Management Accounting and Biodiversity: The Cultural Circuit of Capitalism and the Social Construction of a Perfect Market?

Abstract

In this chapter, we draw on recent case study insights to illustrate, through biodiversity market participants, the ways in which theories in management accounting affect practice. In particular, we build on Thrift's (2005) cultural circuit of capitalism to investigate the influence of full cost accounting (FCA) on practice. While economic models, such as FCA, provide some guidance toward managing the biodiversity crisis, a long history of literature documenting research-practice gaps in management accounting suggest otherwise. With management decisions guided by the larger social context in which they operate, the extent to which normative techniques are operationalized in practice can vary..