Abstract
Quality can be defined as the ability of a product or service to meet the expectations of its users efficiently, quickly and at a lower cost. Accounting information is considered a product whose main objective is to provide useful information that meets the needs of various users. In other words, it consists of processed data, derived from accounting records, prepared according to specific rules (accounting standards) to reflect the economic (or legal) situation of the company. It is important to emphasize that accounting information cannot be separated from financial information. Although financial information may differ from accounting information due to adjustments made from a financial perspective, its fundamental substance remains based on accounting. This information is used to assess the financial situation, performance and prospects of a company and is often intended for investors. Defining criteria for the quality of accounting and financial information is not an easy task, as it depends on the institutional, economic and legal framework in which it is standardized. Therefore, we aim to answer the following questions: What are the theoretical foundations underlying the production of high-quality accounting information? How is the quality of accounting information defined in the specialized literature? What is the relationship between the quality of accounting information and internal control in agricultural companies and economic links with cultural institutions? Thus, we focus on the organization of the company’s accounting department through which we intend to evaluate the impact of the characteristics of the accounting department on the behavior of its managers in terms of producing and disseminating high-quality accounting information, so as to contribute to effective partnerships between the agricultural sector and cultural institutions. Given the “Quality of accounting information” that we want to explain, we prefaced its explanation by breaking it down into a second-order construct “Organization of the company’s accounting department” associated with three first-order variables: “Department morphology”, “Degrees of computerization” and “Accountant profile”.