Research examines audit fee trends for a decade. The research focuses on audit fees of companies in the East Tennessee Area and compares the audit fees of these companies to similar companies based in similar regions of the United States. Possible causes for the fluctuations of audit fees during the decade are also discussed.

This study was designed to examine the impact of different levels of reporting frequency (periodic versus continuous) of financial information, both with and without assurance, on individual investors in a stock price prediction task. Reporting was manipulated at two levels: periodic and continuous. Assurance was manipulated at two levels: no assurance and with assurance. In addition, a base level condition was included. The experiment was designed to collect data regarding both the investors' performance and their perceptions. Period one of the experiment consisted of the base level condition for all participants. Independent variable manipulation was implemented in period two, using a 2 X 2 design. The results indicated that the main effect of Assurance was significant with regard to the number of times participants correctly predicted the change in stock price direction (PREDICTION). The results of the analysis also indicated that the interaction of Reporting and Assurance was significant with regard to the number of times participants made stock price change predictions in accordance with an expectation of mean-reverting stock prices (TRACKING). Post hoc analysis on TRACKING indicated that increased levels of reporting frequency and assurance could adversely affect the quality of individual investors' investment decisions. The results indicated that increased levels of reporting and assurance were not significant with regard to individual investors' perception of source credibility, information relevance or information value. Post hoc analysis provided some evidence that increased levels of reporting frequency may lead to an increase in the perceived trustworthiness of the source of the information and investors may be willing to pay more for the stock of a company that provided increased levels of reporting of fundamental financial data.

The United States established the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to monitor and enforce compliance with environmental pollution standards through various programs and policies. One such policy, the Audit Policy, allows companies to voluntarily self-report violations to the Agency in exchange for elimination of certain penalties. Despite the policy, firms still incur large environmental penalties, thus indicating the need for better understanding of the policy. A necessary but not sufficient condition for penalty relief under the Audit Policy requires discovery of violations by an environmental audit or a compliance management system. This research explores the option of discovery by a compliance management system and examines the motivation of managers to invest in an environmental management system (EMS). The theory of reasoned action (TRA) argues that attitude and subjective norms precede intentions. I use this theory to investigate what factors cause a manager to invest in an environmental management system (EMS). Additionally, I examine whether environmental attitude, tolerance for ambiguity and willful blindness are antecedents to attitude towards an EMS. In this study, I develop and test a scale of the willful blindness construct and measure its impact on managerial decision-making. The willful blindness construct development produced a one-item measure. My results support all hypotheses except for the predicted link between tolerance for ambiguity and attitude. / Includes bibliography. / Dissertation (Ph.D.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2017. / FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection

There has been a dearth of research on ‘auditors and environmental matters’ since Collison (1996) and Collison and Gray (1997) completed their study on the views of UK auditors about whether auditing is changing, or should be changing, in relation to environmental concerns. It is now more than ten years since the publication of that study. Growing international concern for environmental matters has since led to the issue of International Auditing Practice Statement (IAPS) -1010: The consideration of environmental matters in the audit of financial report in 1998 and, in New Zealand, Audit Guidance Statement (AGS) -1010: The consideration of environmental matters in the audit of a financial statement in 2001. Yet, to date, there has been no examination of the impact of IAPS-1010 or AGS-1010 on either current audit practice, or the issues raised by Collison (1996) and Collison and Gray (1997). This doctoral thesis has attempted to address the environmental impact gap in the auditing research literature. In particular, it has investigated the consideration of environmental matters in the audit of financial reports in the light of AGS-1010, with a view to understanding better the following issues: (1) how auditors generally perceive the consideration of environmental matters in the audit of financial reports; (2) the common approaches and practices auditors undertake when auditing environmental matters; (3) the challenges (if any) that auditors face in the audit of environmental matters (4) the impact (if any) of AGS 1010 on current audit practice and, finally, (5) how current practices in the audit of environmental matters may be improved and further developed to meet better the espoused aims of AGS-1010. Qualitative interviews with twenty-seven senior financial audit practitioners and others in New Zealand provided the basis for the findings. The interviews were taped, transcribed and managed with the use of computerised qualitative analysis software (NViVo7). Key findings from the research interviews were as follows: (1) the introduction of AGS-1010 had little impact on current audit practice in New Zealand; (2) environmental matters were treated no differently from any other audit issues, and auditors tended to apply common, familiar audit approaches in dealing with environmental matters; (3) auditors found the effective auditing of environmental matters challenging owing to their inability to identify such matters, and their lack of relevant expert knowledge. The most significant finding from this study is that, in general, common audit practices were riddled with issues of concern. These issues point to a broader and more significant problem. It would seem that current audit practices fail to consider many potential audit issues (including environmental matters) adequately in the audit of financial reports. For auditors to be more effective in their audit practice and in protecting the public interest, not only does audit methodology need a major review, but auditors themselves need to change their attitudes and mindsets in their approach to auditing.

近年我國由於各項建設及社會福利政策之不斷推動，政府預算規模亦隨之增加，而職司政府財務監督之審計機關，其任務也就愈顯得重要。惟審計權獨立行使與否和監督政府財務之成效息息相關，因此，我國政府審計權獨立性頗值深入研究。 　　有關審計權獨立性，本文係就以下七個方面加以探討： 　　壹、法律上之獨立 　　貳、政治上之獨立 　　參、財務上之獨立 　　肆、心理上之獨立 　　伍、形式上之獨立 　　陸、人事上之獨立 　　柒、職權運作上之獨立 　　其次，由世界其他先進國家如美、英、加、法、德、義、日等七國集團，就與政府審計權獨立有關之審計制度加以探討，以擷取先進國家審計制度之優點，俾作為我國借鏡之參考。同時，參酌「最高審計機關國際係組織」（International Organization Supreme Audit Institution）對審計權獨立性之見解，以掌握世界潮流之趨勢。 　　另經分析我國審計權獨立行使之現況，認為在目前五權分立之憲政架構下，審計機關仍以隸屬監察院為宜，惟應釐清與監察院之關係，俾與監察委員各自獨立行使職權，而能分工合作，共同監督政府。至於地方審計，則宜由中央直貫地方，以符合審計超然獨立之特質。 　　最後，提出與審計權獨立性有關之十二項問題與建議。其中有關審計機關預算經費獨立及審計人員培訓，為亟須加強之首要目標。誠盼藉此研究，有助於我國審計制度改進之參考。

近幾年來，我國之政府預算一直不斷地膨脹，民國八十二年之政府歲出預算更突破一億台幣之歷史性關卡。由此可知，我國之政府就如同一個大企業，擁有很多資源，作很多的事，但支出與效益是否成比例，則是一個很嚴肅的問題。所以，如何促進政府對資源作更有效的利用，避勉舞弊以及浪費的發生，乃為當前政府所面臨的重大課題。尤其，最近因為重大工程弊案的不斷發生，使得大家逐漸瞭解到，唯有透過一套完整的監督及控制系統，才可徹底解決此問題。亦即，唯有建立一套健全的政府審計制度，才可避免政府的資源被不當或無效率的使用。政府審計的目的乃在瞭解政府的預算是否被妥善運用，是否遵照有關法令規定辦理，並對政府資金是否被濫用、誤用及有無達成既定目標尤其重視與關切。由此可知，政府審計主要著重在遵循審計及績效審計，與一般民營組織所著重的財務審計有所區別。由於我國為大陸法系國家，政府審計主要係根據審計法及審計法施行細則來執行，然而由於法律不易修訂，無法隨著需要作即時的改變，再加上審計法及審計法施行細則所規定都是一些程序問題。因此，近幾年來審計部乃醞釀制訂政府審計準則，以彌補審計法及審計法施行細則規定的不足，並使政府審計有一套原則性的規範，以提昇我國政府審計的品質。唯我國之情況是否適合制定政府審計準則，相關之條件是否成熟，都頗令人質疑，值得我們深入去探討。

The issues of zakah and interest for IFIs have been highlighted for several years and attracted many arguments among Islamic scholars and public. The increasing public interest on the Islamic Banking since 1970s has been driven by the increasing sensitivity among Muslims to the relationship between religion and economic activities. With the emergence of IFIs, Muslims community has demanded for an establishment of an accounting body to develop a set of accounting standards that adhere to the Islamic tenets, hence AAOIFI was established. However, the journey of AAOFI in achieving such objective has not been smooth. This paper intended to study the effectiveness of AAOIFI in dealing with the issues of zakah and riba for IFIs by examining the disclosure practice of 25 IFIs worldwide. Based on the analysis conducted, it is concluded that the extents of disclosure by the IFIs are much lower than the AAOIFI requirements. The study also found that leverage and origin factors might contribute to the level disclosures of zakah and financial products. In addition, the test performed also revealed that the adopters of AAOIFI do provide more disclosure as compared to the non-adopters. However, the mean result is relatively low to suggest full compliance with the AAOIFI standards.

<p>Summary</p><p>In a world where distances have become shorter and shorter, boundaries are to some extent disappearing and are creating space for integration and globalisation. One significant example of the integration process is the foundation of the European Union.</p><p>The need to improve the economical development within the European Union has lead to the elaboration of a complex assemble of international standards to regulate the way companies should present their economical situation. The IAS /IFRS standards must be applied in all quoted companies from January 2005; and at the same time the four biggest auditing agencies in the world are characterized by their biggest employment session since many years. When it comes to the implementation of the new standards, companies and auditors have experienced many difficulties in learning how to deal with purchased goodwill and financial instruments.</p><p>What practical adjustments the introduction of the new European standards has brought in the work of auditors and how does their adaptation process look like from an educational perspective?</p><p>The purpose of our study is to understand what practical adjustments auditors have made in order to adapt to the new standards when it comes to the verification of financial statements, in particular for goodwill and financial instruments. We will try to achieve this understanding trough the analysis of the learning context behind the transition process in four different auditing agencies. Together with this, we want to analyse in what extend the complexity of the new rules influenced the phenomenon of high recruitment. In order to answer our purpose we have chosen to carry out seven qualitative interviews with public certified auditors.</p><p>We believe that knowledge about reality can be achieved through the interpretation and deep analysis of different information and for this reason we argue for a hermeneutical scientific ideal.</p><p>Our theoretical frame is important to both understand the theoretical differences between the old and the new standards, but also to have an overview of the profession of auditors. We also present theories behind organisational learning; and we create a background to understand the different factors behind the higher demand.</p><p>Our empirical information is presented in different categories that we identified partially through the study of the theoretical frame, and partially through the discussion with our respondents in semi structured interviews.</p><p>Our analysis is both linked to the theoretical frame, but it also tries to look at different aspects directly from the empirical material collected.</p><p>The result of our research shows that the organisational learning in auditing agencies is very effective, partially because this profession is used to continuous changes. Auditors have experienced several practical modifications in their way of verifying financial statements, which depends both on the standards, but also on the relationship with the clients. Finally we discovered that the influence of the complexity of the standard on the higher recruitment is not significant if seen as a single factor.</p>

<p>Alla företag måste redovisa sina intäkter och kostnader. Aktiebolag, föreningar och stiftelser har en så kallad revisionsplikt vilket innebär att det man redovisar måste granskas av en revisor. Detta kallas revisionsplikt. Det diskuteras om revisionsplikten ska avskaffas för mindre aktiebolag i Sverige. Den eventuella lagförändringen kommer att innebära marknadsförändringar för revisorerna. Revisionsmarknaden är idag en marknad med höga inträdesbarriärer. Marknadsföringsstrategier kan därför sägas vara av stor vikt för branschen. Det centrala inom tjänstemarknaden bygger på relationer. Det viktiga för revisionsföretagen är därmed att känna till vad som värdesätts hos klienterna. Detta gav oss vår problemformulering som lyder:</p><p>Vilka faktorer påverkar mindre aktiebolags val av revisionsbolag?</p><p>Vårt syfte är därmed att åskådliggöra de faktorer som påverkar mindre aktiebolags val av revisionsbolag. Studien är avgränsad till aktiebolag inom kategori två som är belägna i Umeå kommun.</p><p>Studien har ett hermeneutiskt tolkande synsätt ur ett konstruktionistiskt perspektiv. Vi utgår från ett deduktivt angreppssätt men efter vår förstudie vidgades vår teoretiska referensram vilket innebär en sorts abduktion. Studien bygger på en kvalitativ metod där totalt sex respondenter intervjuats. Intervjuerna har genomförts med hjälp av en intervjuguide vilket innebär en delvis strukturerad intervjuform. Intervjuguiden är uppbyggd på den teoretiska referensramen. Teorierna är formade utifrån sekundärkällor. För att få ett relevant teorimaterial har vi använt oss av olika hjälpsystem och databaser. Denna intervjuguide har gett oss ett brett empiriskt material som sedan analyserats utifrån den teoretiska referensramen och gett grunden för det resultat studien visar. Det visade sig att det är många olika faktorer som påverkar de mindre aktiebolagens val av revisionsföretag. De främsta faktorerna är rekommendationer från bekanta och relationen till revisionsföretaget. Men faktorer som ett extra engagemang från revisionsföretagets sida och stödtjänster i form av redovisning och juridisk rådgivning skapade mervärden. Dessa mervärden ledde till lojala kunder.</p>

<p>Auditing has long existed and it was in 1899 that the first Swedish organization for accountants SRS, Swedish Audit Society, was created and in 1923 that FAR, Association of Chartered Accountants, was formed. It was after the Kreuger crash in the 1930s that authorized auditors had their breakthrough. After the crash the accounting profession has endured fierce criticism when the audit was flawed and it was during this period that authorized auditors became more widespread, the concept was developed independently and the importance of auditor independence became evident.</p><p>We have in our paper therefore chosen to focus on auditor independence and to make that it requires the independence to relate to something. Therefore we have chosen to focus on the interaction between the auditor and the client. To explain what independence means we have used the analysis model, the expectation gap and communication, and explain what the audit entails and what tasks the auditor has. To do this, we used the qualitative method and interviewed two auditors, an auditor at KPMG and one at ÖPWC. In order to get another perspective we also interviewed two clients, Eskilstuna-Kuriren AB and Eskilstuna Energi och Miljö AB.</p><p>Auditing means that with a professional critical attitude plan, review, evaluate and comment on management, annual report and accounts. Auditor's role is simply to assure the quality of information. This requires that the auditor is independent and follows confidentiality, and assumes professional ethics and generally accepted auditing. In order to reduce the expectation gap it is important that the information and communication between auditor and the client works well.</p><p>In this paper we found that the analysis model is an important tool for examining auditor independence for each new assignment and each new year. We also found that our respondents believe that an open dialogue is important and that the auditor will act as a sounding board. Our clients do not feel that there is a gap in expectations because they have a record in the auditing profession and know what an auditor should and must do.  </p>