Ch 2 Flashcards
A cost is:
a sacrificed or forgone resource to achieve a specific objective
An Actual cost is:
a cost that has occurred
Budgeted cost is
a predicted cost
Cost object is
anything for which a cost measurement is desired (ex. product, R&D project, departments)
Cost accumulation is
the collection of cost data in an organized way by means of an accounting system
Cost assignment is
a general term that encompasses the gathering of accumulated costs to a cost object
two ways of gathering of accumulated costs to a cost object:
- Tracing costs with a direct relationship to the cost object (direct cost)
- Allocating accumulated costs with an indirect relationship to a cost object (indirect cost)
factors affecting the direct/indirect cost classification:
- The materiality of the cost in question (the smaller the cost, the less likely it will be economically feasible to trace the cost)
- The available information-gathering technology (technology makes it possible to consider more and more costs as direct)
- Design of operations (if parts of a facility are dedicated to a particular cost object such as a specific product or a particular customer, we are generally able to classify more costs as direct)
A specific cost may be a direct cost for one cost object and an indirect cost for another.
T or F ?
True
Costs are fixed or variable for a specific activity but not for a given time period.
T or F?
False
Costs are fixed or variable for a specific activity and/or for a given time period.
Variable costs are constant on a per-unit basis.
T or F?
True
Fixed costs per unit do not change with the level of production
T or F?
False
Fixed costs per !!unit!! change inversely with the level of production. As more units are produced, the same fixed cost is spread over more and more units, reducing the cost per unit.
Mixed costs have
both variable and fixed elements
A cost driver is
a variable, such as the level of activity or volume, that causally affects costs over a given time span
Relevant range is
the band or range of normal activity level (or volume) in which there is a specific relationship between the level of activity (or volume) and the cost in question
Fixed costs are considered fixed only within the relevant range.