A profissão contábil no Brasil: Um olhar sobre o fechamento, regulação e competências profissionais numa perspectiva histórica

Abstract

In this thesis aimed we develop an analysis of accounting professionalization, from the Vargas Era, discussing the actions and policies that influenced the closure of the profession, changes in accounting education and the skills required of professionals in the area. To this end, this study has specific objectives that were discussed in three articles. In article 1, the state of the art of scientific production on the history of accounting professionalization is presented, based on articles indexed from 2002 to 2022 in the Web of Science and Scopus databases, through a systematic review. The findings reveal that, in general, the studies aimed to understand how the process of closing the accounting profession occurred in a certain period and space, as they were limited to a country and period in history; they also discuss the relationship between the profession and the State and the role of class associations and unions in the process of closing the profession. Of the twenty-one studies presented, nineteen used a theoretical lens to support their results, predominantly the Sociological Theory of Professions, focusing on the closure of the profession. Article 2 aimed to identify the actions that occurred in the Vargas Era (1930-1945) that contributed to the social closure of the accounting profession, using the Sociological Theory of Professions as a theoretical lens, and was developed through archival research with documentary sources. The results showed that the actions that took place in the area of education, during the Vargas Era, favored the rise of accounting teaching in Brazil, ranging from the organization of commercial teaching to the elevation of accounting teaching to higher education. The rise of accounting education to higher education and the requirement for academic training for these professionals contributed to the closure of the profession to the unqualified. Additionally, we found that in the Vargas Era, due to the developmental expansion resulting from the creation of large open state-owned companies such as Companhia Vale do Rio Doce and Companhia Hidrelétrica de São Francisco, aspects that form a cognitive basis for exercising the profession were highlighted. Regarding the actions of the Vargas government in relation to labor and social issues, it was observed that they were decisive for the professionalization of the accounting professional and for the closure of the profession, as they resulted in the Consolidation of Labor Laws, the regulation of unions and the emergence of associations representing professional classes. As a result of trade union organization, especially in the 1930s, important movements to organize the profession led to the creation of the Federal Accounting Council and regional councils, establishing the professional responsibilities and prerogatives of accounting technicians and accountants. It is inferred that State policies can affect the regulation of the accounting profession. In article 3, the evolution of the skills required of accounting professionals was examined, also through the analysis of legal documents related to guidelines regarding the professional's academic training, delimiting the sources to the period 1945-2024, given the creation of the first higher education course in the area, in 1945, until the publication of the National Curricular Guidelines in 2024. The analysis revealed that, initially, the documents focused on the curricular structure without explicitly mentioning the necessary skills. It was only after CNE/CES Opinion No. 0146/2002 that competencies and skills began to be clearly delineated. CNE/CES Resolutions nº 10/2004 and nº 1/2024 reinforced the importance of comprehensive training, which integrated technical, ethical and multidisciplinary aspects. However, despite the advances, Resolution No. 1/2024 still presents gaps in explaining the desired attitudes of professionals, a crucial aspect for meeting the affective and social aspects of accounting professionals.