Finansiella analytikers användning av redovisningsrapporter
En studie av möjliga konsekvenser med ett utökat informationsinnehåll
The accounting of today results in reports that are valued according to one kind of value.There are advocates who recommend that the accounting should be expanded by one orseveral columns, which would enable that other methods of valuation could be used. In thisessay we examine how the ?multi column reporting? can alter the outcome of a financialanalysts? valuation procedure.In this essay we used existing theories about the financial analysts? usage of information toreach the lack of information we found and which we aim to erase whit this essay. To do thiswe studied decision theories and theories regarding information processing, and by interviewswith three financial analysts. After we collected the information needed for the analyses, wethen also compared the results of the interviews with related theories.The theories about decision in this essay concern whether a decision is based on rationality,bounded rationality or irrationality. In this essay the information processing concerns what thecauses of extended information could be. We also examine what will happen when thecomplexity of the information becomes too high, which is defined as information overload.The conclusion of this essay is that financial analysts? decisions tend to be of boundedrationality, and that multi column reporting would rather be negative than positive for thevaluation process. The reason is that the financial analysts would be affected by informationoverload, because the complexity of the information would exceed what is possible to handlefor the human capacity.The contribution of this essay is the insight that expanded accounting reports risk to causeinformation overload among financial analysts. It also shows a tendency that multi columnreporting would contribute with more relevant information to the financial analysts? decisionprocess. Though, this would cause a situation which is too complex for the human mind tohandle.