The making of "middle-man" minority: the experiences of Chinese women and men accountants in accountancy in New Zealand

Whilst the issue of racial disparity is becoming an important theme in accounting, the majority of previous research on this issue has focused mainly on ex-colonized ethnic minority groups, such as Afro-Americans, Hispanics or indigenous people, and has ignored non-white, non-black and non-indigenous ethnic minorities in accounting. Focusing on the experiences of Chinese women and men accountants, the foremost important non-white, non-black and non-indigenous ethnic minority group amongst previously ignored ethnic minority groups, in the New Zealand accountancy profession, this thesis endeavours to articulate the silences and omissions of issues of race/ethnicity in contemporary accounting literature especially aiming to critically reflect upon and take seriously concerns about ethnic/racial bias in western society and social practice, in particular accounting. In so doing, this thesis unfolds the ways in which the Chinese have been hindered from enjoying full participation in the accountancy profession, and strategies that they have employed to combat the ethnic/racial bias against them. Findings from this study suggest that even though the Chinese have made significant progress in making inroads into the accountancy profession, they are still marginalized within the profession.