Abstract: This study investigates the relative significance of both the social interaction index (SII) and demographic variables by analysing their association to the likelihood in classifying an auditor as internal or external to the firm. This study uses the psychometric technique of the...

Independence (in fact as well as in appearance) is widely thought to be necessary for the quality of audits, and audit quality is often equated with independence. Private incentives to demand (and supply) independent certification of financial statements are thought to be insufficient, thus the...

The minimization of cost is an important issue in the domain of continuous auditing (CA) research (Pathak, Chaouch amp; Sriram, 2005). This cited study of continuous audit of databases motivated us to work further and provide a general, complete and precise solution. In the present study, we...

This paper analyses the implications of mandatory attestation of tax returns. Attestations are provided by independent auditors competing on price. The paper identifies the conditions under which gatekeeping is socially desirable.In the most general set-up, in which the detection of erroneous...

A data processing procedure, DEA (Data Envelopment Analysis) is described as as an analytical tool in audit engagement. DEA receives data inputs from from financial statements of a plurality of clients, constructs efficiency frontiers and evaluates relative income efficiencies. DEA can be used...

We conduct an experiment with professional internal auditors and evaluate their performance and objectivity, measured as the extent to which they truthfully report the performance of other participants in a real-effort task. It has been suggested in the literature that incentive-based...

We study clauses in private lending agreements requiring auditors to assure lenders of borrowers' compliance with financial covenants. Auditors are required under general purpose financial reporting to review covenant compliance. However, by informing lenders directly that they have no knowledge...

This study examines the relevance of modified audit opinions (MAO) in private debt contracting. We use the auditor's explanatory language to partition MAOs into Inconsistency opinions, resulting from an accounting change or a restatement; and Inadequacy opinions, arising from a material...

Two key assumptions underlying the regulation of U.S. financial reporting are the need to mandate the certification of financial statements, and to require that this certification be performed by independent auditors. Private incentives to demand (and supply) certification are thought to be...

In this paper, we study spatial competition in the U.S. audit market while accounting for its two-tiered nature. We provide evidence on the differential impact that market share distances within and between the players in the large and small audit markets have on competition. We find that the...