Cost accounting is experiencing dramatic changes. Developments in computer

systems have reduced manual bookkeeping. Changing production methods in

both service and manufacturing industries have made labor-intensive applications

of cost accounting obsolete in some cases. There is an increasing emphasis on

cost control in hospitals, in industries facing extensive foreign competition, in

government, and in many other organizations that traditionally have not focused

on cost control. We believe it is important for students to understand fundamental

cost accounting concepts, to appreciate how those concepts are applied in prac-

tice, and to see how they need to be adapted to accommodate nonmanufacturing

applications and changing production technologies.

For example, the chapters on cost systems discuss the use of costs for comput-

ing inventory values and cost of goods sold on financial statements, but also

apply these ideas to product costing for managerial purposes when there is no

inventory. The chapter on job costing includes a section on job costing in service

organizations, like CPA firms. The discussion of cost allocation shows possible

product cost distortions if costs in automated plants are assigned to products

using traditional labor-based application methods.

The use of computer-based models has increased the importance of avoiding

"garbage-in, garbage-out" when using cost data in companies. The emphasis

in this book is on the accountant s role in providing data and interpreting output

from the models. For example, the discussion of linear programming in Chapter

13 shows how accounting data are used in formulating the problem, and it

shows the student how to interpret the output. Further, it shows how the results

of product choice decisions can be affected by misapplication of full-absorption

cost data in a multiple-product model.

Recently, developments in such related disciplines as economics, behavioral

sciences, statistics, and operations research have also had a major impact on

cost accounting. These disciplines generally regard the data as given and focus

on the concepts and methods of their respective disciplines. This approach, in

"mirror image," is followed by focusing on the use of cost data in decision

models and on the application of techniques and concepts from other disciplines

as they relate to cost accounting. This approach allows more time for discussion

of accounting issues and emphasizes the comparative advantage of the accountant

in managing organizations.