The accounting landscape features multiple concepts adopted by the community, which affect education, professional qualifications, and practice. To better understand this conceptual ambiguity and its educational effects, this study examines the acceptance of alternative accounting concepts reflected in the Conceptual Framework for Financial Reporting among Brazilian accounting teachers. Using Developmental Learning Theory as an analytical lens, the study analyzes survey data from 650 accounting teachers in Brazil through statistical methods. The results show a dominance of concepts linking accounting with Science or Applied Social Science, which aligns with the designation of undergraduate programs in the country as Accounting Sciences. Furthermore, teachers who view Accounting as a Representation of Reality also tend to recognize its inherent limitations, indicating a more integrated and internally consistent understanding of the concept. This research contributes by demonstrating that teachers’ conceptual positions are shaped by the coexistence of multiple definitions found in normative and educational texts, such as the Conceptual Framework. Instead of viewing conceptual ambiguity as a flaw, the findings highlight its potential for learning when made explicit and taught effectively. Therefore, the study recommends that students be intentionally exposed to the complexity and ambiguity of accounting concepts.
Lames et al. (Fri,) studied this question.