Audit management, need for closure and detection of misstatements
Journal of Accounting in Emerging Economies
ISSN: 2042-1168
Article publication date: 3 April 2019
Issue publication date: 23 April 2019
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to study whether diverting auditors to erroneous accounts leads to higher effectiveness and detection of errors. Also, this paper investigates the effect of the need for cognitive closure of auditors on audit effectiveness and detection of errors in the presence of audit management.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors used a financial statement containing a diverting statement and several errors for measuring audit management and used a survey to measure auditors’ need for closure. Research sample consisted of 79 independent auditors having above three years of audit experience. The set of financial statement and questionnaire (measuring the need for closure of auditors) was given to auditors and they had enough time to fill them.
Findings
Results show that diverting auditors to accounts containing error does not lead to higher effectiveness and detection of errors. Also, auditors need for closure character does not affect their effectiveness and detection of errors in the financial statements.
Practical implications
Diverting auditors to erroneous accounts leads to higher detection of earning management. With this regard, the results increase the awareness of auditors that diverting auditors away from important errors to easy-to-detect erroneous accounts leads to their belief of achieving the audit objectives by detecting phony errors and misstatements. In other words, the results alert auditors of managers’ techniques of audit management.
Originality/value
This study contributes to the literature on audit management and need for cognitive closure of auditors in Iran’s audit environment and introduces these concepts to this environment. The paper will be of value to Association of Iranian Certified Public accountants to include stricter measure in appraisal of audit firms’ quality and educate its participants about audit management and mediating effect of the need for closure of auditors on the detection of errors and misstatements in financial statements.
Keywords
Citation
Safipour Afshar, M., Pourheidari, O., Al-Gamrh, B. and Afshar Jahanshahi, A. (2019), "Audit management, need for closure and detection of misstatements", Journal of Accounting in Emerging Economies, Vol. 9 No. 2, pp. 237-250. https://doi.org/10.1108/JAEE-08-2018-0092
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2019, Emerald Publishing Limited