Aktiebolagslagen anger att aktiebolag i Sverige ska ha en eller flera revisorer. Revisorernas ansvar är att undersöka och rapportera om bolagets räkenskaper och förvaltningen av bolaget. Med tiden har reglerna ökat och till följd av detta har revisorerna fått allt mer ansvar. Detta har i sin tur lett till att klienternas förväntningar har ökat och skilda meningar om vad revisorns ansvar är har uppstått. Som ett resultat av dessa meningsskiljaktigheter uppstår ett förväntningsgap mellan revisor och klient. / The Swedish Companies Act states that companies in Sweden should have one or more auditors. Auditor's responsability is to investigate and report on the company's financial statements and the management of the company. Increased regulations have led to higher responsibility of auditor's. This in turn has led to increased expectations from the client's and disagreements about the responsibilities of auditor's. Because of these disagreements, an expectation gap arises between auditor and client.

This thesis found that many criticisms were directed to the International Auditing Standards (ISA). Thus, the ISA needs more interpretations and improvements to be more applicable and suitable for Jordan. The thesis concluded that the external auditors in Jordan are complying with the ISA. From the perceptions of external auditors, shareholders, academics, internal auditors, and financial management an audit expectation gap exists in Jordan. External auditors, shareholders and the ISA are responsible for that gap. Improvements are needed to both auditors' performance and the ISA to bridge the audit expectation gap. Furthermore, this thesis introduces recommendations to eliminate the shareholders' unreasonable expectations, which is one of the reasons for the audit expectation gap in Jordan. / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

The purpose of this dissertation is to resolve an apparent conflict between the services that tax preparers provide and the tax preparation services taxpayers seek. Some literature demonstrates that tax professionals equate client advocacy with taking aggressive tax positions and minimizing taxes. Other literature suggests taxpayers seek to increase accuracy and reduce the probability of tax audit when they hire a tax professional. This difference is an "expectation gap."The methodology employed to examine this issue is a survey of tax professionals at various levels of expertise. This survey asks tax preparers what they believe motivates their clients to seek professional tax preparation services. It also asks how aggressive a tax professional should be in minimizing clients' taxes. A similar survey sent to taxpayers who use the services of a tax preparer asked the same questions about taxpayers' primary motivation in seeking professional tax preparation services and then about how they believe their tax preparer would answer the questions about aggressive tax reporting.This dissertation extends the research in several ways. In previous studies, taxpayer motivation has been determined by using a simple checklist or an open-ended question. Instead of using these approaches, I developed a scale using methods that rigorously test for validity. In measuring client advocacy, I use a scale that has been recently developed and used in the literature. While previous research has shown the disparity between what tax professionals provide and what taxpayers want, no study has asked each group how they believe the other group will respond. This will provide a measure of the degree of understanding each group has of the other.This research show that there is an expectation gap between taxpayers and their tax preparers at all levels, and that this gap is statistically significant. However, the actual size of the gap is small; accuracy and client advocacy have the largest gaps. Additional findings are that timesavings is more important to taxpayers with children, that contact with the IRS is correlated with a lower desire to avoid it, and that lower tax knowledge is correlated with stronger desire for an accurate return.

As responsabilidades que envolvem a atividade do auditor é um assunto muito debatido, principalmente em episódios de fraudes e outros escândalos financeiros. Em geral, são nesses momentos que a função do auditor é questionada, e o mercado atribui determinadas responsabilidades a esses profissionais que podem não corresponder com as suas atribuições (Audit Expectation Gap - AEG). Porter (1990) dividiu o AEG em dois principais componentes: (i) Gap de Desempenho e (ii) Gap de Razoabilidade. O último refere-se à diferença de expectativas sobre as quais os usuários das informações financeiras acham que os auditores devem executar determinada tarefa quando de fato eles não têm a obrigação nem o objetivo de fazê-la. Utilizando o constructo de Porter (1990), este trabalho teve como objetivo identificar a existência do AEG de razoabilidade nas decisões de litígios (acórdãos) nos quais as empresas de auditoria figuram como polo passivo. A intenção foi verificar se a diferença de expectativas com relação ao trabalho do auditor fez-se presente nos documentos de conclusão dos processos cíveis e administrativos. Para tanto, foram analisados: 11 acórdãos de processos cíveis, 19 acórdãos de processos administrativos CVM e 4 acórdãos de processos administrativos Bacen, totalizando 34 acórdãos. A metodologia empregada foi a análise documental e análise de conteúdo. Para auxiliar na organização e análise dos dados, foi utilizado o software Nvivo®. Além da análise dos acórdãos, foram realizadas entrevistas com ex-membros do Colegiado da CVM, para confirmar o entendimento de como funcionam os processos de julgamento nesse Regulador, bem como obter a perspectiva desses profissionais diretamente envolvidos em julgamentos dessa espécie. Para o total dos acórdãos analisados, foi identificada a presença de AEG de razoabilidade em 10 casos, o que representa aproximadamente 29% do total. Além da identificação AEG de razoabilidade nas argumentações dos juízes, o gap também foi identificado, de forma muito mais frequente, em diversos trechos dos documentos analisados, como, por exemplo, as argumentações da acusação e advogados envolvidos. Os achados desta pesquisa foram importantes pois a identificação da existência desse gap pôde auxiliar no endereçamento desta questão. A tomada de decisão com base em argumentos equivocados pode não apenas trazer prejuízos para as firmas de auditoria, mas também para o Sistema Financeiro Nacional e setor financeiro empresarial em geral, bem como ocasionar injustiças. Como uma das formas de endereçamento do problema, nos casos dos processos administrativos, sugere-se que a composição do Colegiado e do CRSFN seja diversificada, ou mesmo que tenha a presença de um especialista para casos de julgamentos específicos, como são os casos dos julgamentos que envolvem o auditor independente. / The responsibilities entailed in the work of the auditor are a subject of much debate, chiefly when frauds and other financial scandals occur. Frequently on these occasions the function of the auditor comes into question and the business world attributes certain responsibilities to these professionals that they may not actually have (Audit Expectation Gap - AEG). The author Porter B. A. (1990) separated AEG into two main components: (i) the performance gap, and (ii) the reasonableness gap. The latter refers to the difference between the expectations of users of financial information regarding the specific tasks they believe auditors should perform and the obligations and objectives those auditors actually have. Using the construct of Porter B. A. (1990), this work has the objective of identifying the existence of the reasonableness gap in legal rulings (decisions of appellate courts) in which audit firms were the defendant. The intention was to establish if the difference in expectations regarding the work of the auditor was present in the decisions and opinions of the civil and administrative proceedings. In order to do so, an analysis was made of 11 civil appellate court decisions, 19 administrative rulings of the Comissão de Valores Mobiliários - CVM (equivalent to the Securities and Exchange Commission in the USA) and four administrative rulings of Brazilian Central Bank; 34 judgments in all. The methodology employed was document analysis and content analysis. To aid in the organization and analysis of data, Nvivo® software was used. In addition to analysis of the judgments, interviews were conducted with former members of the CVM board to confirm the understanding of how trial procedures function at this regulator, as well as to gain the perspective of these experts, who are directly involved in judgments of this kind. From the total of the judgments analyzed, the presence of reasonableness AEG was identified in 10 cases, which represents approximately 29% of the total. In addition to identifying reasonableness AEG in the arguments of judges, this gap was also identified, and much more frequently, in various passages of the documentation on the argumentation of attorneys involved in the cases. The findings of this study are important because identifying the existence of this gap may aid in addressing the issue. Rulings based on misguided arguments can not only harm audit firms but also damage the National Financial System and the corporate financial sector in general, as well as causing injustice. As one way of addressing the issue, in administrative cases it is suggested that the composition of the panel and the CRSFN (Council of Appeals of the National Finance System) be made more diverse, and in certain cases even include a specialist, such as when judgments involve an independent auditor.

This study explore the expectation gap between students and audit practitioners, and if certain factors have any significant impact on the students conformity to the practitioners expectations. The study is limited to business students and audit practitioners. We used an Independent Sam-ples T-Test and Pearson Correlation Analysis to conduct the analysis of 286 student responses and 98 practitioner responses. The results confirm previous research; the expectation gap exists. The findings concerning the relationship between factors and students conformity were some-what inconsistent. However, we found a statistically significant proof that students with work-life, trainee and internship experiences conformed better to audit practitioners. Our study offers further insight to the subject of the expectation gap by suggesting that some factors, such as internship experiences, can improve students’ conformity to audit practitioners regarding the importance of skills.

L’écart entre ce que le public attend de la part de l’auditeur et ce que ce dernier pense réaliser est connu sous le vocable d’ « expectation gap ». Cette recherche a pour ambition de contribuer à la compréhension de ce phénomène. Nous appréhendons l’ « expectation gap » dans ses dimensions discursive et normative. Ceci nous conduit à poser les deux questions de recherche suivantes : - Comment et pourquoi le concept d’ « expectation gap » a-t-il émergé dans le discours de la profession d’audit ? - Quel est le rôle des normes d’audit dans la réduction de l’ « expectation gap » ? Notre démarche méthodologique, qui s’inscrit dans le contexte français, comporte trois phases : une étude documentaire longitudinale, une enquête fondée sur des entretiens et l’étude du cas de la norme NEP 705 « Justification des appréciations ». Elle permet de montrer que le concept d’ « expectation gap » a été introduit en France dans les années 1990 sous l’impulsion d’institutions européennes et internationales. L’ « expectation gap » est utilisé dans les discours comme une excuse permettant aux auditeurs d’échapper aux accusations du public et de conserver leur statut et leur position sur le marché. De surcroît, les normes d’audit en France non seulement ne permettent pas de réduire l’ « expectation gap », mais jouent au contraire un rôle légitimant. / The « expectation gap » is defined as the gap between what the public expects from the auditor and what the auditor expects to achieve. The present research treats the expectation gap in its discursive and normative dimensions. It aims to contribute to the understanding of the expectation gap phenomenon by examining the following research questions: How and why the concept of «expectation gap» has emerged in the discourse of the audit profession? And what is the role of auditing standards in the reduction of the expectation gap? We address these questions within the French context using a methodological approach that consists of three phases: a longitudinal documentary study, a survey based on interviews, and a case study of the standard NEP 705 «Justification of assessments». We find that the concept of «expectation gap» was introduced in France in the 1990s under the influence of European and international institutions. We also find that the expectation gap is used in discourses as an excuse allowing auditors to escape public accusations and maintain their status and position in the market. Finally, we find that auditing standards in France not only don’t reduce the expectation gap, but actually play a role in legitimizing it.

As responsabilidades que envolvem a atividade do auditor é um assunto muito debatido, principalmente em episódios de fraudes e outros escândalos financeiros. Em geral, são nesses momentos que a função do auditor é questionada, e o mercado atribui determinadas responsabilidades a esses profissionais que podem não corresponder com as suas atribuições (Audit Expectation Gap - AEG). Porter (1990) dividiu o AEG em dois principais componentes: (i) Gap de Desempenho e (ii) Gap de Razoabilidade. O último refere-se à diferença de expectativas sobre as quais os usuários das informações financeiras acham que os auditores devem executar determinada tarefa quando de fato eles não têm a obrigação nem o objetivo de fazê-la. Utilizando o constructo de Porter (1990), este trabalho teve como objetivo identificar a existência do AEG de razoabilidade nas decisões de litígios (acórdãos) nos quais as empresas de auditoria figuram como polo passivo. A intenção foi verificar se a diferença de expectativas com relação ao trabalho do auditor fez-se presente nos documentos de conclusão dos processos cíveis e administrativos. Para tanto, foram analisados: 11 acórdãos de processos cíveis, 19 acórdãos de processos administrativos CVM e 4 acórdãos de processos administrativos Bacen, totalizando 34 acórdãos. A metodologia empregada foi a análise documental e análise de conteúdo. Para auxiliar na organização e análise dos dados, foi utilizado o software Nvivo®. Além da análise dos acórdãos, foram realizadas entrevistas com ex-membros do Colegiado da CVM, para confirmar o entendimento de como funcionam os processos de julgamento nesse Regulador, bem como obter a perspectiva desses profissionais diretamente envolvidos em julgamentos dessa espécie. Para o total dos acórdãos analisados, foi identificada a presença de AEG de razoabilidade em 10 casos, o que representa aproximadamente 29% do total. Além da identificação AEG de razoabilidade nas argumentações dos juízes, o gap também foi identificado, de forma muito mais frequente, em diversos trechos dos documentos analisados, como, por exemplo, as argumentações da acusação e advogados envolvidos. Os achados desta pesquisa foram importantes pois a identificação da existência desse gap pôde auxiliar no endereçamento desta questão. A tomada de decisão com base em argumentos equivocados pode não apenas trazer prejuízos para as firmas de auditoria, mas também para o Sistema Financeiro Nacional e setor financeiro empresarial em geral, bem como ocasionar injustiças. Como uma das formas de endereçamento do problema, nos casos dos processos administrativos, sugere-se que a composição do Colegiado e do CRSFN seja diversificada, ou mesmo que tenha a presença de um especialista para casos de julgamentos específicos, como são os casos dos julgamentos que envolvem o auditor independente. / The responsibilities entailed in the work of the auditor are a subject of much debate, chiefly when frauds and other financial scandals occur. Frequently on these occasions the function of the auditor comes into question and the business world attributes certain responsibilities to these professionals that they may not actually have (Audit Expectation Gap - AEG). The author Porter B. A. (1990) separated AEG into two main components: (i) the performance gap, and (ii) the reasonableness gap. The latter refers to the difference between the expectations of users of financial information regarding the specific tasks they believe auditors should perform and the obligations and objectives those auditors actually have. Using the construct of Porter B. A. (1990), this work has the objective of identifying the existence of the reasonableness gap in legal rulings (decisions of appellate courts) in which audit firms were the defendant. The intention was to establish if the difference in expectations regarding the work of the auditor was present in the decisions and opinions of the civil and administrative proceedings. In order to do so, an analysis was made of 11 civil appellate court decisions, 19 administrative rulings of the Comissão de Valores Mobiliários - CVM (equivalent to the Securities and Exchange Commission in the USA) and four administrative rulings of Brazilian Central Bank; 34 judgments in all. The methodology employed was document analysis and content analysis. To aid in the organization and analysis of data, Nvivo® software was used. In addition to analysis of the judgments, interviews were conducted with former members of the CVM board to confirm the understanding of how trial procedures function at this regulator, as well as to gain the perspective of these experts, who are directly involved in judgments of this kind. From the total of the judgments analyzed, the presence of reasonableness AEG was identified in 10 cases, which represents approximately 29% of the total. In addition to identifying reasonableness AEG in the arguments of judges, this gap was also identified, and much more frequently, in various passages of the documentation on the argumentation of attorneys involved in the cases. The findings of this study are important because identifying the existence of this gap may aid in addressing the issue. Rulings based on misguided arguments can not only harm audit firms but also damage the National Financial System and the corporate financial sector in general, as well as causing injustice. As one way of addressing the issue, in administrative cases it is suggested that the composition of the panel and the CRSFN (Council of Appeals of the National Finance System) be made more diverse, and in certain cases even include a specialist, such as when judgments involve an independent auditor.

Ce travail de recherche s’interroge sur la mesure de la qualité d’audit en l’approchant à travers leconcept de perception. Il mobilise deux courants de recherche : le courant fonctionnaliste qui meten évidence les critères favorisant une profession, et ce par le biais de son « idéal type », et lecourant néo-wébérien qui souligne l’idéologie selon laquelle la profession est définie pour prouversa légitimité. L’interaction entre les deux courants permet de créer une vision globale duphénomène de la qualité d’audit. Ce concept sera abordé à travers la perception que les auditeurs etaudités en ont dans la mesure où seules les subjectivités permettent de se rapprocher d’un niveau denormalisation. Le phénomène de l’expectation gap émerge ainsi de cette problématique à travers ledécalage des perceptions. Un cadre psychologique social est également mobiliser pour comprendrela nature du lien social entre les deux acteurs. Afin d’appréhender ces perceptions 150 réponsesd’auditeurs et 88 d’audités sont examinées dans un contexte tunisien. Ces perceptions sont par lasuite confrontées. L’analyse des résultats révèle des perceptions guidées par les valeurs personnellesdes individus mais n’influencent pas systématiquement la confiance établie entre les deux parties.Les perceptions des deux acteurs restent divergentes dans l’ensemble ; l’expectation gap est bienprésente en Tunisie. L’auditeur reste tout de même conscient que ses perceptions sont différentesdes exigences de son client / This research questions the measure of audit quality by taking a perceptual concept. Mobilizing tworesearch approaches: A functional approach that puts into evidence the criteria that promote atrade. This is reached through its “ideal type”, and the néo-wébérien approach that outlines theideology from which a trade is defined to prove its legitimacy. The interaction between these twoapproaches allows a global vision of the phenomenon of the audit quality. This concept will beaddressed through the perception that the auditors and the audited get in the measure that onlysubjectivities can be used to get closer of a normalized level.. The phenomenon of the expectation gapemerges from this problematic through the shift of the perceptions. A psychological socialframework is also mobilized to understand the nature of the social link between these two actors.To apprehend these perceptions 150 answers of auditors and 88 audited are examined in a Tunisiancontext. These perceptions are then confronted. The analysis of the results reveals perceptions thatare guided by personal values of the individuals which don’t systematically influence the trustestablished between the two parties. The perceptions of the two actors are nonetheless globallydivergent; the expectation gap is hence truly present in Tunisia. The auditor is aware that hisperceptions are different from his client’s demands.

Det har sedan en lång tid tillbaka fastställts att förväntningsgapet är ett existerande problem inom revisionsprofessionen. Uppkomsten till ett förväntningsgap beskrivs vara när de förväntningar en klient har inte stämmer överens med vad revisorn faktiskt levererar. Effekten av att ett gap får existera kan ge upphov till negativa effekter där revisionsprofessionen får lida och klienter känner sig otillfredsställda. Det har som ett resultat av förväntningsgapets existens vuxit fram diverse dimensioner av gapet där olika aspekter studerats närmare. En av dessa dimensioner är huruvida vilken egenskap en förväntning kan ta och vad den grundar sig i. En dimension där förväntningar delas upp i egenskap av uppfattning och önskan när de uttrycks samt där skälen bakom en förväntning bör studeras. Två aspekter som är återkommande ämnen i studier om förväntningsgapet är aspekterna om nivå av kommunikation och kunskap. Som ett resultat av denna bakgrund har därför denna uppsats behandlat den forskningslucka som finns angående förväntningsgapet där förväntningars egenskap tas i beaktande i relationen mellan revisor och mindre företag. Samtidigt som aspekterna av kommunikation och kunskap inkluderas för att studeras i samma dimension. Studiens syfte är att utröna vidden av förväntningsgapet i mindre företag och dess påverkan av förväntningar i egenskap av önskan. Vidare ska kunskap och kommunikation i relationen mellan revisor och klient studeras med avsikten att klargöra dess betydelse för gapets existens. Studien baseras på en kvalitativ forskningsstrategi tillsammans med semistrukturerade intervjuer som datainsamlingsmetod. Totalt genomfördes tio intervjuer med respondenter från olika revisionsbyråer samt företag baserade i olika branscher i Sverige. Respondenterna från företagen var personer som hade den yttersta kontakten med deras revisor och från byråerna intervjuades auktoriserade revisorer. Baserat på våra empiriska resultat tillsammans med inhämtad teori har vissa slutsatser kunnat dras. Förväntningar med egenskapen av önskan kan antas finnas och påverka på vilka sätt en förväntning tar hos en klient samt hur den tar form mot revisorn. En slutsats är att önskningar kan bidra till gapet då de ofta relaterar till tjänster utanför den vanliga lagstadgade revisionen. Därtill har slutsats dragits att kommunikation och kunskap har en återkommande betydelse för gapet när det gäller i egenskap av önskningar

Higher education institutions are always directed through policy reforms to promote graduates employability by developing skills in students that contribute to human capital. This interest in employability through education system in the development of skills reflects is part of human capital theory. Considering this, underlying research investigates the expectation-performance gap in the development of generic skills for the purpose of employability offered by the accounting institutes of Pakistan. For the purpose of answering the research question, this research, adopted the theoretical framework of ‘expectation-performance gap’ by Bui and Porter and analysed it within the context of Pakistan. Adoption of this theoretical framework implies the evaluation of three constituent factors as research objectives; the ‘expectation gap’ (reflecting the differences in the expectations of accounting educators and employers), the ‘constraints gap’ (limiting factors to develop generic skills into the student learning process) and the ‘performance gap’ (reflecting the ineffectiveness of teaching activities). However, there is also a fourth objective, that is, to evaluate an outline of the ‘skills acquisition framework’ considering the context of Pakistan’s accounting job-market. Principally this research adopts the survey strategy of a questionnaire with closed-ended questions in order to collect the data. But for the purpose of refining the content of the questionnaire for relevance to the context of Pakistan there are also cognitive interviews. Thus, this research entails a mixed-method approach. The qualitative data from the interviews was analysed using content analysis, thematic analysis and textual analysis. Whereas the quantitative data from the questionnaires was analysed using numerous statistical techniques such as Mann-Whitney U-test, Independent sample t-test, Statistical mean and Principal Component Analysis. The findings related to the ‘expectation gap’ were that there are 19 skills where the accounting educators have dissimilar expectation from employers in terms of skill base education, such skills include decision making, economics, ability to analyse and reason logically, teamwork etc. The findings related to the ‘constraints gap’ were that there are 6 constraining elements which are prevailing within the context of professional accounting education, such constraints include ‘training organisations are not following standard procedures to develop skills in students’, ‘people (potential students) have misperception about accounting education’, 'enrolling students have weak academic background', ‘inadequate stipend offered by training organisations to trainees’, ‘accounting institutes are not appreciating teaching activities, and lack of training opportunities for academics’. The findings related to the ‘performance gap’ were that there are 24 skills where the accounting educators found to be ineffective in the development of skills in students as expected by employers for employment purpose, such skills include inter or multidisciplinary perspective, financial risk analysis, think and behave ethically, independent thinking etc. From the perspective of the ‘skills acquisition framework’, overall 6 skills components were identified from the perspective of Pakistan's accounting job-market, such skills components include appreciative skills, interpersonal skills, technical and functional skills, organisational and business management skills, personal skills and professional skills. Considering the novelty of the adopted theoretical framework (expectation-performance gap by Bui and Porter, 2010) there was a related paucity of literature employing it for empirical investigation using the questionnaire based approach. Therefore, this research provides such theoretical underpinning to this framework that now enables it to be used within the questionnaire based approach. Further this research has described all the generic skills used in this study from the accounting disciplinary perspective and highlights the constraining elements that are assumed to limit the ability of professional accounting institutes. This research also provides a skill acquisition framework which could be used as a reference point for new entrants to the accounting job-market.