Seeking the spotlight: How reputational considerations shape the European Court of Auditor's shifting account-holding role

Abstract

The behavior of account-holders has been a blind spot in the accountability literature. Relatively little is known about why account-holders prioritize certain aspects of their account-holding mandates and emphasize certain account-holding tasks over others. A reputational perspective has the potential to fill this knowledge gap. This article illustrates how reputational considerations shape the ways in which account-holders manage their account-holding roles through a critical case study of the European Court of Auditor's shifting focus toward a more salient account-holding role. Amid concerns about a lack of visibility, generating audience attention is found to be a central characteristic of this shift. The study demonstrates how reputational strategies for managing account-holding roles depend on the reputational threats and audience expectations that account-holders face in their environments. With a lack of visibility being a pressing reputational threat, the European Court of Auditors is accordingly shifting its account-holding focus toward the spotlight.