way to solve the practical—and existential—problems that threaten the accounting profession. I provide an example based on my own research into auditors’ judgments about complex estimates. I further argue that, although academic researchers and accounting practitioners share goals regarding the success and legitimacy of the accounting profession, their roles and responsibilities differ. I encourage accounting researchers to address the big problems facing the profession through independent development of generalizable knowledge, and I ask practitioners to support the research endeavor.