We conduct two experiments to examine the joint effect of two justification factors of earnings management, namely attribution for the firm’s underperformance and benefits accruing to other employees from inflating reported earnings. In the main experiment, we predict and find that managers...

In this commentary, I offer some observations about the state of experimental management accounting research. I discuss the scope of management accounting research, the current focus of experimental management accounting research, and the need for management accounting research to take into...

An audit committee (AC) report is the primary channel through which investors learn about the responsibilities and activities of an AC. AC members may use personal language (“we”) or impersonal language (“the audit committee”) in an AC report. Psychology research suggests that personal...

Regulators express concerns with investors’ unquestioning reliance on analysts’ recommendations, which prior research has shown to be associated with lower trading returns. Thus, regulators have published investor guides advising investors to conduct independent research and required analyst...

We conduct two experiments using experienced audit partners as participants to investigate whether engagement partners’ involvement in the client acquisition process as the contact partner can influence their subsequent audit judgments, and whether the engagement quality review partner’s...

We examine how managers’ accounting estimates are affected by whether they are informed about an impending critical audit matter (CAM) disclosure from a close or distant auditor. A close (distant) auditor is one who has a smaller (greater) social distance from the client in terms of their...