The Environment of Financial Accounting is a service activity. Its function is to provide quantitative information, primarily financial in nature about economic entities that is intended to be useful in making economic decisions--In making reasoned choices among alternative courses of action (Statement of the Accounting principles Board No. 4, p. 40Intermediate Accounting 1 The Environment of Financial Reporting “Accounting is a service activity. Its function is to provide quantitative information, primarily financial in nature, about economic entities that is intended to be useful in making economic decisions--in making reasoned choices among alternative courses of action.” (Statement of the Accounting Principles Board No. 4, p. 40)