Abstract:
Developments in science, technology and sophisticated interconnected social networks
increase the speed and volatility of the flow of economic-related energies, such as
financial and intellectual capital. These developments require an information theory on
corporate financial reporting that is stable at a fundamental level and focused on the
disclosure of those systemic attributes that are pivotal to the sustenance of business
entities operating in the global economy, or in economies with similar traits. The limited
success in attaining stability is caused by, among others, the application of diverse,
restricted and even opposing perspectives, resulting in random theoretical development,
often unaligned with economic reality. The main aim of the article is to investigate
whether the introduction of an underlying concept, principle or theorem, founded on the
phenomenon of flow, to general-purpose corporate financial reporting theory could
contribute to rendering stable guidance for coherent theoretical development while
simultaneously enhancing alignment with the current global economy. As the study was
conducted at conceptual level, a qualitative, transdisciplinary theoretical research
methodology was applied by taking into account related basic concepts of philosophy,
corporate financial reporting theory, economics, management accounting, physics and
complexity. The study suggests that the conceptualisation of flow in general-purpose
corporate financial reporting theory could contribute to rendering stable guidance for
further coherent theoretical development, and improve on the alignment of the theory with the dynamics of the current global economy. This finding creates the opportunity to
explore a variety of new reporting approaches from a scientific perspective, which could
aid to enhance the disclosure of useful financial information.
