Using audit firm size measured by audit firm revenues, the number of offices, and professional headcounts, we find that audit firm size measured as continuous variable is positively associated with engagement-level audit quality proxied by discretionary accruals and modified opinions, and is...

Prior studies have explored whether there are differences in audit quality between Big 4 and non Big 4 audit firms in the private client segment. This study extends the research by investigating if, and possibly how, audit quality and audit pricing varies between a broader range of audit firms...

This study examines the relations between audit quality, audit firm size, and financial performance. This study estimates audit quality of audit firms from human capital-related factors, such as educational level of auditors, work experience of auditors, and professional training. From the...

This study investigates the relative importance between service quality and firm size in the performance determinants of audit firms under different market segments and business strategies. This study extracts a human capital-based service quality by the principal component analysis technique....

We revisit the notion of audit quality and investigate how audit quality is related to auditor size and the structure of the auditing industry. We discuss a model of audit firm competition where both audit quality and audit firm size are endogenous. Based on this model, we predict how certain...

This study investigates how audit firm quality indicators relate to audit quality at the engagement-level. Specifically, eight input and two output audit firm quality measures are constructed and related to a broad range of engagement-level input and output audit quality measures. We find that...

Small accounting firms represent important participants in the audit market, yet details of how they operate and develop competencies remain unexplored. Small firms often join forces through accounting associations and networks (“AANs”), which may help them overcome significant challenges...

Using proprietary data, we analyze how a variety of audit composition and team characteristics are associated with audit effectiveness and efficiency. We find that more time allocated prior to the final phase of the audit is associated with more effective audits. We also decompose the time...

Researchers and practitioners have expressed the need to understand better the interactions between audit committees and auditors and how these interactions affect audits. Former partners affiliated with the external auditor and serving on the audit committee are a subset of audit committee...

This study examines whether social and human capital influence the compensation of individual auditors in the small audit firm market. We employ a sample of Italian auditors and use measures from the network and auditing literatures to capture their professional connections, representing social...