AN INVESTIGATION INTO THE IMPACT OF ACCOUNTING PRINCIPLES ON THE QUALITY OF FINANCIAL REPORTS OF FIRMS IN NIGERIA

ABSTRACT: The study examines the relationship between accounting principles and quality of financial reports in Nigerian brewery industry. The study explicitly assesses the impact of accounting ethical principles of disclosure, objectivity and integrity on the quality of financial reports of selected firms in the Nigerian brewery industry. Primary data was used in the study. The data were obtained from structured questionnaires administered to 120 accounting practitioners in six selected brewery firms in Nigeria. Analysis of data was done using the descriptive statistics and linear regression analysis. The results showed that accounting ethical principles of disclosure (β=0.887; R2=0.936; p<0.05); objectivity (β=0.896; R2= 0.952; p<0.05) integrity (β=0.768; R2=0.917; p<0.05); professional independence β=0.730; R2=0.895; p<0.05) and competence (β=0.868; R2=0.934; p<0.05) significantly influence the quality of financial reports of selected organizations. The study suggests amongst others that, accountants should totally adhere to ethical principles while carrying out their responsibilities in order to generate quality, authentic, reliable and dependable financial reports.