نشریه حسابداری ارزشی و رفتاری
سال پنجم شماره 9 (بهار و تابستان 1399)

The intellectual framework of individuals is determined by their cognitive style and the cognitive style of individuals plays the role of an intermediate element between accounting information and decision making. Therefore, the purpose of this research is to investigate the effect of Gregorcchr('39')s cognitive styles of auditors on fraud risk assessment. Gregorcchr('39')s cognitive styles include Concrete-Sequential, abstract-sequential, Concrete-random, and abstract-random styles. The statistical sample of the research consisted of 539 auditors working in the auditing institutes of the Iranian Society of Certified Auditors and the audit organization located in the geographical area of Tehran in 2019 which were selected using simple random sampling. The research method is a descriptive survey and the instrument used in the research is the standard questionnaire. Structural equation modeling using Lisrel software was used to analyze the data and test the hypotheses. The results of the analysis and findings indicate that auditorschr('39') cognitive styles have a significant effect on fraud risk assessment at a 99% confidence level. Therefore, abstract-random, abstract-sequential, Concrete-Sequential, and Concrete-random cognitive styles have the greatest impact on fraud risk assessment, respectively. The results of this research can lead to the expansion of topics related to judgment and decision making in auditing and finally to improve audit quality.

Professional skepticism is a basic concept in audit decision-making and judgment and a lack of it may decrease audit quality. Recently, the subject of professional skepticism has been noticed by the audit scholars.  Recent empirical studies have showed that auditor’s judgment and decision making would rise from behavioral and recognition subjects.  Hence, the aim of this paper is to study the effect of positive and negative moods on auditor’s professional skepticism as an element of the auditor’s judgment and decision making. This research is functional from study objective point of view and is a survey from methodology point of view.   The theoretical framework and literature review is collected through archival approach. Data collection is based on questionnaire.  The statistical sample are 107 auditors who are working in audit firms and time of research conduct is 2017.  We use multiple regression to analysis of the research data.  
The result of this study show that, there is a positive and significant relationship between the positive mood and professional skepticism. Also the relationship between negative mood and professional is negative and significant.

Professional skepticism (PS) is one of the key points in audit quality. There are several motivations and barriers to professional skepticism in the audit process. The purpose of this study is to make clear and to compile motivators and effective barriers on auditorschr('39')  PS and to identify its consequences through grounded theory approach that can improve an active and continuous process of PS and thus the result is audit quality. This study is qualitative research. So an interview with 16 individuals, whom associate audit institute and the public managers of Iranian auditors which are chose through purposive sampling approach and Snow Ball approach in 2019. Sampling was continued until saturation of theory in the process of collecting data. To gain validity and reliability of the research, there are some methods used to validate the qualitative research and the model such as: consensus / triangulation, evaluation through members, evaluation based on 10 criteria of acceptability proposed by Strauss and Corbin. Then, the motivators and barriers of PS of auditors in caused situation, in obstacle condition and motivator situation   was analyzed and through noticing  the paradigmatic model of the process of auditorschr('39') PS formation its results include effective consequences (control aspect and Accreditation aspect) and behavioral consequences (economic discipline and response).

Professions are defined and judged by the knowledge, skills, attitudes, behaviors and ethics of their members. The occurrence of numerous financial scandals in which accountants played an indispensable role, showed that the role of psychological, personality, and environmental factors in ethical decision-making needs to be given more attention. The present study investigates the role of conformity and obedience pressure in the ethical decision-making process as well as the moderating role of power distance orientation, professional commitment, and organizational commitment. The statistical population of the study includes financial managers of active companies in Lakan industrial Estate of Rasht city, with an estimated 140 company. Using the Cochranchr('39')s formula, the number of samples was determined to be 103. Required data were collected in 1398 with the scenario and questionnaire. The method of data analysis is one-way analysis of variance and mixed variance analysis via SPSS. Findings show the impact of conformity and obedience pressure on the likelihood of making unethical decisions. The moderating effect of professional commitment and power distance orientation on the relationship between obedience pressure and unethical decision making was also confirmed. However, there was no evidence of the moderating effect of organizational commitment. Given that the results confirm the role of ethical pressure in increasing the likelihhod of unethical decisions by accountants and reducing the quality of financial reporting, Therefore, it is necessary to pay more attention to this issue in formulating regulatory rules, such as corporate governance.

The purpose of this study is to investigate how auditors are influenced by irrelevant information and minor error in client records. Also, this study investigates the role of trait skepticism in the assessment of dirty documents and the auditorchr('39')s skeptical action. In the regard, this study conducts a 2 by 2 experiment to examine how auditors respond to client’ dirty documents containing irrelevant information and minor error. The statistical sample consisted of 207 auditors working in trusted audit institutions of Tehran Securities & Exchange Organization in 2019 who were selected by random sampling. To investigate hypotheses, an analysis of variance and the structural equation modeling approach were used. Results indicate that the presence of irrelevant information and minor error influence auditor’s skeptical actions. Specifically, this results suggests that the presence of irrelevant information and minor error lead to increase in sample size. This finding suggests that client dirty documents may contribute to over auditing, which is a waste of financial resources and an unnecessarily stressful misuse of audit staff. Also, Consistent with the models developed in Nelson (2009) and Hurrt et al. (2013), the results suggest that the trait professional skepticism influenced an auditorchr('39')s skeptical action. The results indicate that auditors with higher levels of trait professional skepticism are more likely to take more skeptical actions when evaluating audit evidence and select a larger sample size. Furthermore, the results indicate that trait professional skepticism moderated the relationship between dirty documents and sample size. In other words, the effect of client dirty documents on the auditorschr('39') skeptical action depends on their level of trait professional skepticism.

Companies ability during Crisis has been evaluated. Considering the fact that economic crisis comes along with uncertainty and fluctuations in macroeconomic variables and it causes in a special situation in the economic circumstance of the country and companies activities in that, therefore it can affect the ability and the power of management on the company’s performance and its value. So in this research behavioral features including; social responsibility reporting ,agency cost and tax avoidance in financial crisis have all been incorporated. Therefore, this study used behavioral characteristics including social responsibility reporting, agency costs, and tax avoidance in times of economic crisis. Accordingly, the data of 197 listed companies in Tehran Stock Exchange for the years 2006-2017 is analyzed. The results of the study show the behavioral characteristics of the company,  social responsibility reporting by decreasing the negative effect of economic crisis creates a positive effect of power and management ability on its value and financial performance. In addition, the results indicate that the higher agency cost of the company by increasing the negative impact of economic crisis will have a more negative effect on the strength and ability to manage its value and financial performance. On the other hand, the results indicate that the tax avoidance characteristics does not play a significant role in the adjustment of the economic crisis on the relationship between management power, company value and financial performance. Overall this research proves that the behavioral characteristics of a company can decrease the effect of economic crisis on the relationship between CEO power and firm value and financial performance.

Increasing Emphasis On Internal (Charter Of The Audit Committee) And External (Public Company Accounting Oversight Board Standards) Laws And Regulations Regarding The Audit Committee Communication With The Independent Auditor, In Order To Improve The Independent Auditor Performance And The Quality Of Financial Reporting, This Study Examined The Effect Of Management Incentives On Earnings Management And The Audit Committee Communication With The Independent Auditor On The Quality Of Auditorchr('39')s Judgment. It Should Be Noted That, The Research Method Is Experimental, Which Is Conducted Through A 2*2 Between-Subjects Experiment, With Experimental Design Post Test With Control Group, Consisting Of The Variables "Management Incentives On Earnings Management" And "Audit Committee Communication With The Independent Auditor". Participants In The Test Are Managers Of Audit Firms And This Research Were Conducted In Year 2019. Statistical Test Method Is Also MANCOVA.
The Results Of The Analysis On The Data Extracted From 64 Managers Of Audit Firms, Indicate That "Management Incentives On Earnings Management" And "Audit Committee Communication With The Independent Auditor" Has A Positive And Significant Effect On The Quality Of Auditorchr('39')s Judgment And Also The Interaction Of "Management Incentives On Earnings Management And Audit Committee Communication With The Independent Auditor" Has A Positive And Significant Effect On The Quality Of Auditorchr('39')s Judgment. Finally, It Was Concluded From The Results Of The Study That According To Source Credibility Theory, When There Are High Management Incentives On Earnings Management, Audit Committee Communication With The Independent Auditor Has A Positive And Significant Effect On The Quality Of Auditorchr('39')s Judgment.

Internal auditing is an independent, objective assurance and consulting activity that helps an organization accomplish its objectives by bringing a systematic, disciplined approach to evaluate and improve the effectiveness of risk management, control and governance processes. As the roles of internal auditors increasingly change in organizations, new competencies are needed. The purpose of this research is to Identify and prioritize competencies of internal audit managers. In this research, mixed methods (quantitative and qualitative methods) are used. In other words, first, qualitative research method and grounded theory approach are used for Identifying competencies. To achieve this goal, with obtaining 18 faculty members and internal auditing experts insights through unstructured interviews in 2018-2019, we developed internal auditors’ competency model in Iran. According to this model, internal auditor managers need a series of Individual, technical, managerial and environmental competencies to achieve the desired level of effectiveness. Then, in the quantitative part of the research, by analyzing the questionnaires received from internal auditors and using Friedmanchr('39')s test, we prioritized the dimensions of competence of internal audit managers in the small, medium and large companies of Iran. The research results show that three dimensions of work experience, academic education, and Mastery of Internal Audit Standards in small, medium and large Iranian companies have a higher priority than other dimensions. In addition, in large companies, intellectual and analytical competencies, expertise in risk management, governance, information technology and quality frameworks have a higher priority than small and medium companies, which can be due to complex operating cycles and processes.

The present study aimed at investigating the role of attitude, sabjective norm, perceived behavior control, ethical commitment, and perceived risk on intention to corporate sustainability accounting and reporting(CSAR) on the Tehran Stock Exchange. This study is a survey research. The statistical population of this study included the financial managers and senior experts of accounting in the companies listed on the Tehran Stock Exchange except the financial intermediary companies such as banks, investment funds, insurances, etc. The population size was considered as 276 subjects each one representing one company. The statistical sample was determined as 161 subjects using Cochran formula at 5% error level. In order to measure the research variables, a standard questionnaire with five-point Likert scale was used. The research questionnaire was randomly emailed to 200 companies listed on the Tehran Stock Exchange in 2019 to achieve the statistical sample size and finally 163 questionnaires were answered. In this study, the structural equations model was used to test the hypotheses. The results of structural equations model showed that attitude, mental norm, perceived behavior control, and ethical commitment have a positive effect on intention to CSAR. However, the significant effect of perceived risk of managers and accountants on intention to CSAR was not observed. The results of this study presented an extensive attitude among the goals of managers for intention to CSAR. Thus, the above-mentioned components can be used for CSAR to achieve a sustainable development.

One of the effective factors in reducing the reliability of reports and financial statements is the phenomenon of fraud and error which increases the risk and cost of business, decreases investor’s confidence and questions the integrity of accounting and auditing profession. The purpose of this study is to identify and investigate the factors affecting financial reporting bias. To this end, a qualitative research approach and meta-synthesis tools including seven steps have been carried out to systematically evaluate and analyze the findings of previous research. At the end, the data of 18 experts and professors were collected by a questionnaire in 2019 and using Shannon entropy quantitative method to determine the impact factor of identified factors based on content analysis approach. Finally, the factors that have the most impact on financial reporting bias are identified. The results of this study are helpful to professional auditors and corporate financial managers in identifying the factors that influence fraud and error.

The purpose of this study is to investigate the effect of audit committee characteristics on the level of sustainability reporting of companies listed on the stock exchange with emphasis on agency theory, legitimacy theory and stakeholder theory. The data collection method is archival and to test the research hypotheses, the data of 152 companies listed on the stock exchange that were collected during the period 2014 to 2018 have been used. For data analysis, regression with a combined data approach was used. The Global Reporting Initiativechr('39')s checklist has been used to measure sustainability reporting. The findings indicate that audit committee characteristics (size, independence, financial expertise and gender diversity of the members) have a positive and significant effect on corporate sustainability reporting level. Evidence suggests that the audit committee is effective as a corporate governance mechanism and control tool in improving the reporting quality in general and sustainability reporting in particular enhance to achieve the stakeholders goals. The findings of this study have important results for compilers of requirements and standards, management of companies and stakeholders. The findings of this study show the importance of disclosure requirements for non-financial information (environmental, governance and social information) for legislators and standardizers. The results of this study improve stakeholder awareness of the importance of corporate social responsibility, corporate governance, and environmental information on credit and investment decisions, and encourage companies to disclose sustainable reporting information in order to play their social role.

The business income tax is major source of tax revenues due to its importance and size. The purpose of this research is to investigate the role of mental accounting in shaping tax behavior of self-employed taxpayers. This is a survey research and the statistical population is comprised of individual taxpayers in Fars province in 2019. Hypothesis testing using R based on a sample of 184 small business owners revealed that self-employed taxpayers vary in how they use mental accounting and do tax calculations. They can be divided into segregators and integrators. Furthermore, the results revealed a significant difference between mental accounting of income tax and value-added tax (VAT). Taxpayers are more likely to segregate their mental accounts for VAT than they do for income tax. In addition, there is a positive relationship between tax knowledge and using mental accounting and a positive relationship between mental accounting and tax compliance. Therefore, it is important for the government to promote small business owners’ knowledge that can influence their mental accounting and, in turn, their tax compliance.