Introduction

Abstract

One of the oldest and most debated principles in accounting is conservatism. Early literature on conservatism focused primarily on describing the phenomenon. More recent academic research broadly follows one of three directions: The first stream of research aims at assessing the impact of conservative reporting standards on real economic decisions, e.g., its role in contracting. It addresses the basic question of whether more or less conservatism in accounting is economically desirable. The second stream is concerned with advancing the measurement of conservatism. It addresses limitations of current conservatism measures to sufficiently reflect accounting conservatism. The third stream seeks to incorporate conservatism in accounting based valuation models. It addresses the role of conservatism in valuation.