Due to the globalization process that the world is undergoing and the continuous evolution of the financial structure of the countries, a change in economic matters has been brought about; You have entered into a worldwide competition, using new accounting policies to be the center of attention, changing results, presenting incomplete reports or that do not faithfully show the economic truth; All this has originated a new accounting concept "creative accounting"; a concept that takes advantage of regulatory gaps and opens a narrow field that allows the manipulation of information towards defined interests; deviating the primary purpose of the accounting profession, discrediting the accountant's ethics and altering the image and prestige of the accounting profession.
Introduction
Today and as in other times accounting plays an important role in society due to the constant changes and the imminent globalization, accounting has evolved remarkably giving rise to new accounting strategies within them. '' Creative accounting consists of manipulate the information to artificially alter what would be the natural result deduced or determined in accordance with the accounting policy established by the company (1) ”.
Being the result of the flexibility of certain accounting standards that facilitate manipulation to benefit companies and at the same time call into question the morality of the accounting profession, to change this it is necessary new legislation and institutions that with their own authority can regulate effectively the rules that reflect the reality of companies.
A new approach
Accounting is an independent profession and at the same time complementary to others; where professionals have a greater field of action to carry out their work, expanding and diversifying according to the country's environment and the needs that surround them.
That is why, as accountants, it is necessary to be in continuous personal growth, to change knowledge and an ethical and moral conscience. of service and dedication to the common good (2) ”; and as for the professional, the management of tools, mechanisms, concepts and practices that allow accounting to be carried out at an optimal level of understanding according to the needs of the different users and the needs of the environment in which they are developed; allowing to influence in a correct way in the decision making of economic and social character.
That is why due to the needs of the users, the accounting firm has had to renew and change its strategies to enter a new world and a new concept according to the demands of globalization and the economic advance that is necessary to survive. this new world; knowing and applying new strategies that allow showing the best way to face a financial difficulty without exceeding the normative principles, thus giving way to creative accounting, which has originated from the need to change the perception that one has towards accountants and the accounting; change from being simple bookkeepers where the only mission was to keep business accounts to people in charge of business management and administration,being of great help for decision-making and generating commitments with oneself and with society, guaranteeing the veracity of information through ethical training, which is characterized by transparency in the execution and development of the accountant, prevailing deep disclosure of information.
Unfortunately, in many companies, economic interests and conveniences play a very important role, causing a rupture between ethics and accounting, generating a new concept of accounting management.
Creative accounting is currently conceived as
"The art of manipulating the information that companies provide to external users, without them noticing such a procedure (3)".
This is due to the need to intervene in the competitive market that requires a high level of cunning where appropriate accounting policies must be sought to be applied uniformly, allowing the accountant to "analyze, think strategically, plan, cooperate and respond in a manner creative to new situations ”(Suárez Pineda, 2000, pp. 236) as previously stated, creative accounting is an art that under certain circumstances is a tool at the service of managers that allows to dissipate the pressures to which they are subject and entails to intentionally distort information by giving an extreme view of things, all with approval of accounting principles and regulations, demonstrating the truth according to the criteria and attitude of the individual who carries it out;This model must be based on principles or rules that, when applied, must show a faithful image or formal truth (4).
Other accounting policies
In addition to creative accounting, there are other policies that are:
- Conservative and Aggressive; “Conservative policies are those that, through their implementation, lead to obtaining less accumulated results at any moment in time, as well as showing smaller assets and own resources; and aggressive policies are those that tend to offer the highest level of accumulated results, assets and own resources at any time (5) ”.
Both policies are based on accounting standards and policies but in reality they do not accurately reflect the behavior of companies since they are determined according to the interests and desires of the different parties regardless of the main objective of the company, the company's choices can be: Efficient, when they support decision-making and value added is maximized and, opportunistically, when decision-making prevails over personal interest over that of the company.
- Another practice identified in creative accounting is the Smoothing of the result, this is one that manipulates the information to achieve a uniform result history that represents a security and confidence for the users of the company and future investors, it is one of the most used not only as a strategy against difficulties but also as an increase in the level of results so that the beneficial effects are broader.
Creative accounting has begun to form part of the accounting language, being of great impact at an international level affecting large companies such as Enron and Waldcom, discrediting accounting principles in terms of their ability to regulate the profession and giving rise to the use of existing gaps in this, in order to reflect an economic strength that allows the manipulation of users of the Bank and the Treasury and thus be able to achieve the awarding of important benefits and concessions.
conclusion
In advance, accounting is supposed to be based on professional values, disciplinary knowledge and professional performance consistent with an ethical code; but due to the growing demand demanded by the market, the weight of new theories, practices, and disciplinary interference and in a professional performance consistent with an ethical code; but dedication of these in the doctrinal body of the discipline has caused a new vision of the profession to be evaluated and rethought, and to adopt practices or mechanisms outside the moral context that represents the accountant as a way to avoid risk and attract more benefits and recognition to the company and to those who exercise its administration.
'' Furthermore, it is of great importance for the future of the profession to use all possible ways to induce accountants to research and to the discovery and analysis of the wide range of activities in which they can have an active participation in today's society. '' (Ayala Vela, 2003 pp. 48)
