The professionalization of accountancy: a history of protecting the public interest in a self‐interested way

Reviews the history of the early development of the accountancy profession in the UK and the USA and describes the organization of professional accountancy bodies in both countries, concentrating particularly on events in the post‐formation period. Identifies the persistent struggle of UK and US accountants with the conflicting phenomena of economic self‐interest and public duty. Shows how professional accountancy in the UK and the USA evolved from internalized disputes to externalized defences of the professional mission. This evolution caused the actions of UK and US accountants to be scrutinized increasingly in public. Researched evidence of recent institutional reaction to such scrutiny is consistent with earlier behaviour associated with formation events. The economic self‐interest of accounting professionals appears continuously to have motivated their actions to protect the public interest.