Qualitative Characteristics of Accounting Information
Qualitative Characteristics of Accounting Information
Qualitative characteristics are the attributes that make the information provided in financial statements useful to users. The four principal qualitative characteristics are understandability, relevance, reliability and comparability. It is also pointed out that these qualitative characteristics may need to be balanced against one another. (John Wiley& Sons Australia, Ltd, 2009) The relative importance of the characteristics in different cases is a matter of professional judgment.
Relevance
Relevance refers to the information provided with the statements of users associated with the purpose to be achieved. If a message has nothing to do with the statements of purpose of the user, which of course useless, which includes prediction, feedback functions, measurement function and timeliness properties.
Relevant information also helps decision makers confirm or correct prior expectations; it has "Feedback Value". (Obaidat, Ahmad N, 2007) Enterprises to provide accounting information to be able to be useful for decision-making, then the natural requirement that such information associated with the decision-making. Irrelevant information is not to mention useful for decision-making. Accounting information has come from all aspects of the user; different users of accounting information have different requirements, so the same for different users of accounting information, its relevance will be different. Accounting information related to these decision-makers. But for the other decision-makers may not be relevant. At the same time, this correlation also depends on the decision-makers in decision-making level and the specific decision-making patterns. Relevant degree of accounting information, if for different decision makers to take a different decision-making process, and the results would not be the same.
Reliability
Reliability means the information can be exactly expressed in economic activity as it is.
Qualitative characteristics are the attributes that make the information provided in financial statements useful to users. The four principal qualitative characteristics are understandability, relevance, reliability and comparability. It is also pointed out that these qualitative characteristics may need to be balanced against one another. (John Wiley& Sons Australia, Ltd, 2009) The relative importance of the characteristics in different cases is a matter of professional judgment.
Relevance
Relevance refers to the information provided with the statements of users associated with the purpose to be achieved. If a message has nothing to do with the statements of purpose of the user, which of course useless, which includes prediction, feedback functions, measurement function and timeliness properties.
Relevant information also helps decision makers confirm or correct prior expectations; it has "Feedback Value". (Obaidat, Ahmad N, 2007) Enterprises to provide accounting information to be able to be useful for decision-making, then the natural requirement that such information associated with the decision-making. Irrelevant information is not to mention useful for decision-making. Accounting information has come from all aspects of the user; different users of accounting information have different requirements, so the same for different users of accounting information, its relevance will be different. Accounting information related to these decision-makers. But for the other decision-makers may not be relevant. At the same time, this correlation also depends on the decision-makers in decision-making level and the specific decision-making patterns. Relevant degree of accounting information, if for different decision makers to take a different decision-making process, and the results would not be the same.
Reliability
Reliability means the information can be exactly expressed in economic activity as it is.
Bibliography: Online Learning Centre (2009), Qualitative Characteristics of Accounting Information, http://highered.mcgraw-hill.com/sites/0072994029/student_view0/ebook/chapter1/chbody1/qualitative_characteristics_of_accounting_information.html John Wiley& Sons Australia, Ltd (2009), Financial accounting/ John Hoggett…[et al.] (7th ed.) Obaidat, Ahmad N (2007), Accounting Information Qualitative Characteristics Gap: Evidence from Jordan, International Management Review, http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa5439/is_200701/ai_n21292051/pg_2/?tag=content;col1