Recently, the international accounting history community celebrated the news that Professor Guo Daoyang from the School of Accounting has been honored with the Barbara D. Merino Award for Excellence in Accounting History Publication by the Academy of Accounting Historians (AAH), an affiliate of the American Accounting Association (AAA). This recognition was granted for the outstanding academic contributions of his monumental work,A General History of Chinese Accounting.
This award is regarded as one of the highest honors in the field of international accounting history research, recognizing “the best treatise on accounting history published worldwide within the past two years.” Professor Guo’s achievement not only represents a major breakthrough for Chinese scholars in this award category but also signifies the highest level of international recognition for the academic attainments of Chinese accounting history research.
A Milestone treatise: Reconstructing the Research Paradigm of Chinese Accounting History
A General History of Chinese Accounting is a milestone work, the fruit of decades of dedicated research by Professor Guo Daoyang. It systematically traces the evolution of Chinese accounting systems, the transformation of accounting thoughts and changes in accounting practices. Its academic value is reflected in the high systematization and originality,unlike traditional research in accounting history.Not only does it fill the gap in long-span Chinese accounting history through its general history perspective, but also transcendsthe single-dimensional focus on “accounting institutions–techniques” by innovatively proposing an interactive analytical framework of “institutions–economy–governance.”This new paradigm deeply reveals the development of Chinese accounting systems are not the isolated phenomenon but deeply and constantly coupled with national governance patterns and economic structure transformations. Moreover, the treatise enhances the Chinese accounting history’s visibility and voice in the global academic discourse by adopting an interdisciplinary perspective that integrates accounting, economic history, institutional history and governance research and comparing evolutionary paths of Chinese and Western accounting systems.
The Barbara D. Marine Award for Excellence in Accounting History Publication: The Coveted Pinnacle
Sponsored by the Academy of Accounting Historians (AAH) affiliated with the American Accounting Association (AAA) for the appraisement and selection of this award, which is for the global accounting history researchers, enjoys extremely high international credibility.
The criteria for selecting this award are extremely strict, only one work is awarded each year worldwide, so the competition is extremely fierce, demonstrating an exceptional scarcity. Past winners are mostly top accounting history scholars from countries with an English academic system.
The honor won by A General History of Chinese Accounting demonstrated that this treatise has reached the world’s top level in three core dimensions, which include originality,systematization and international influence, it also represents that the construction of Chinese accounting culture’s academic discourse has earned the high of recognition of the international academic community.
Based in China, Facing the World: Elevating the New Height of Disciplinary Internationalization
Professor Guo Daoyang’s award is not only a pinnacle achievement in his personal academic career, but also a substantive validation of our university’s strategy for accounting history research. It has significantly enhanced the university’s international discourse influence in the study of accounting system evolution and established a benchmark for nurturing top-tier accounting talents with historical depth and global perspective.
Taking this award as a catalyst, the School of Accounting will further advance its distinctive strategy of “Accounting + History + Chinese Perspective”. Moving forward, it will strive to establish a specialized research platform for accounting history, encouraging young scholars and doctoral students to engage in high-quality academic treatise writing. Meanwhile, the School will continuously expand international cooperation and academic exchanges and effectively translate research outputs such as A General History of Chinese Accountinginto teaching resources, integrating them into the curriculum systems for both undergraduate and graduate programs.
History is not merely a reflection on the past, but also a mirror for the future. Through his rigorous academic endeavors, Professor Guo Daoyang has systematically presented to the world the unique evolution and cultural richness of Chinese accounting. His recent accolade of the“The Barbara D. Marine Award for Excellence in Accounting History Publication” marks a crucial milestone in the School of Accounting’s determined pursuit of accounting discipline internationalization. Going forward, the school will continue to adhere to the principle of“rooted in China, oriented to the world”, amplifying the “Chinese voice” in the global accounting academic community.
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Reporter: Ran Mingdong