Direct Costing : Two Ancestors

神奈川県茅ヶ崎市 The idea which is today called "direct costing" was frequently found in the 1930's. It was related to economic and managerial problems at that time as in the articles of Jonathan N.Harris (1936) and G.Charater Harrison(1937). These may be two ancestors of direct costing. This paper focuses particularly on the aspect of managerial decision making of direct costing to which Harrison paid attention and attempts to examine the implications of the development of direct costing. Harrison advocated "marginal balance principles" and used them for making decisions in the marketing area to determine whether the additional marketing costs needed to secure additional sales volume could be justified. His idea seems to suggest the initial application of differential cost analysis. Unfortunately, there has been little discussion of the role that direct costing is expected to play such as Harrison's idea because of excessive attention to the paper of Harris, which aimed to intergrate direct costing with an account system. Harry E.Howell developed Harrison's idea, however, and contributed to the establishment of differential cost analysis. It seems that "future cost obviation " advocated by Raymond P.Marple and "relevant costing" by George H.Sorter & Charles T.Horngren which were the products of the socalled "direct costing controversy" from the 1950's to 60's, provides the evidence for its potential as information for decision making. Therefore, the author claims that direct costing, whether explicitly or implicitly, has been generated and developed as having simultaneously two natures, the total and average thought which is involved in income structures reflecting principles of break—even analysis, and the differential and incremental thought which is involved in relevant cost analysis for decision making