The conclusions reached in this paper are summarized as follows: (1) The shifts from the balance sheet approach to the income statement approach and the reverse, from the income statement approach to the balance sheet approach, are recognized as historical changes from Saussure's viewpoint of diachronic linguistics. Regarding debit items (assets) in a balance sheet, the balance sheet approach is based on a binomial relation composed of current and fixed assets, while the income statement approach is based on a trinomial relation composed of current, fixed and deferred assets. Current asset and fixed asset are common terms, but they have different values in the two approaches. (2) Regarding changing the term allowance for depreciation to accumulated depreciation and the term reserve for taxes to taxes payable in the Japanese legal accounting system, the changes are found in the substance of signifian. However, according to Saussure's diachronic linguistics, these cannot be recognized by themselves as historical changes because it is not clear whether a value change has occurred in cases where the in-separability of signifian and signife is premised. (3) 'Special reserves' were excluded from the Japanese legal accounting system through the revision of reserve regulations early in 1980's. Before the revision, the balance sheet credit had been based on the old quadrinomial relation of current liability, fixed liability, special reserve and stockholders' equity. It was changed to the trinomial relation composed of current liability, fixed liability and stockholders' equity or to the new quadrinomial relation of current liability, fixed liability, reserve and stockholders' equity. It is the systematic change in value, therefore, that is recognized as the historical change in Saussure's diachronic linguistics. (4) The shifts from the balance sheet approach to the income statement approach and the reverse, from the income statement approach to the balance sheet approach, are recognized as a theoretical 'revolution' rather than in a technical evolution. On the other hand, the revision of reserve regulations in Japan tends to be recognized as a minor technical or practical `evolution' rather than a theoretical revolution. However, the only difference between these two changes is a difference in debit or credit on the balance sheet. The revision of reserve regulations in Japan could be recognized as a major historical change in the language system comparing with the shift between the balance sheet approach and the income statement approach.

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KJ00005058154

論文

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