The Comparison between Domain Theory and Method Theory in Management Accounting Researches: the Emphasis on Actor-Network Theory

The theories can be divided into two groups of the domain theories and the method theories based their roles on research. A domain theory refers to a particular set of knowledge on a substantive topic area situated in a field or domain such as management accounting, while a method theory can be defined as a meta-level conceptual system for studying the substantive issue(s) of the domain theory at hand. The purpose of this paper is to distinguish two roles of theories, domain theory and method theory, and examine their relationships in management accounting research. A conceptual framework for analyzing possible relationships between domain theories and method theories are developed based on the use of the actor-network theory that is originated from sociological science. The theoretical ambition of the most studies typically focused on domain theories. Both domain theories and method theories tend to be moving fields, and their interaction can add to this feature.