Course unit details:
Quantitative Research Methods in Accounting
| Unit code | BMAN73811 |
|---|---|
| Credit rating | 15 |
| Unit level | FHEQ level 7 – master's degree or fourth year of an integrated master's degree |
| Teaching period(s) | Semester 1 |
| Available as a free choice unit? | No |
Overview
Ball and Brown (1968) and Beaver (1968) are often cited as two founding papers from which accounting as an empirical research discipline emerged. During the past four decades, the volume and variety of empirical research has exploded, due to factors such as the standardization of empirical research methods, the timely and widespread distribution of working papers through SSRN, and the training of successive generations of accounting researchers (Ryan, 2013).
To increase the awareness of the students about the cutting-edge empirical accounting research and assist them in applying quantitative methods to a range of problems in the accounting and finance context, this course revisits ten topics that are extensively covered in existing empirical financial accounting research.
Pre/co-requisites
Aims
This course aims to introduce statistical and quantitative techniques in accounting, integrated with theory and empirical evidence. It gives on overview of selected approaches to market-based accounting research, including an insight into cutting-edge academic publications. It also provides students with the necessary background required for other accounting and finance courses, and will be of particular benefit to the students who wish to undertake quantitative work in their dissertation.
Learning outcomes
- Have a knowledge and understanding of quantitative research in accounting;
- Have a critical awareness of research issues and methodologies in accounting;
- Collect and analyse archival data and interpret empirical results;
- Undertake quantitative accounting research using statistical tools such as STATA;
- Have an enhanced ability to participate constructively in groups.
Assessment methods
Group Project - 30%
Examination - 70%
Feedback methods
Informal advice and discussion during a lecture, seminar, workshop or lab.
Responses to student emails and questions from a member of staff including feedback provided to a group via an online discussion forum.
Written and/or verbal comments on assessed or non-assessed coursework.
Recommended reading
Details of course and all teaching material will be available through the Blackboard webpage accessible at: https://online.manchester.ac.uk
Study hours
| Scheduled activity hours | |
|---|---|
| Assessment written exam | 2 |
| Lectures | 20 |
| Seminars | 10 |
| Independent study hours | |
|---|---|
| Independent study | 123 |
Teaching staff
| Staff member | Role |
|---|---|
| Liang Xu | Unit coordinator |
Additional notes
Informal Contact Methods
Office Hours