Jul 18, 2022

Is accounting a science or an art?

Is accounting a science or an art?

Accounting is an art as well as a science, it is an art where it records, classifies and summarizes financial transactions, which helps in understanding the profitability and financial condition of the company, in accounting is also a science because it is an organized knowledge based on certain basic principles.

Accounting can be considered an art because it requires judgment and creative skills, and in order to perform the functions of accounting well, discipline and training are required.

Accounting can also be considered a science because it is a body of knowledge, but because the rules and principles are constantly changing and improving, it is not considered an exact science.

Is accounting a science or an art?

The debate over whether accounting is a science or an art has been the subject of debate many times, but nowadays it has become quite a definite thing; It is not about adopting an eclectic attitude, but having clear concepts.

When asked, is accounting an art or a science? The answer is simple as we can consider the various processes and methods used in accounting as a science, and the processes of analysis and decision-making as an art.

There are a series of scientific methods that govern accounting in the way it is performed, but it is also true that you as an accountant spend a lot of time analyzing and interpreting the results you get from applying these methods, so we can also think of this as art. Your artistic creativity is key in the decision-making process.

Many people say that art is the practical application of science, and that can be considered true.

What makes accounting a note?

It is a branch of superhuman scientific knowledge and has a purpose; To clearly establish economic facts because they have a monetary - and therefore mathematical - interpretation and this constitutes a "financial reality"

This field of knowledge has all the essential characteristics of scientific knowledge, but specifically "practical knowledge", and in this sense, these are the facts relating to human culture and specifically social facts; It is generated from the activities that humans perform when they build and live in a society: that is, economic activities.

Therefore, as a science based on experiments, it observes facts, formulates hypothetical statements and then confirms or invalidates them, and uses different levels, rules, rules, laws, or principles to form theories that are subsequently incorporated into a particular discipline.

It can be said that it satisfies the conditions or properties of scientific knowledge because in that knowledge there is a system, it has a structure, it has a meaning or a direction and you can also find legitimacy, identity and causation.

Nowadays, this science with its own research means, extensive legal and economic contacts and methodology stands as one of the great facts of contemporary knowledge.

The old opinion that some authors say is that accounting is not a science, but a technique, formed as an archaeological opinion typical of someone who lacks valid scientific information.

What makes accounting an art?

When you, as an accountant, are in the process of researching, formulating problems, and checking answers, since they do not constitute a set of fixed rules and require an exercise of psychological faculties and personal experiences, you are using your own professional knowledge as a means of expressing who you are on a strategic and financial level.

You can also see this in communicating the results you got from your practice.

Your goal as an accountant is to collect, categorize, record, describe, interpret, break down and summarize the operations of an entity, whether public or private, in monetary terms, with a view to extracting valuable reports that support, identify and clarify the reasons for making strategic decisions.

The information will have no practical meaning or validity unless it is analyzed and interpreted to improve managerial progress and prospects for developing the economic performance of firms.

Therefore, science and art can be dissected through the analysis and interpretation of operations: a series of personal judgments related to the content of financial statements, based on analysis and comparison, and then obtained from the information contained in the financial statements.