The Pattern of the Relationship between Ethical Philosophies and Information Technology with the Ethical Behavior of Auditors: Actors Network Theory (ANT) Approach

Ethics is a fundamental issue in the accounting and auditing profession and the application of IT-related approaches to the financial sciences is undeniable; therefore, the purpose of this study is to prepare a model and systematize the relationship between ethical philosophies and information technology with the ethical behavior of auditors using the ANT.

The present study is applied in terms of using the findings and qualitative in terms of the research method. It also has a developmental orientation with regard to increasing knowledge and presenting a new model. The research population includes studies related to the subject with the same sample, which includes 3 articles, and in this regard, no sampling was done and the sample and the population were considered the same. Then, the final model is prepared with the meta-synthesis of the sample components with the ANT approach. Finally, the importance of the components of the model was confirmed by interviewing 5 experts.

Findings showed that ethical behavior in auditors is influenced by human and technical actors. Human actors generally include moral theories and technical actors in general include information technology. Ethical theories (human actors) are also divided into two general parts: action-based theories and virtue-based theories (virtuosity). Action-based theories also include duty-based (duty-oriented), outcome-based (utilitarianism and otherism), divine-based (benevolence), and justice-based (justice-oriented). Information technology (technical actors) also includes the integrated theory of acceptance and use of advanced technology (motivation, hope for effort, and social impact). The overall findings of the study showed that the components of technical and human actors have a positive and significant effect on the development of ethical behavior in auditors.

Considering the importance of systematizing ethical behavior and preparing models appropriate to the country's environment, the findings of this study with strong theoretical and practical support can help to better understand and accelerate the implementation of auditors' ethical behavior and human and technical actors and shows the effective role of each one clearly