Ways of not seeing: Visibility, blindness, and the “transparency game”

Jonathan Tweedie*, Matteo Ronzani

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract / Description of output

Purpose – To advance understanding of transparency by problematising the motivations and strategies of a so far underexplored group: its users.

Design/methodology/approach – We explore the relationship between blindness, visibility, and transparency by drawing on our analysis of Max Frisch’s experimental novel Gantenbein (1964), in which the protagonist lives a life of feigned blindness.

Findings – The accounting scholarly debate on transparency has neglected the users of transparency. We address this through a novel theorisation of transparency as a game, highlighting some of its distinctive features and paradoxes.

Originality/value – By theorising the “transparency game” we move beyond concerns with what transparency reveals or conceals and conceptualise the motivations and strategies of the “players” engaged in this game. We show how different players have something to gain from the transparency game and warn of its emancipatory limits.
Original languageEnglish
Number of pages19
JournalAccounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal
Early online date13 Sept 2024
DOIs
Publication statusE-pub ahead of print - 13 Sept 2024

Keywords / Materials (for Non-textual outputs)

  • control
  • emancipation
  • game
  • transparency
  • visibility

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