Competing logics in university accounting education in post-revolutionary Russia

Drawing on the institutional logics literature, the paper examines the fundamental transformation of Russian higher education in accounting from 1917 to 2014. In particular, the study illustrates the transition from the state logic, dominating accounting education during the Soviet Union period, to multiple logics, namely the logics of the state, the profession and the market, shaping the accounting education after the collapse of the Soviet Union. The paper offers three important contributions to the accounting literature. The study defines westernization in the context of a post-communist country as the diffusion of professional and market logics into the field traditionally dominated by the state. The study contributes to the extensive institutional research on accounting education and profession development by explaining institutional logics change in light of the macro changes in the institutional substances. Lastly, the paper outlines the roles of discourses, rhetorical justifications and institutional vocabularies in the accounting education change. By analyzing institutional vocabularies and rhetorical justifications of the competing logics the study underscores the sources of authority and tension in the accounting education field.