THE EFFECTS OF MANAGEMENT ACCOUNTING SYSTEMS, PERCEIVED ENVIRONMENTALUNCERTAINTY AND DECENTRALIZATION ON MANAGERIAL PERFORMANCE - A TEST OF 3-WAY INTERACTION

This study investigated the interaction effects of perceived environme ntal uncertainty (PEU), decentralization and management accounting sys tems (MAS) design on managerial performance. MAS design was defined in terms of perceived availability of two characteristics of information , which were scope and level of aggregation. The responses of 48 manag ers, drawn from a cross-section of Singapore companies, to a questionn aire survey were analysed by examining the regression equations for th e three-way interaction model and the partial derivatives of the equat ions. The results indicated that decentralization and the availability of MAS information characteristics of broad scope and aggregation wer e associated with higher managerial performance under conditions of hi gh PEU. Under conditions of low PEU, decentralization and the availabi lity of MAS broad scope and aggregated information were associated wit h lower managerial performance.