Description
Contingency-based research has a long tradition in the study of management control systems (MCS). Researchers
have attempted to explain the effectiveness of MCS by examining designs that best suit the nature of the environment,
technology, size, structure, strategy and national culture. In recent years, contingency-based research has maintained
its popularity with studies including these variables but redefining them in contemporary terms. This paper provides a
critical review of findings from contingency-based studies over the past 20 years, deriving a series of propositions
relating MCS to organizational context.
doc_898657164.pdf
Contingency-based research has a long tradition in the study of management control systems (MCS). Researchers
have attempted to explain the effectiveness of MCS by examining designs that best suit the nature of the environment,
technology, size, structure, strategy and national culture. In recent years, contingency-based research has maintained
its popularity with studies including these variables but redefining them in contemporary terms. This paper provides a
critical review of findings from contingency-based studies over the past 20 years, deriving a series of propositions
relating MCS to organizational context.
doc_898657164.pdf