Problematising grand challenges through accounting inscriptions: the case of poverty

Purpose
The purpose of this study is to investigate the role of accounting inscriptions in the process of identifying a grand challenge, i.e. defining, re-presenting and constructing a grand challenge as a problem to be addressed. More specifically, we consider the case of a poverty alleviation network and the role of accounting in mediating the dynamics between multiple actors with different perspectives and interests.

Design/methodology/approach
To attend to the research aims, this study employs a multi-method qualitative approach based on semi-structured interviews and participant observation. Informed by Callon’s (1980) socio-logic of translation, and in particular, by the notion of problematisation, this study unpacks the process through which the identification of a problem unfolds.

Findings
By drawing on Callon (1980, 1984), we conceptualize the construction of a problem as a relational process where different actors, motivated by different perspectives and interests, interact around the nature of the problem. By defining areas of “certainty”, “unanalysed” and “suspicion” (Callon, 1980), the territory of analysis of the poverty problem is carved out and an understanding of poverty and how it could be mitigated is constructed. Within this process, we reveal that accounting inscriptions played a key role in supporting different actors’ problematisations within the network and ultimately in legitimizing some interests over others.

Originality/value
Analysing the process of problematising poverty in the context of poverty alleviation, through the theoretical construct of problematisation, enables us to contribute to the accounting literature on grand challenges by shedding light on the dynamics of how these complex problems are constructed and addressed. Further, the insights provided by our analysis contribute to the understanding of the role of accounting inscriptions in identifying the nature of a grand challenge within a network of actors; the identification of a grand challenge represents a pre-condition for deciding about any mitigation policies, strategies and/or initiatives to be undertaken.