Research Article

DOES THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN LEVERAGE AND ACCOUNTING DISCRETION DIFFER ACROSS LEVERAGE LEVELS? THE CASE OF EXTREME INDEBTEDNESS

Volume: 10 Number: 2 December 12, 2025
TR EN

DOES THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN LEVERAGE AND ACCOUNTING DISCRETION DIFFER ACROSS LEVERAGE LEVELS? THE CASE OF EXTREME INDEBTEDNESS

Abstract

This study investigates whether the relationship between leverage and discretionary accruals is uniform across firms. The sample consists of all manufacturing firms listed on Borsa Istanbul (BIST) during the 2013–2021 period, comprising 1,653 firm-year observations. The methodology employed is a panel data fixed-effects regression model. The findings reveal that leverage levels have a positive and significant relationship with discretionary accruals. However, contrary to the rest of the sample, the relationship between leverage and discretionary accruals is significantly negative for highly leveraged firms. The study's main findings are further supported by t-tests comparing the means of discretionary accruals across sub-samples. The results confirm that the discretionary accruals of highly leveraged firms differ significantly from the rest of the sample. Overall, the findings demonstrate that the relationship between leverage and discretionary accruals is not uniform within the same sample; rather, discretionary accruals vary depending on leverage levels. Consequently, any analysis of discretionary accruals conducted without accounting for different levels of leverage may carry the risk of producing misleading results.

Keywords

References

  1. Abernathy, J. L., Beyer, B., & Rapley, E. T. (2014). Earnings management constraints and classification shifting. Journal of Business, Finance and Accounting, 41(5-6), 600–626. DOI: 10.1111/jbfa.12076
  2. Akers, M., Giacomino, D., & Gissel, J. L. (2007). Earnings management and its implications. The CPA Journal, 77(8), 64–68.
  3. Anagnostopoulou, S. C., & Tsekrekos, A. E. (2017). The effect of financial leverage on real and accrual-based earnings management. Accounting and Business Research, 47(2), 191–236. DOI:10.1080/00014.788.201 6.1204217
  4. Ardison, K. M. M., Martinez, A. L., & Galdi, F. C. (2013). The effect of leverage on earnings management in Brazil. Advances in Scientific and Applied Accounting, 5(3), 305–324. DOI:10.14392/ASAA/201.205.0301
  5. Avabruth, S. M., & Padhi, S. K. (2023). Earnings management by family firms to meet the debt covenants: Evidence from India. Journal of Accounting in Emerging Economies, 13(1), 93–117. DOI: 10.1108/JAEE- 12-2020-0331
  6. Barros, M. E., Menezes, J. T., Colauto, R. D., & Teodoro, J. D. (2014). Earnings management and financial leverage in Brazilian listed companies. Contabilidade, Gestão e Governança, 17(1), 35–55.
  7. Beatty, A., & Weber, J. (2003). The effect of debt contracting on voluntary accounting method changes. The Accounting Review, 78(1), 119–142. DOI: 10.2308/accr.2003.78.1.119
  8. Chen, R. C. Y., & Hung, S. W. (2021). Exploring the impact of corporate social responsibility on real earning management and discretionary accruals. Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, 28(1), 333–351. DOI: 10.1002/csr.2052

Details

Primary Language

English

Subjects

Business Administration

Journal Section

Research Article

Publication Date

December 12, 2025

Submission Date

December 6, 2024

Acceptance Date

October 30, 2025

Published in Issue

Year 2025 Volume: 10 Number: 2

APA
Büyükkurt, Ö. F. (2025). DOES THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN LEVERAGE AND ACCOUNTING DISCRETION DIFFER ACROSS LEVERAGE LEVELS? THE CASE OF EXTREME INDEBTEDNESS. Journal of Research in Business, 10(2), 426-443. https://doi.org/10.54452/jrb.1597346
AMA
1.Büyükkurt ÖF. DOES THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN LEVERAGE AND ACCOUNTING DISCRETION DIFFER ACROSS LEVERAGE LEVELS? THE CASE OF EXTREME INDEBTEDNESS. JRB. 2025;10(2):426-443. doi:10.54452/jrb.1597346
Chicago
Büyükkurt, Ömer Faruk. 2025. “DOES THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN LEVERAGE AND ACCOUNTING DISCRETION DIFFER ACROSS LEVERAGE LEVELS? THE CASE OF EXTREME INDEBTEDNESS”. Journal of Research in Business 10 (2): 426-43. https://doi.org/10.54452/jrb.1597346.
EndNote
Büyükkurt ÖF (December 1, 2025) DOES THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN LEVERAGE AND ACCOUNTING DISCRETION DIFFER ACROSS LEVERAGE LEVELS? THE CASE OF EXTREME INDEBTEDNESS. Journal of Research in Business 10 2 426–443.
IEEE
[1]Ö. F. Büyükkurt, “DOES THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN LEVERAGE AND ACCOUNTING DISCRETION DIFFER ACROSS LEVERAGE LEVELS? THE CASE OF EXTREME INDEBTEDNESS”, JRB, vol. 10, no. 2, pp. 426–443, Dec. 2025, doi: 10.54452/jrb.1597346.
ISNAD
Büyükkurt, Ömer Faruk. “DOES THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN LEVERAGE AND ACCOUNTING DISCRETION DIFFER ACROSS LEVERAGE LEVELS? THE CASE OF EXTREME INDEBTEDNESS”. Journal of Research in Business 10/2 (December 1, 2025): 426-443. https://doi.org/10.54452/jrb.1597346.
JAMA
1.Büyükkurt ÖF. DOES THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN LEVERAGE AND ACCOUNTING DISCRETION DIFFER ACROSS LEVERAGE LEVELS? THE CASE OF EXTREME INDEBTEDNESS. JRB. 2025;10:426–443.
MLA
Büyükkurt, Ömer Faruk. “DOES THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN LEVERAGE AND ACCOUNTING DISCRETION DIFFER ACROSS LEVERAGE LEVELS? THE CASE OF EXTREME INDEBTEDNESS”. Journal of Research in Business, vol. 10, no. 2, Dec. 2025, pp. 426-43, doi:10.54452/jrb.1597346.
Vancouver
1.Ömer Faruk Büyükkurt. DOES THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN LEVERAGE AND ACCOUNTING DISCRETION DIFFER ACROSS LEVERAGE LEVELS? THE CASE OF EXTREME INDEBTEDNESS. JRB. 2025 Dec. 1;10(2):426-43. doi:10.54452/jrb.1597346