Creating a supranational institution: the role of the individual and the mood of the times

This study notes that, while the research literature which addresses accounting change in different countries is preoccupied with issues such as economic and legal environment, culture and consensus, research in accounting history recognizes, in biographical studies, the role sometimes played by individuals in influencing the outcomes in moments where change takes place. The article looks at the case of the creation of the International Accounting Standards Committee and analyses the evidence concerning the roles of the central individuals, Henry Benson, Douglas Morpeth and Wally Olson. It concludes that while it is difficult to disentangle the strands of institutional politics and responses to prevailing policy issues, the individuals concerned did play major roles and there is a case for the intervention of individuals to be considered in the international accounting literature as one of the issues that helps build accounting infrastructure.