Shiraz University Journal of Accounting Advances 2008-9988 13 1 2021 04 21 Investigating the Impact of Culture on Accounting Distortions Investigating the Impact of Culture on Accounting Distortions 1 29 6421 10.22099/jaa.2021.41682.2174 FA Mohammad Ali Aghaei Associate Professor, Accounting Department, Management and Economics, School , Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, Iran. Javad Rezazadh Accounting Group, economy and management faculty, tarbiat modares university, Tehran, Iran Morteza Bayat tmu Journal Article 2021 09 12 EXTENDED ABSTRACT Introduction The purpose of this study is to investigate the effect of culture on accounting distortions. The culture of any country can affect different social, political and economic aspects of that country. Accounting is a social tool for allocating resources and preventing conflicts of interest and information asymmetry, so it can be directly influenced by culture. Research Questions or hypothesis The purpose of this study is to investigate the effect of the Culture on Accounting Distortions. For this purpose, the following hypotheses have been explained: Hypothesis 1: Harmony has a significant effect on accounting distortions. Hypothesis 2: Hierarchy has a significant effect on accounting distortions. Hypothesis 3: Dominance has a significant effect on accounting distortions. Hypothesis 4: Authoritarianism has a significant effect on accounting distortions. Method The spatial scope of this study was the companies listed on the stock exchanges of Iran, Turkey, Qatar, Bahrain, Pakistan, Oman, Saudi Arabia and the UAE and the time domain was between 2011 and 2018. The research sample includes 1.729 companies listed on the mentioned stock exchanges. Results The results indicate that harmony and hierarchy have a negative and significant relationship with accounting distortions, and on the other hand, authoritarianism and dominance have a positive and significant relationship with accounting distortions. In general, culture can affect various aspects of accounting. Discussion and Conclusion As social justice, peace and security increase, so does the quality of financial reporting. It should be noted that accounting is one of the most important tools for determining the optimal allocation of resources to increase efficiency (signaling theory). Optimal allocation of resources can provide social security and sustainability of optimal products. Since domination and authoritarianism emphasize more on personal interests and the theory of representation and personal interests is introduced in accounting. When personal interests prevail over collective interests, there will be a lot of abuses and fraudulent reporting. EXTENDED ABSTRACT Introduction The purpose of this study is to investigate the effect of culture on accounting distortions. The culture of any country can affect different social, political and economic aspects of that country. Accounting is a social tool for allocating resources and preventing conflicts of interest and information asymmetry, so it can be directly influenced by culture. Research Questions or hypothesis The purpose of this study is to investigate the effect of the Culture on Accounting Distortions. For this purpose, the following hypotheses have been explained: Hypothesis 1: Harmony has a significant effect on accounting distortions. Hypothesis 2: Hierarchy has a significant effect on accounting distortions. Hypothesis 3: Dominance has a significant effect on accounting distortions. Hypothesis 4: Authoritarianism has a significant effect on accounting distortions. Method The spatial scope of this study was the companies listed on the stock exchanges of Iran, Turkey, Qatar, Bahrain, Pakistan, Oman, Saudi Arabia and the UAE and the time domain was between 2011 and 2018. The research sample includes 1.729 companies listed on the mentioned stock exchanges. Results The results indicate that harmony and hierarchy have a negative and significant relationship with accounting distortions, and on the other hand, authoritarianism and dominance have a positive and significant relationship with accounting distortions. In general, culture can affect various aspects of accounting. Discussion and Conclusion As social justice, peace and security increase, so does the quality of financial reporting. It should be noted that accounting is one of the most important tools for determining the optimal allocation of resources to increase efficiency (signaling theory). Optimal allocation of resources can provide social security and sustainability of optimal products. Since domination and authoritarianism emphasize more on personal interests and the theory of representation and personal interests is introduced in accounting. When personal interests prevail over collective interests, there will be a lot of abuses and fraudulent reporting.

https://jaa.shirazu.ac.ir/article_6421_479b89bea72137a472ee389c5bf29f59.pdf

Shiraz University Journal of Accounting Advances 2008-9988 13 1 2021 04 21 The Effect of Information Risk on the Relationship between Abnormal Audit Report Delays and Abnormal Stock Returns The Effect of Information Risk on the Relationship between Abnormal Audit Report Delays and Abnormal Stock Returns 31 66 6443 10.22099/jaa.2021.41593.2172 FA Rahim Bonabi Ghadim Asistance Prof in Accounting, Department of accounting, Hashtrood Branch, Islamic Azad University, Hashtrood, Iran Seyed Ali Vaez Associate Prof in Accounting. Faculty of Economic and Social Sciences, Shahid Chamran University, Ahvaz, Iran Journal Article 2021 08 31 EXTENDED ABSTRACT Introduction The results of audit report are one of the tools to ensure the accuracy of financial statement information. If this report is available to users with unusual delays, it may affect investors' expectations of financial statement information while enhancing the information reliability and reducing the information timeliness. And if this delay is accompanied by more information risk and information inequality, investors' expectations of the company's value will change significantly. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of information risk on relationship between abnormal audit report delay and abnormal stock returns. Hypothesis According to the aforementioned theoretical foundations and previous researches such as Habib and Huang (2019), Lu et al. (2020), Blankley et al. (2014), Nikinen and Sahlstrom (2015), Zhang et al. (2013) and Sharad ( 2014) based on the reasons for abnormal delays in the audit report, investors' perception of these reasons and creating a balance between reliability and timeliness of the information obtained from the report with abnormal audit delays on the one hand and the scope of confidential information and the scope of confidential information and information risk as a sign of Information inequality and the existence of new information with important information content, from other hand, which affects the expected return of investors in the market and causes adjustment and revision of their previous expectations, the research hypotheses were formulated as follows: The sales growth fluctuation affects the financial statements comparability. The cash flows fluctuation affects the financial statements comparability. The competition proprietary costs moderates the effect of sales fluctuation on financial statements comparability. The competition proprietary costs moderates the effect of sales growth fluctuations on financial statements comparability. The competition proprietary costs moderates the effect of cash flow fluctuations on financial statements comparability. Method To test research hypotheses, the data of 123 companies accepted in Tehran Stock Exchange during the years 2012-2019 and multivariate regression has been used. Results The results of the research hypotheses test showed that with increasing abnormal delay in the audit report, abnormal stock returns increase and information risk while having a positive effect on abnormal stock returns, intensifies the effect of abnormal delay of the auditor report on abnormal returns. That is, abnormal delays in the audit report and information risk, as variables with significant information content and a sign of problematic information and private information, fundamentally change investors' expectations, which affect abnormal returns. Conclusion It can be said that delays in the audit report have informative content and affect market expectations. In other words, the abnormal length of the audit report, both in terms of increasing the effectiveness of the audit and strengthening the reliability of information, and in terms of auditing problematic financial statements and reducing the timeliness of information, provides new information for investors that corrects or strengthens investors' expectations of previous forecasts. Also, despite the information risk and information asymmetry or confidential information within the organization, abnormal delays in the audit report send a more negative signal to the market and also affect market expectations for the results of the audit report. However, due to the implementation of the risk-based audit process, the existence of high information risk for audit firms is a reason for further consideration and audit risk management, which further delays the audit report and thus signals negative news to the market to revise capital expectations. EXTENDED ABSTRACT Introduction The results of audit report are one of the tools to ensure the accuracy of financial statement information. If this report is available to users with unusual delays, it may affect investors' expectations of financial statement information while enhancing the information reliability and reducing the information timeliness. And if this delay is accompanied by more information risk and information inequality, investors' expectations of the company's value will change significantly. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of information risk on relationship between abnormal audit report delay and abnormal stock returns. Hypothesis According to the aforementioned theoretical foundations and previous researches such as Habib and Huang (2019), Lu et al. (2020), Blankley et al. (2014), Nikinen and Sahlstrom (2015), Zhang et al. (2013) and Sharad ( 2014) based on the reasons for abnormal delays in the audit report, investors' perception of these reasons and creating a balance between reliability and timeliness of the information obtained from the report with abnormal audit delays on the one hand and the scope of confidential information and the scope of confidential information and information risk as a sign of Information inequality and the existence of new information with important information content, from other hand, which affects the expected return of investors in the market and causes adjustment and revision of their previous expectations, the research hypotheses were formulated as follows: The sales growth fluctuation affects the financial statements comparability. The cash flows fluctuation affects the financial statements comparability. The competition proprietary costs moderates the effect of sales fluctuation on financial statements comparability. The competition proprietary costs moderates the effect of sales growth fluctuations on financial statements comparability. The competition proprietary costs moderates the effect of cash flow fluctuations on financial statements comparability. Method To test research hypotheses, the data of 123 companies accepted in Tehran Stock Exchange during the years 2012-2019 and multivariate regression has been used. Results The results of the research hypotheses test showed that with increasing abnormal delay in the audit report, abnormal stock returns increase and information risk while having a positive effect on abnormal stock returns, intensifies the effect of abnormal delay of the auditor report on abnormal returns. That is, abnormal delays in the audit report and information risk, as variables with significant information content and a sign of problematic information and private information, fundamentally change investors' expectations, which affect abnormal returns. Conclusion It can be said that delays in the audit report have informative content and affect market expectations. In other words, the abnormal length of the audit report, both in terms of increasing the effectiveness of the audit and strengthening the reliability of information, and in terms of auditing problematic financial statements and reducing the timeliness of information, provides new information for investors that corrects or strengthens investors' expectations of previous forecasts. Also, despite the information risk and information asymmetry or confidential information within the organization, abnormal delays in the audit report send a more negative signal to the market and also affect market expectations for the results of the audit report. However, due to the implementation of the risk-based audit process, the existence of high information risk for audit firms is a reason for further consideration and audit risk management, which further delays the audit report and thus signals negative news to the market to revise capital expectations.

https://jaa.shirazu.ac.ir/article_6443_64298b29be2a45b85ce512a299f7088f.pdf

Shiraz University Journal of Accounting Advances 2008-9988 13 1 2021 04 21 The study of the relationship between Personality Types, Experience, Gender, and external Auditors' Fraud Detection Capability (The mediating effects of Professional Skepticism) The study of the relationship between Personality Types, Experience, Gender, and external Auditors' Fraud Detection Capability (The mediating effects of Professional Skepticism) 67 100 6373 10.22099/jaa.2021.40948.2144 FA Mohamad Pashaei Fashtali ph.d.Student of accounting,Department of Accounting,Faculty of Accounting and Management,Rasht Branch,Islamic Azad University,Rasht , Iran. Keihan Azadi Hir Assistant prof ,,Department of Accounting , Faculty of Accounting and Management ,Rasht Branch,Islamic Azad University,Rasht , Iran. Mohamadreza Vatanparast Assistant prof ,,Department of Accounting , Faculty of Accounting and Management ,Rasht Branch , Islamic Azad University,Rasht , Iran. Journal Article 2021 06 15 Introduction Concerns about fraud is increasing. In 2018 Association of Certified Fraud Examiners reports' show that 5 percent of annual income of entities lost because of fraud, usually. Results of Association of Certified Fraud Examiners inspecting showed that informing is the first place of fraud detecting procedures (pointed to the fraud detecting ways which is conducted by informers through hot lines) while independent auditing was the eighth. Developed countries statistics indicate that about 7 percent of their GDI is plundered by fraudsters. Also, fraud statistics in countries like Iran indicate that 15 percent of GDI is plundered by fraudsters. Random detecting is the most common method in Iran which make more concerns and this is the evidence which show that other detecting and preventing methods inefficiency, so that the factors examining which influence on external auditors' performance is important. Young (1933) claimed human behavior can be associated to differences in personality types. Examining personality traits effect on independent auditors detecting ability is this research importance and it is considered as a behavior in auditing context. Studies have shown that according to Mayers-Briggs index, auditors belong to sensing-thinking and intuitive-thinking types have higher ability in fraud detecting. Experience causes increases in auditor ability of data processing and developing solution suggesting in some cases. Besides, experience cause to develop a basis for auditors' judges which leads to method of decision making and interpreting based on data. Professional skepticism as an important influencing on audit quality and auditors' decision making and its role in providing assurance for capital market and information presenting is became more important than ever; so that is considered as a principle of audit standards. Professional skepticism is important to external and internal auditors. If more professional skepticism gets involved by auditors, variation recognition in auditing process will be improved, definitely. Thus professional skepticism in auditing is vital. Behavioral theory is used in this research is theory of planned behavior. Theory of planned behavior developed by Ajzen (1985). This theory as one of the best theories in behavioral science has been utilized in many researches to behavior description and determining the most influencing factors on behavior. The goal of this research is to describe auditors' behavior differences according to theory of planned behavior; according to this theory, behaviors are immediately determined by behavioral intentions and under certain circumstances, perceived behavioral control. Behavioral intentions are determined by a combination of three factors: attitudes toward the behavior, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control. Fraud detecting is a behavior which is probably conducted at the ideal level of attitude toward fraud detecting and is defined as professional skepticism in this research. Perceived behavioral control is defined as the understanding of easiness or difficulties in fraud detecting which is derived from experience. Research findings help to literature development of behavior area of auditing and related theories, and also can provide useful information to improve performance quality for certified auditor community and audit firms. Hypotheses The purpose of this research is to study the effect of Personality Types, Experience, Gender and Professional skepticism (mediator variable) on external auditors' performance fraud detecting, the research hypotheses were stated as follows: Hypothesis 1: External auditors of Sensing-Thinking personality type have higher capability of fraud detection in comparison with external auditors of Intuitive-Thinking personality types. Hypothesis 2: Experience has positive effect on fraud detection capability. Hypothesis 3: Female auditors have higher capability of fraud detection in comparison with male auditors. Hypothesis 4: Professional skepticism mediates the relation of external auditors' personality types and capability of fraud detection. Hypothesis 5: Professional skepticism mediates the relation of external auditors' experience and capability of fraud detection. Hypothesis 6: Professional skepticism mediates the relation of external auditors' gender and capability of fraud detection. Method This research is categorized as behavioral study. The goal of research is applicable; the nature and method is correlation descriptive survey. Also it is a field study research which theoretical collecting is archival and inductive. The most common method of data collecting of a survey research is questionnaire utilizing. Using questionnaire needed data is collected and entered to Microsoft Excel software research variables got extracted; afterwards final analysis is conducted by smart PLS. According to structural model finding of PLS, measuring paradigms fitness (reliability, convergent validity and divergent validity), structural paradigm fitness (Z, R2 and Q2) and general paradigm fitness (GOF) were examined; then research hypotheses were tested (Factor loading, Z coefficient significance and standardized path coefficient). Sobel test is conducted to mediator variable examination. Results The results show that ST (Sensing-Thinking) and NT (Intuitive-Thinking) personality types of auditors in comparison with the other types have direct and indirect (through mediator variable of professional skepticism) positive effect on fraud detection capability. Moreover, there is no significant relationship between gender and fraud detection Capability. Discussion and Conclusion As matter of fact, results indicate that how personality traits effect on individual special behaviors and play an important role on individual choice of acting; thus the need of individual personality traits evaluating and assessing must be considered in audit process. Also results show that auditors higher experienced lead to higher level of professional skepticism and fraud detecting ability. This show that experience is associated to auditors' interest for data tracking about fraud signals and professional skepticism level applied through auditing. Gender examining do not show a positive significant effect on fraud detecting ability and male female auditors have the same fraud detecting ability and professional skepticism. At the end results show that professional skepticism mediate experience and personality traits effect on fraud detecting ability; in other word the more doubt and professional skepticism applied in auditing the more interest of data finding about fraud signal will be resulted and higher fraud detecting ability will be achieved. Introduction Concerns about fraud is increasing. In 2018 Association of Certified Fraud Examiners reports' show that 5 percent of annual income of entities lost because of fraud, usually. Results of Association of Certified Fraud Examiners inspecting showed that informing is the first place of fraud detecting procedures (pointed to the fraud detecting ways which is conducted by informers through hot lines) while independent auditing was the eighth. Developed countries statistics indicate that about 7 percent of their GDI is plundered by fraudsters. Also, fraud statistics in countries like Iran indicate that 15 percent of GDI is plundered by fraudsters. Random detecting is the most common method in Iran which make more concerns and this is the evidence which show that other detecting and preventing methods inefficiency, so that the factors examining which influence on external auditors' performance is important. Young (1933) claimed human behavior can be associated to differences in personality types. Examining personality traits effect on independent auditors detecting ability is this research importance and it is considered as a behavior in auditing context. Studies have shown that according to Mayers-Briggs index, auditors belong to sensing-thinking and intuitive-thinking types have higher ability in fraud detecting. Experience causes increases in auditor ability of data processing and developing solution suggesting in some cases. Besides, experience cause to develop a basis for auditors' judges which leads to method of decision making and interpreting based on data. Professional skepticism as an important influencing on audit quality and auditors' decision making and its role in providing assurance for capital market and information presenting is became more important than ever; so that is considered as a principle of audit standards. Professional skepticism is important to external and internal auditors. If more professional skepticism gets involved by auditors, variation recognition in auditing process will be improved, definitely. Thus professional skepticism in auditing is vital. Behavioral theory is used in this research is theory of planned behavior. Theory of planned behavior developed by Ajzen (1985). This theory as one of the best theories in behavioral science has been utilized in many researches to behavior description and determining the most influencing factors on behavior. The goal of this research is to describe auditors' behavior differences according to theory of planned behavior; according to this theory, behaviors are immediately determined by behavioral intentions and under certain circumstances, perceived behavioral control. Behavioral intentions are determined by a combination of three factors: attitudes toward the behavior, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control. Fraud detecting is a behavior which is probably conducted at the ideal level of attitude toward fraud detecting and is defined as professional skepticism in this research. Perceived behavioral control is defined as the understanding of easiness or difficulties in fraud detecting which is derived from experience. Research findings help to literature development of behavior area of auditing and related theories, and also can provide useful information to improve performance quality for certified auditor community and audit firms. Hypotheses The purpose of this research is to study the effect of Personality Types, Experience, Gender and Professional skepticism (mediator variable) on external auditors' performance fraud detecting, the research hypotheses were stated as follows: Hypothesis 1: External auditors of Sensing-Thinking personality type have higher capability of fraud detection in comparison with external auditors of Intuitive-Thinking personality types. Hypothesis 2: Experience has positive effect on fraud detection capability. Hypothesis 3: Female auditors have higher capability of fraud detection in comparison with male auditors. Hypothesis 4: Professional skepticism mediates the relation of external auditors' personality types and capability of fraud detection. Hypothesis 5: Professional skepticism mediates the relation of external auditors' experience and capability of fraud detection. Hypothesis 6: Professional skepticism mediates the relation of external auditors' gender and capability of fraud detection. Method This research is categorized as behavioral study. The goal of research is applicable; the nature and method is correlation descriptive survey. Also it is a field study research which theoretical collecting is archival and inductive. The most common method of data collecting of a survey research is questionnaire utilizing. Using questionnaire needed data is collected and entered to Microsoft Excel software research variables got extracted; afterwards final analysis is conducted by smart PLS. According to structural model finding of PLS, measuring paradigms fitness (reliability, convergent validity and divergent validity), structural paradigm fitness (Z, R2 and Q2) and general paradigm fitness (GOF) were examined; then research hypotheses were tested (Factor loading, Z coefficient significance and standardized path coefficient). Sobel test is conducted to mediator variable examination. Results The results show that ST (Sensing-Thinking) and NT (Intuitive-Thinking) personality types of auditors in comparison with the other types have direct and indirect (through mediator variable of professional skepticism) positive effect on fraud detection capability. Moreover, there is no significant relationship between gender and fraud detection Capability. Discussion and Conclusion As matter of fact, results indicate that how personality traits effect on individual special behaviors and play an important role on individual choice of acting; thus the need of individual personality traits evaluating and assessing must be considered in audit process. Also results show that auditors higher experienced lead to higher level of professional skepticism and fraud detecting ability. This show that experience is associated to auditors' interest for data tracking about fraud signals and professional skepticism level applied through auditing. Gender examining do not show a positive significant effect on fraud detecting ability and male female auditors have the same fraud detecting ability and professional skepticism. At the end results show that professional skepticism mediate experience and personality traits effect on fraud detecting ability; in other word the more doubt and professional skepticism applied in auditing the more interest of data finding about fraud signal will be resulted and higher fraud detecting ability will be achieved.

https://jaa.shirazu.ac.ir/article_6373_a1ee2e20ef2b99b3a944a9721a1ed975.pdf

Shiraz University Journal of Accounting Advances 2008-9988 13 1 2021 04 21 The effect of internal audit effectiveness and quality of financial reporting on information asymmetry between manager and auditor The effect of internal audit effectiveness and quality of financial reporting on information asymmetry between manager and auditor 101 129 6348 10.22099/jaa.2021.39455.2086 FA Maryam Haghighat Shahrestani PhD Student in Accounting, Rasht Branch, Islamic Azad University, Rasht, Iran Sina Kheradyar Assistant Professor.,Department of Accounting, Rasht Branch, Islamic Azad University, Rasht, Iran. Fazel Mohammadi Nodeh Assistant Professor., Department of Management, Lahijan Branch, Islamic Azad University, Lahijan, Iran. Journal Article 2021 02 20 Introduction In business units where there is more unique information, the information gap between the auditor and management widens, which can affect the quality of auditing and the quality of accounting information. According to game theory, internal audit as one of the mechanisms of the management system on the one hand can reduce the conflict between the independent auditor and the company and on the other hand can improve the quality of financial reporting. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to investigate the effect of internal audit effectiveness and quality of financial reporting on the information asymmetry of the manager and auditor of companies listed on the Tehran Stock Exchange. Hypotheses As the quality of internal auditing improves, the quality indicators of financial reporting improve and as a result information inequality decreases (Alisa et al., 2014). Thus, three hypotheses are presented: H1: The quality of financial reporting affects the information asymmetry H2: The effectiveness of internal audit affects the manager-auditor information asymmetry. H3: The effectiveness of internal auditing intensifies the relationship between financial reporting quality manager-auditor information asymmetry. Method To test research hypotheses use a statistical sample consisting of 114 companies listed on the Tehran Stock Exchange for the years 2010 to 2019 was selected. In order to measure the information asymmetry between the manager and the auditor, a combined five-factor index called the distance from the industry index has been used. Data analysis was performed by multivariate regression method using STATA software. Results The results of testing the research hypotheses showed that the quality of financial reporting and the effectiveness of internal audit lead to a reduction of information asymmetry between the manager and the auditor. Also, the effect of financial reporting quality on manager-auditor information asymmetry is intensified despite the presence of an effective internal auditor. Discussion and Conclusion Internal auditing has a unique and fundamental role in corporate governance by monitoring organizational risks and helping to ensure the reliability of financial reporting. An effective internal auditor helps the entity pursue its financial reporting objectives by providing systematic details of what is being done in the company and how it is being done. Internal auditing, which acts as an overseer of the company's financial activities, improves financial reporting practices.The research findings provide evidence of the internal auditor's supervisory role on the financial reporting process and reduce manager-auditor asymmetry. Introduction In business units where there is more unique information, the information gap between the auditor and management widens, which can affect the quality of auditing and the quality of accounting information. According to game theory, internal audit as one of the mechanisms of the management system on the one hand can reduce the conflict between the independent auditor and the company and on the other hand can improve the quality of financial reporting. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to investigate the effect of internal audit effectiveness and quality of financial reporting on the information asymmetry of the manager and auditor of companies listed on the Tehran Stock Exchange. Hypotheses As the quality of internal auditing improves, the quality indicators of financial reporting improve and as a result information inequality decreases (Alisa et al., 2014). Thus, three hypotheses are presented: H1: The quality of financial reporting affects the information asymmetry H2: The effectiveness of internal audit affects the manager-auditor information asymmetry. H3: The effectiveness of internal auditing intensifies the relationship between financial reporting quality manager-auditor information asymmetry. Method To test research hypotheses use a statistical sample consisting of 114 companies listed on the Tehran Stock Exchange for the years 2010 to 2019 was selected. In order to measure the information asymmetry between the manager and the auditor, a combined five-factor index called the distance from the industry index has been used. Data analysis was performed by multivariate regression method using STATA software. Results The results of testing the research hypotheses showed that the quality of financial reporting and the effectiveness of internal audit lead to a reduction of information asymmetry between the manager and the auditor. Also, the effect of financial reporting quality on manager-auditor information asymmetry is intensified despite the presence of an effective internal auditor. Discussion and Conclusion Internal auditing has a unique and fundamental role in corporate governance by monitoring organizational risks and helping to ensure the reliability of financial reporting. An effective internal auditor helps the entity pursue its financial reporting objectives by providing systematic details of what is being done in the company and how it is being done. Internal auditing, which acts as an overseer of the company's financial activities, improves financial reporting practices.The research findings provide evidence of the internal auditor's supervisory role on the financial reporting process and reduce manager-auditor asymmetry.

https://jaa.shirazu.ac.ir/article_6348_79b3e89f3338c9f149c0de3f0b456200.pdf

Shiraz University Journal of Accounting Advances 2008-9988 13 1 2021 04 21 Moderating Role of Gender on the Relationship between Accountants’ Level of Moral Development and Their Whistleblowing Intentions Moderating Role of Gender on the Relationship between Accountants’ Level of Moral Development and Their Whistleblowing Intentions 131 159 6418 10.22099/jaa.2021.40779.2138 FA Paria Diba Kia Ph.D Student of Accounting, Karaj Branch, Islamic Azad University, Karaj, Iran Bahman Banimahd Associate Professor of Accounting, Karaj Branch, Islamic Azad University, Karaj, Iran Azam Shokri Cheshmeh Sabzi Assistant Professor of Accounting, Karaj Branch, Islamic Azad University, Karaj, Iran Mahdi Moradzadeh Fard Associate Professor of Accounting, Karaj Branch, Islamic Azad University, Karaj, Iran Journal Article 2021 05 30 EXTENDED ABSTRACT Introduction AS a significant socioeconomic issue worldwide, financial wrongdoings have adverse consequences for a wide range of stakeholders. Whistleblowing is one of the most important monitoring mechanisms in organizations and plays a key role in deterring financial wrongdoings. According to the report by the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE), tips from employees is the most common way of detecting fraud. There is always a concern that disclosure of financial wrongdoings will undermine public confidence and hurt the economy. However, as knowledge and experience of combating fraud increases, disclosures can be helpful by informing, identifying weaknesses, raising awareness of common types of fraud, and limiting opportunities for further violations. There have been many studies on whistleblowing. Most of these studies have investigated different factors that affect intentions to report financial wrongdoings. Gobert and Punch (2000) believe that whistleblowing intentions are driven by psychological and sociological factors. Therefore, to minimize the negative consequences of financial wrongdoings and prevent their reoccurrence, special attention must be given to the factors affecting whistleblowing intentions, especially among accountants who play a significant role in business governance (Axtell, Smith & Tervo, 2017). What distinguishes accountants from other employees is having the necessary skills to understand the existence, materiality, and nature of financial wrongdoings. Therefore, it is important for them to report violations because of their irreplaceable role in detecting and discouraging wrongdoings. However, given the diversity of the workforce in the accounting profession in terms of demographic characteristics such as gender, age, and education, one cannot expect accountants’ ethical behaviors to be similar under the same circumstances. Although complete information is not available on the gender composition of Iranian accountants, the available evidence indicates an increase in representation of women in the field of accounting and auditing in both public and private sectors. Therefore, it is interesting to study how this demographic change has affected accountants’ behavior in the workplace. Gender is one of these factors that has been less studied in relation to accountants’ whistleblowing intentions. According to Taylor and Curtis (2013), gender may have inconsistent effects on ethical decision making. Therefore, the main question of the present research is whether gender affects accountants’ whistleblowing intention as an ethical decision. In addition to demographic characteristics, it is important to identify other factors that encourage or discourage individuals from reporting financial wrongdoings. In particular, the present research examines moral reasoning as a potential driver of whistleblowing intention. According to the theory of moral reasoning, an individual’s level of moral reasoning affects their action and behavior. Individuals with lower levels of moral reasoning primarily think of their interests in the decision-making process for a particular action, even if that action does not conform to norms, while those with higher levels of moral reasoning act in accordance with prevailing norms, even if those actions do not serve their personal interests. Prior research has found a testable link between moral reasoning and the decision to report financial wrongdoings. For example, Arnold and Ponemon (1991) found that internal auditors with relatively low levels of moral reasoning were less likely to report wrongdoings, and that the likelihood of retaliation further reduces whistleblowing intentions. This finding can be explained using Kohlberg’s (1969) theory of moral development, where lower levels of moral reasoning are focused on avoiding punishment (Stage 1) or serving one’s own interests (Stage 2). In addition to examining the individual effects of gender and moral reasoning on whistleblowing intentions, the present study examines the moderating effect of gender on the relationship between accountants’ moral reasoning and whistleblowing intention. Thus, other questions that this study seeks to answer are as follows: Does accountants’ level of moral reasoning affect their whistleblowing intention? Does gender directly affect whistleblowing intentions, or does it play a moderating role in the relationship between moral reasoning and whistleblowing intention? This study is an attempt to fill the gaps in the literature on whistleblowing in the field of accounting by examining the effect of gender and moral reasoning on accountants’ intention to report wrongdoings. The contributions of this research are twofold. Previous studies have mostly used Rest’s (1986) Defining Issues Test (DIT) or Lind’s (1985) Moral Judgment Test (MJT) with P-scores, while the present research uses MJT with the C-index to measure accountants’ different levels of moral reasoning. Lind (2000) found that participants in DIT or MJT could obtain higher P-scores by repeating the tests, while the same sample failed to raise their C-scores through repetition. Moreover, most studies in the past have examined the effect of various factors on whistleblowing to internal authorities, while there have been few studies on whistleblowing to external authorities. This study provides useful information about the determinants of whistleblowing by accountants, and its implications can guide recruitment policies as well as plans to develop the ethical principles of the accounting profession. Hypothesis Based on the discussions above, the following hypotheses are developed to examine the effect of gender and moral reasoning on whistleblowing intention: H1. Moral development has a significant effect on intention to report wrongdoings to internal authorities. H2. Moral development has a significant effect on intention to report wrongdoings to external authorities. H3. Gender has a significant effect on the relationship between accountants’ level of Moral development and intention to report wrongdoings to internal authorities. H4. Gender has a significant effect on the relationship between accountants’ level of Moral development and intention to report wrongdoings to external authorities. Methods This research is a survey carried out in 2020. The statistical sample consisted of 385 accounting graduates working in public and private firms who were selected using non-probabilistic sampling. The required data were collected using a questionnaire, and the hypotheses were tested using structural equation model (SEM) and SPSS. Excel and SmartPLS were also used to perform these analyses. Results Based on the reported t-statistic (greater than 1.96), the effect of accountants’ Moral development on their intention to report financial wrongdoings to internal authorities is significant and the first hypothesis is accepted at the 95% CI. The results also show that the effect of accountants’ Moral development on their intention to report wrongdoings to external authorities is significant and the second hypothesis is accepted at the 95% CI. Given that the t-statistic obtained for the parametric test and Welch-Satterthwaite t-test is less than 1.96, it can be concluded that gender does not moderate the relationship between accountants’ Moral development and their intention to report wrongdoings to internal authorities. Moreover, the value of t-statistic is greater than 1.96 in the Parametric test and Welch-Satterthwaite t-test, indicating that gender moderates the relationship between accountants’ Moral development and their willingness to report violations to external authorities. Discussion and Conclusion The growing prevalence of financial wrongdoings and the serious consequences they entail for organizations has led to the increasing expansion of research on whistleblowing. The results of several surveys by ACFE consistently indicate that whistleblowing is an effective mechanism for unearthing and preventing financial wrongdoings (ACFE, 2012, 2014, 2016, 2018, 2020). So far, the effect of various factors on whistleblowing intention has been investigated. However, to our knowledge, there has been no study that incorporates social learning theory, social role theory, gender socialization theory, and Moral development theory into the study of whistleblowing intention. The present study investigated the effect of accountants’ level of moral development on their whistleblowing intentions while examining the moderating role of gender on that relationship. This study not only investigated the effect of Moral development on whistleblowing intention, but also examined whether gender plays a mediating role in the relationship between Moral development and whistleblowing both to internal and external authorities. The results presented in Table 7, while confirming the first and second hypotheses of the research, show that accountants’ level of Moral development affects their intention to report financial wrongdoings to authorities inside or outside the organization. Individuals with higher levels of moral development and reasoning are more likely to comply with social contracts and group rules and norms, and the prevailing assumption is that an individuals with high levels of Moral development want to be good members of the group or society. For this reason, these individuals quickly come oppose any violation of the law and are more likely to report wrongdoings to internal and/or external authorities. The results also indicate that gender moderates the relationship between accountants’ Moral development and their intention to report wrongdoings to external authorities. This can be explained using the social role theory, which proposes that the role defined by the society for each gender can be an important factor in an individual’s moral decisions. Based on the present findings, it can be argued that the basic theories of behavioral sciences and psychology are useful for explaining accountants’ whistleblowing intentions. Corruption has been a major global concern for stakeholders of organizations and officials, and highlights the need to pay more attention to morality and ethical standards. Organizations need to create a culture that is conducive to ethical behavior by accounting professionals, especially by encouraging whistleblowing, while taking into account various factors such as gender differences that affect whistleblowing intentions. By developing special motivational strategies that take into account gender differences, organizations can take steps to increase the propensity of accountants to report financial wrongdoings. It is also necessary for organizations to consider the level of moral development and reasoning of accountants when recruiting and assigning them to different positions. Given the differences in the Moral development of male and female accountants, training programs can be tailored to each gender and use concrete examples of financial scandals around the world to promote ethical behavior. Organizations should also develop and implement policies, procedures, and mechanisms that support whistleblowing, including confidential hotlines and highlight whistleblowing as an effective mechanism for promoting ethical values in training programs and the code of ethics. In addition, organizations can use incentivize employees to report wrongdoings, while preventing any retaliation against whistleblowers. It must be noted that the present study has some limitations. A clear example is the limitation is the use of a hypothetical scenario to measure the research variables. In general, the use of questionnaires has inherent limitations, including the unfamiliarity of participants with the subject, insufficient participation by qualified individuals, different interpretation of the questionnaire items, and response bias among some participants. EXTENDED ABSTRACT Introduction AS a significant socioeconomic issue worldwide, financial wrongdoings have adverse consequences for a wide range of stakeholders. Whistleblowing is one of the most important monitoring mechanisms in organizations and plays a key role in deterring financial wrongdoings. According to the report by the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE), tips from employees is the most common way of detecting fraud. There is always a concern that disclosure of financial wrongdoings will undermine public confidence and hurt the economy. However, as knowledge and experience of combating fraud increases, disclosures can be helpful by informing, identifying weaknesses, raising awareness of common types of fraud, and limiting opportunities for further violations. There have been many studies on whistleblowing. Most of these studies have investigated different factors that affect intentions to report financial wrongdoings. Gobert and Punch (2000) believe that whistleblowing intentions are driven by psychological and sociological factors. Therefore, to minimize the negative consequences of financial wrongdoings and prevent their reoccurrence, special attention must be given to the factors affecting whistleblowing intentions, especially among accountants who play a significant role in business governance (Axtell, Smith & Tervo, 2017). What distinguishes accountants from other employees is having the necessary skills to understand the existence, materiality, and nature of financial wrongdoings. Therefore, it is important for them to report violations because of their irreplaceable role in detecting and discouraging wrongdoings. However, given the diversity of the workforce in the accounting profession in terms of demographic characteristics such as gender, age, and education, one cannot expect accountants’ ethical behaviors to be similar under the same circumstances. Although complete information is not available on the gender composition of Iranian accountants, the available evidence indicates an increase in representation of women in the field of accounting and auditing in both public and private sectors. Therefore, it is interesting to study how this demographic change has affected accountants’ behavior in the workplace. Gender is one of these factors that has been less studied in relation to accountants’ whistleblowing intentions. According to Taylor and Curtis (2013), gender may have inconsistent effects on ethical decision making. Therefore, the main question of the present research is whether gender affects accountants’ whistleblowing intention as an ethical decision. In addition to demographic characteristics, it is important to identify other factors that encourage or discourage individuals from reporting financial wrongdoings. In particular, the present research examines moral reasoning as a potential driver of whistleblowing intention. According to the theory of moral reasoning, an individual’s level of moral reasoning affects their action and behavior. Individuals with lower levels of moral reasoning primarily think of their interests in the decision-making process for a particular action, even if that action does not conform to norms, while those with higher levels of moral reasoning act in accordance with prevailing norms, even if those actions do not serve their personal interests. Prior research has found a testable link between moral reasoning and the decision to report financial wrongdoings. For example, Arnold and Ponemon (1991) found that internal auditors with relatively low levels of moral reasoning were less likely to report wrongdoings, and that the likelihood of retaliation further reduces whistleblowing intentions. This finding can be explained using Kohlberg’s (1969) theory of moral development, where lower levels of moral reasoning are focused on avoiding punishment (Stage 1) or serving one’s own interests (Stage 2). In addition to examining the individual effects of gender and moral reasoning on whistleblowing intentions, the present study examines the moderating effect of gender on the relationship between accountants’ moral reasoning and whistleblowing intention. Thus, other questions that this study seeks to answer are as follows: Does accountants’ level of moral reasoning affect their whistleblowing intention? Does gender directly affect whistleblowing intentions, or does it play a moderating role in the relationship between moral reasoning and whistleblowing intention? This study is an attempt to fill the gaps in the literature on whistleblowing in the field of accounting by examining the effect of gender and moral reasoning on accountants’ intention to report wrongdoings. The contributions of this research are twofold. Previous studies have mostly used Rest’s (1986) Defining Issues Test (DIT) or Lind’s (1985) Moral Judgment Test (MJT) with P-scores, while the present research uses MJT with the C-index to measure accountants’ different levels of moral reasoning. Lind (2000) found that participants in DIT or MJT could obtain higher P-scores by repeating the tests, while the same sample failed to raise their C-scores through repetition. Moreover, most studies in the past have examined the effect of various factors on whistleblowing to internal authorities, while there have been few studies on whistleblowing to external authorities. This study provides useful information about the determinants of whistleblowing by accountants, and its implications can guide recruitment policies as well as plans to develop the ethical principles of the accounting profession. Hypothesis Based on the discussions above, the following hypotheses are developed to examine the effect of gender and moral reasoning on whistleblowing intention: H1. Moral development has a significant effect on intention to report wrongdoings to internal authorities. H2. Moral development has a significant effect on intention to report wrongdoings to external authorities. H3. Gender has a significant effect on the relationship between accountants’ level of Moral development and intention to report wrongdoings to internal authorities. H4. Gender has a significant effect on the relationship between accountants’ level of Moral development and intention to report wrongdoings to external authorities. Methods This research is a survey carried out in 2020. The statistical sample consisted of 385 accounting graduates working in public and private firms who were selected using non-probabilistic sampling. The required data were collected using a questionnaire, and the hypotheses were tested using structural equation model (SEM) and SPSS. Excel and SmartPLS were also used to perform these analyses. Results Based on the reported t-statistic (greater than 1.96), the effect of accountants’ Moral development on their intention to report financial wrongdoings to internal authorities is significant and the first hypothesis is accepted at the 95% CI. The results also show that the effect of accountants’ Moral development on their intention to report wrongdoings to external authorities is significant and the second hypothesis is accepted at the 95% CI. Given that the t-statistic obtained for the parametric test and Welch-Satterthwaite t-test is less than 1.96, it can be concluded that gender does not moderate the relationship between accountants’ Moral development and their intention to report wrongdoings to internal authorities. Moreover, the value of t-statistic is greater than 1.96 in the Parametric test and Welch-Satterthwaite t-test, indicating that gender moderates the relationship between accountants’ Moral development and their willingness to report violations to external authorities. Discussion and Conclusion The growing prevalence of financial wrongdoings and the serious consequences they entail for organizations has led to the increasing expansion of research on whistleblowing. The results of several surveys by ACFE consistently indicate that whistleblowing is an effective mechanism for unearthing and preventing financial wrongdoings (ACFE, 2012, 2014, 2016, 2018, 2020). So far, the effect of various factors on whistleblowing intention has been investigated. However, to our knowledge, there has been no study that incorporates social learning theory, social role theory, gender socialization theory, and Moral development theory into the study of whistleblowing intention. The present study investigated the effect of accountants’ level of moral development on their whistleblowing intentions while examining the moderating role of gender on that relationship. This study not only investigated the effect of Moral development on whistleblowing intention, but also examined whether gender plays a mediating role in the relationship between Moral development and whistleblowing both to internal and external authorities. The results presented in Table 7, while confirming the first and second hypotheses of the research, show that accountants’ level of Moral development affects their intention to report financial wrongdoings to authorities inside or outside the organization. Individuals with higher levels of moral development and reasoning are more likely to comply with social contracts and group rules and norms, and the prevailing assumption is that an individuals with high levels of Moral development want to be good members of the group or society. For this reason, these individuals quickly come oppose any violation of the law and are more likely to report wrongdoings to internal and/or external authorities. The results also indicate that gender moderates the relationship between accountants’ Moral development and their intention to report wrongdoings to external authorities. This can be explained using the social role theory, which proposes that the role defined by the society for each gender can be an important factor in an individual’s moral decisions. Based on the present findings, it can be argued that the basic theories of behavioral sciences and psychology are useful for explaining accountants’ whistleblowing intentions. Corruption has been a major global concern for stakeholders of organizations and officials, and highlights the need to pay more attention to morality and ethical standards. Organizations need to create a culture that is conducive to ethical behavior by accounting professionals, especially by encouraging whistleblowing, while taking into account various factors such as gender differences that affect whistleblowing intentions. By developing special motivational strategies that take into account gender differences, organizations can take steps to increase the propensity of accountants to report financial wrongdoings. It is also necessary for organizations to consider the level of moral development and reasoning of accountants when recruiting and assigning them to different positions. Given the differences in the Moral development of male and female accountants, training programs can be tailored to each gender and use concrete examples of financial scandals around the world to promote ethical behavior. Organizations should also develop and implement policies, procedures, and mechanisms that support whistleblowing, including confidential hotlines and highlight whistleblowing as an effective mechanism for promoting ethical values in training programs and the code of ethics. In addition, organizations can use incentivize employees to report wrongdoings, while preventing any retaliation against whistleblowers. It must be noted that the present study has some limitations. A clear example is the limitation is the use of a hypothetical scenario to measure the research variables. In general, the use of questionnaires has inherent limitations, including the unfamiliarity of participants with the subject, insufficient participation by qualified individuals, different interpretation of the questionnaire items, and response bias among some participants.

https://jaa.shirazu.ac.ir/article_6418_5fbcbe82fb5268b6c4c8c952ec683d9e.pdf

Shiraz University Journal of Accounting Advances 2008-9988 13 1 2021 04 21 Modeling Financial Reporting Bias Modeling Financial Reporting Bias 161 189 6297 10.22099/jaa.2021.39693.2103 FA Sahar Sepasi Tarbiat Modares University Hossein Etemadi Accounting, Management, and Economics, Tarbiat Modares University Faezeh Pasandidehfard MA in Accounting Tarbiat Modares University Journal Article 2021 03 07 Introduction: The increasing in number and variety of fraud and error in the financial reporting system is a threat to the quality of the system. The duty of the accounting profession is to prepare and provide financial information and reports to users. The presence of fraud as a financial crisis factor poses a serious threat to public confidence in financial information and financial reporting process and has costly consequences for various groups. Research questions: The purpose of this study is to investigate and identify the factors affecting financial reporting bias (fraud and error) and to provide a model for it. therefore, the research questions are as follows: What are the factors affecting financial reporting bias? How to prioritize identified factors over financial reporting bias? What model can be presented to explain the factors that influence financial reporting bias? Methods: In this study, using random sampling method and through interviews with experts such as university faculty and managers of the audit organization, as well as using Shannon entropy analysis to evaluate the information obtained from interviews, factors affecting the occurrence financial reporting errors have been investigated. Also, in the following and after distribution of questionnaires, final analysis was performed through the structural equation method and at the end, the final model of research was designed. Finding: In this study, by identifying a model for financial reporting bias, the components that have the most impact on the occurrence of fraud and error in financial reporting were identified. The factors such as corporate structural characteristics, legal and regulatory factors and also corporate environmental characteristics are the most effective factors for the occurrence of error in financial reports. Discussion and Conclusion: Based on the results of the study, it is suggested that auditors and financial managers of companies, use the proposed model presented in this research to identify as well as discover the factors that influence the occurrence of financial reporting bias (fraud and error). Auditors and corporate executives can reduce fraud and error in companies by studying these factors, and trying to eliminate them or improve control and supervision practices. Introduction: The increasing in number and variety of fraud and error in the financial reporting system is a threat to the quality of the system. The duty of the accounting profession is to prepare and provide financial information and reports to users. The presence of fraud as a financial crisis factor poses a serious threat to public confidence in financial information and financial reporting process and has costly consequences for various groups. Research questions: The purpose of this study is to investigate and identify the factors affecting financial reporting bias (fraud and error) and to provide a model for it. therefore, the research questions are as follows: What are the factors affecting financial reporting bias? How to prioritize identified factors over financial reporting bias? What model can be presented to explain the factors that influence financial reporting bias? Methods: In this study, using random sampling method and through interviews with experts such as university faculty and managers of the audit organization, as well as using Shannon entropy analysis to evaluate the information obtained from interviews, factors affecting the occurrence financial reporting errors have been investigated. Also, in the following and after distribution of questionnaires, final analysis was performed through the structural equation method and at the end, the final model of research was designed. Finding: In this study, by identifying a model for financial reporting bias, the components that have the most impact on the occurrence of fraud and error in financial reporting were identified. The factors such as corporate structural characteristics, legal and regulatory factors and also corporate environmental characteristics are the most effective factors for the occurrence of error in financial reports. Discussion and Conclusion: Based on the results of the study, it is suggested that auditors and financial managers of companies, use the proposed model presented in this research to identify as well as discover the factors that influence the occurrence of financial reporting bias (fraud and error). Auditors and corporate executives can reduce fraud and error in companies by studying these factors, and trying to eliminate them or improve control and supervision practices.

https://jaa.shirazu.ac.ir/article_6297_3d016ee588bf339efaa66e66c8130114.pdf

Shiraz University Journal of Accounting Advances 2008-9988 13 1 2021 04 21 Audit Fee Model in Iran: First Evidence from a Mixed Method Audit Fee Model in Iran: First Evidence from a Mixed Method 191 224 6346 10.22099/jaa.2021.40339.2125 FA Ghazal Sadat Sadraei Department of Accounting,Qom Branch, Islamic Azad University, Qom, Iran Fakhroddin MohammadRezaei Accounting Department, Faculty of Finance, Kharazmi University, Tehran, Iran Reza Gholami Jamkarani Accounting PhD, Department of Accounting, Qom Branch, Islamic Azad University, Qom, Iran. Omid Faraji Department of Accounting, Faculty of Management and Accounting, College of Farabi, University of Tehran, Qom, Iran Journal Article 2021 04 13 Introduction: Audit quality and consequently financial reporting quality is subject to appropriate level of fees paid to auditors (Francis, 2004). Low audit fees is one the significant challenges of the audit profession in Iran (MohammadRezaei et al., 2015). Audit fee has attracted the attention of researchers and regulators in both Iran and other countries. However, the review of empirical research about the audit fee model in Iran reveals that most of these studies suffer from several methodological issues such as omitted correlated variable bias (MohammadRezaei and Faraji, 2019). Hence, the present study is going to provide a model about determinants of audit fee in Iran through employing a mixed method. Literature review: Simonic (1980) considers audit fee as a function of audit costs and profit. There are two streams of archival research about audit fees. The older and broader stream is a continuation of previous models but with the aim of quickly identifying new variables that affect audit fees and possibly audit costs such as investigating the effect of the audit market structure (Gunn et al., 2019) and disclosure of audit fees (Averhals et al. 2020). The smaller, second stream uses information about audit work hours to estimate production performance or compare audit performance. In Iran, there is also considerable evidence about determinants of audit fees (such as, Nikhbakhat and Tanani, 2010: MohammadRezaei et al., 2018). Comparison of these studies with the meta-analysis of Hay et al (2006) reveals that the studies suffer from three main methodological issues including omitted correlated variables bias, self- selection bias (endogeniety) and a lack of attention to the different market structure of private and state auditors. Research method: Through a close reading of the previous literature, variables affecting the audit fee were identified and based on it, a semi-structured interview with 15 audit partners and managers was conducted. Based on factors affecting audit fee identified through coding and content analysis of the interviews, a questionnaire was designed and data were collected through survey responses from 90 certified auditors. Findings: The coding and content analysis of the interviews reveals four codes and 30 themes. In addition, through factor analysis of data obtained from survey responses, the variables affecting audit fees were identified and classified into four groups, including factors related to the client, the auditor, the audit engagement and other factors (lobbying). More specifically, client-related factors include six components and 23 variables, auditor-related factors include four variables, audit engagement factors contain two components and 12 variables and finally lobbying factors include four variables. Conclusion: This study indicates that the determinants of audit fee in Iran can be different from those highlighted by prior studies in international era (e.g., lobbying, audit fees in last year and interim fees). Moreover, the present study highlights some of the significant determinants of audit fee model in Iran (e.g., audit qualification paragraph in relation to insurance and tax) that have not been captured by prior qualitative and quantitative research from the setting. This study opens a rich avenue for future studies in Iran about audit fees to overcome methodological issues such as omitted correlated variable bias. In addition, the findings of this study can be interesting for auditors and oversight bodies in Iran. Introduction: Audit quality and consequently financial reporting quality is subject to appropriate level of fees paid to auditors (Francis, 2004). Low audit fees is one the significant challenges of the audit profession in Iran (MohammadRezaei et al., 2015). Audit fee has attracted the attention of researchers and regulators in both Iran and other countries. However, the review of empirical research about the audit fee model in Iran reveals that most of these studies suffer from several methodological issues such as omitted correlated variable bias (MohammadRezaei and Faraji, 2019). Hence, the present study is going to provide a model about determinants of audit fee in Iran through employing a mixed method. Literature review: Simonic (1980) considers audit fee as a function of audit costs and profit. There are two streams of archival research about audit fees. The older and broader stream is a continuation of previous models but with the aim of quickly identifying new variables that affect audit fees and possibly audit costs such as investigating the effect of the audit market structure (Gunn et al., 2019) and disclosure of audit fees (Averhals et al. 2020). The smaller, second stream uses information about audit work hours to estimate production performance or compare audit performance. In Iran, there is also considerable evidence about determinants of audit fees (such as, Nikhbakhat and Tanani, 2010: MohammadRezaei et al., 2018). Comparison of these studies with the meta-analysis of Hay et al (2006) reveals that the studies suffer from three main methodological issues including omitted correlated variables bias, self- selection bias (endogeniety) and a lack of attention to the different market structure of private and state auditors. Research method: Through a close reading of the previous literature, variables affecting the audit fee were identified and based on it, a semi-structured interview with 15 audit partners and managers was conducted. Based on factors affecting audit fee identified through coding and content analysis of the interviews, a questionnaire was designed and data were collected through survey responses from 90 certified auditors. Findings: The coding and content analysis of the interviews reveals four codes and 30 themes. In addition, through factor analysis of data obtained from survey responses, the variables affecting audit fees were identified and classified into four groups, including factors related to the client, the auditor, the audit engagement and other factors (lobbying). More specifically, client-related factors include six components and 23 variables, auditor-related factors include four variables, audit engagement factors contain two components and 12 variables and finally lobbying factors include four variables. Conclusion: This study indicates that the determinants of audit fee in Iran can be different from those highlighted by prior studies in international era (e.g., lobbying, audit fees in last year and interim fees). Moreover, the present study highlights some of the significant determinants of audit fee model in Iran (e.g., audit qualification paragraph in relation to insurance and tax) that have not been captured by prior qualitative and quantitative research from the setting. This study opens a rich avenue for future studies in Iran about audit fees to overcome methodological issues such as omitted correlated variable bias. In addition, the findings of this study can be interesting for auditors and oversight bodies in Iran.

https://jaa.shirazu.ac.ir/article_6346_32a6a5f89211de84533ce5b300767973.pdf

Shiraz University Journal of Accounting Advances 2008-9988 13 1 2021 04 21 Providing a model of relationship between factors affecting the level of disclosure of environmental, social and economic information of companies and information asymmetry based on positive accounting theories with the industry impact approach Providing a model of relationship between factors affecting the level of disclosure of environmental, social and economic information of companies and information asymmetry based on positive accounting theories with the industry impact approach 225 260 6407 10.22099/jaa.2021.40698.2134 FA Farnaz Ziya Accounting Department,kish International Branch,Islamic Azad University ,Kish Island,Iran.farnazzi@yahoo.com Hamid Reza Vakilifard Associate Professor, Department of Accounting and Financial Management, Science and Research Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran Fatemeh Sarraf college faculty member Journal Article 2021 05 18 1.Introduction In order to change the business environment and move towards sustainable development goals, companies must consider maximizing social justice, environmental quality and economic prosperity for all their stakeholders in society and information. Reveal their performance in this regard. On the other hand, one of the problems of the capital market, which will lead to the risk of moral abuse, undesirable selection and uncertainty in the market, is the inequality of information between domestic and foreign stakeholders due to differences in access to this information, which is essentially confidential. . In this study, the importance of disclosure of the mentioned information, the impact of industry on the level of disclosure, has been investigated. They have been evaluated and measured. Hypotheses H1: Disclosure of companies' social information is effective in reducing information asymmetry. H2: Disclosure of companies' environmental information is effective in reducing information asymmetry. H3: Disclosure of companies' economic information is effective in reducing information asymmetry. H4: The level of disclosure of companies' social information is significantly different in different industries. H5: The level of disclosure of environmental information of companies in different industries is significantly different. H6: The level of disclosure of economic information of companies has significant differences in different industries. 3.Research Method This research is of theoretical-applied type. The performance information of 76 companies listed on the Tehran Stock Exchange from six selected industries selected by screening has been reviewed in the period 2011-2018. To test the hypotheses of this research, combined linear regression test and analysis of variance have been used. Results The results of regression test for the first to third hypotheses of the study showed that disclosure of information in the field of social responsibility, environmental and economic of companies is effective in reducing information asymmetry. Also, based on the results of analysis of variance for the fourth to sixth hypotheses of this study, the level of information disclosure of companies in the field of social responsibility and environmental in different industries is different. Discussion and Conclusion Based on the results of analysis of variance, the level of disclosure of environmental and social information under the influence of industry has been significantly different; Economic information is disclosed at almost the same level in all industries. Also, the results of regression test showed that information disclosure in the mentioned areas has led to a reduction in information asymmetry. 1.Introduction In order to change the business environment and move towards sustainable development goals, companies must consider maximizing social justice, environmental quality and economic prosperity for all their stakeholders in society and information. Reveal their performance in this regard. On the other hand, one of the problems of the capital market, which will lead to the risk of moral abuse, undesirable selection and uncertainty in the market, is the inequality of information between domestic and foreign stakeholders due to differences in access to this information, which is essentially confidential. . In this study, the importance of disclosure of the mentioned information, the impact of industry on the level of disclosure, has been investigated. They have been evaluated and measured. Hypotheses H1: Disclosure of companies' social information is effective in reducing information asymmetry. H2: Disclosure of companies' environmental information is effective in reducing information asymmetry. H3: Disclosure of companies' economic information is effective in reducing information asymmetry. H4: The level of disclosure of companies' social information is significantly different in different industries. H5: The level of disclosure of environmental information of companies in different industries is significantly different. H6: The level of disclosure of economic information of companies has significant differences in different industries. 3.Research Method This research is of theoretical-applied type. The performance information of 76 companies listed on the Tehran Stock Exchange from six selected industries selected by screening has been reviewed in the period 2011-2018. To test the hypotheses of this research, combined linear regression test and analysis of variance have been used. Results The results of regression test for the first to third hypotheses of the study showed that disclosure of information in the field of social responsibility, environmental and economic of companies is effective in reducing information asymmetry. Also, based on the results of analysis of variance for the fourth to sixth hypotheses of this study, the level of information disclosure of companies in the field of social responsibility and environmental in different industries is different. Discussion and Conclusion Based on the results of analysis of variance, the level of disclosure of environmental and social information under the influence of industry has been significantly different; Economic information is disclosed at almost the same level in all industries. Also, the results of regression test showed that information disclosure in the mentioned areas has led to a reduction in information asymmetry.

https://jaa.shirazu.ac.ir/article_6407_71a50e7a650d990bd8f5f23301262c1a.pdf

Shiraz University Journal of Accounting Advances 2008-9988 13 1 2021 04 21 Comparison of the ability of AdaBoost machine learning algorithm to explain the accrual anomaly using arbitrage pricing model, capital asset pricing model and Fama-French five-factor model Comparison of the ability of AdaBoost machine learning algorithm to explain the accrual anomaly using arbitrage pricing model, capital asset pricing model and Fama-French five-factor model 261 298 6446 10.22099/jaa.2021.40008.2110 FA Sedighe Azizi Assistant Professor of Accounting, Islamic Azad University, Baft Branch, Baft, Iran. Hossein Jokar Ph.D. Student of Accounting, Shiraz University, Shiraz, Iran. Journal Article 2021 03 10 Introduction Purpose of research is investigating the effect of accrual anomaly on stock return short arbitrage financial model and capital asset pricing by using a neural network. Bankruptcy of companies is one of the ways that leads to wasting resources and not taking advantage of investment opportunities. Predicting financial distress can alert companies to the occurrence of financial distress and subsequent bankruptcy with the necessary warnings so that they can take appropriate action according to these warnings and investors can take advantage of unfavorable opportunities. Recognize and invest their resources in the right opportunities and places. One way to predict the continuity of corporate activity is to use models to predict financial distress; Therefore, the main purpose of this study is to predict the financial distress of companies based on working capital management using artificial neural network. Research questions Considering that no coherent research has been done in the field of forecasting financial distress of companies based on working capital management using neural networks method, this research can be an introduction to identify the impact of the role of capital management in Circulation, in order to find solutions to increase the continuity of the company; Therefore, the main questions that this study seeks to answer are as follows. What is the accuracy of predicting companies' financial distress using artificial neural network method based on working capital management variable? How accurate are artificial neural network models, decision tree, support vector machine, multiple audit analysis, and logistic regression in predicting corporate financial distress? Methods In order to achieve the purpose of the research, samples consisting of 120 companies listed on the Tehran Stock Exchange during the period 2008-2019 have been studied. In this study, the hypotheses have been tested using the AdaBoost machine learning algorithm, and sales arbitrage pricing models, capital asset pricing model, and Fama-French five-factor model have been used to analyze the anomalies of accruals. Results In this research after the testing of research hypotheses we got this result, if the effect of accrual anomaly on stock returns is considered, the risks of arbitrage pricing models, capital asset pricing model and the Fama and French five-factor model will be reduced and thus closer to the real stock price. This will increase the return and confidence of investors. The results of comparing the three models based on AdaBoost machine learning algorithm showed that the development of Fama-French five-factor model reduces the neural network training error with AdaBoost algorithm to a greater extent than arbitrage pricing models and capital asset pricing model. In explaining the abnormality of items, it has an obligation on stock returns. This result shows the effectiveness of the inclusion of accruals in the securities pricing models. In other words, the addition of anomalies of accruals to arbitrage financial models, capital asset pricing model, and the Fama-French five-factor model leads to an improvement in stock returns. Discussion and Conclusion Investors should distinguish between the stability of profit components (cash and accrual) when valuing companies. The disregard of this difference has made investors optimistic about the future performance of companies when the Firm-Specific Discretionary Accruals is high, and pessimistic about the future of companies when Firm-Specific Discretionary Accruals is low. So, the purpose of testing the first research hypothesis is to investigate the effect of adding accruals anomalies to stock returns of the financial arbitrage sales model; Therefore, using the Adabost machine learning algorithm, the expected return and the actual return have been calculated to determine its impact on market indicators. For this purpose, calculations have been performed without the anomalous effect of accruals. The test results of the first hypothesis showed that the percentage of accuracy and prediction of expected return has multiple errors. Then, calculations were performed based on the effect of accrual anomalies on market indices. The result of these calculations showed a reduction in errors in expected returns. The results of the second hypothesis showed that the addition of anomalies of accruals to the capital asset pricing model in assessing stock returns increases the predictive power of the model. This finding indicates that accruals have informational value. And plays an important role in the stock price valuation process; Because it reduces the scheduling problems and the lack of conformity in the cash figures. The purpose of testing the third hypothesis of the research is to investigate the effect of adding accruals anomalies to the stock returns of the Fama and French five-factor model. The results of testing the third hypothesis showed that adding anomalies of accruals to the capital asset pricing model in assessing stock returns increases the predictive power of the model. In general, the results of the third hypothesis of the research indicate that investors in the processing of accounting information, especially accruals and consequently the valuation of corporate stocks, are faced with incorrect pricing. The purpose of testing the fourth hypothesis of the research is the ability of the five-factor model of Fama and French compared to the traditional model of arbitrage of sales and pricing of capital assets in explaining the anomalies of accruals. The results of the fourth hypothesis test showed that there is an anomaly in accruals on the Tehran Stock Exchange and this anomaly is better explained by the five-factor model of Fama and Farang. For example, the real rate of return in 1387 is equal to 29.103, the projected rate of return after adding the anomaly of accruals to the arbitrage model of 021/28; The projected rate of return after adding the anomaly of accruals to the capital asset pricing model is 25.471; If the projected rate of return after adding the anomaly of accruals to the five factors of Fama and French is equal to 30.221. This trend continues in the same way for the rest of the years under study, and indicates that the predictability of the Fama and French five-factor model is greater than the arbitrage model and pricing of capital assets. Keywords: Accrual Anomaly, Arbitrage Pricing Model, Capital Assets Pricing Model, Fama-French Five-Factor Model Introduction Purpose of research is investigating the effect of accrual anomaly on stock return short arbitrage financial model and capital asset pricing by using a neural network. Bankruptcy of companies is one of the ways that leads to wasting resources and not taking advantage of investment opportunities. Predicting financial distress can alert companies to the occurrence of financial distress and subsequent bankruptcy with the necessary warnings so that they can take appropriate action according to these warnings and investors can take advantage of unfavorable opportunities. Recognize and invest their resources in the right opportunities and places. One way to predict the continuity of corporate activity is to use models to predict financial distress; Therefore, the main purpose of this study is to predict the financial distress of companies based on working capital management using artificial neural network. Research questions Considering that no coherent research has been done in the field of forecasting financial distress of companies based on working capital management using neural networks method, this research can be an introduction to identify the impact of the role of capital management in Circulation, in order to find solutions to increase the continuity of the company; Therefore, the main questions that this study seeks to answer are as follows. What is the accuracy of predicting companies' financial distress using artificial neural network method based on working capital management variable? How accurate are artificial neural network models, decision tree, support vector machine, multiple audit analysis, and logistic regression in predicting corporate financial distress? Methods In order to achieve the purpose of the research, samples consisting of 120 companies listed on the Tehran Stock Exchange during the period 2008-2019 have been studied. In this study, the hypotheses have been tested using the AdaBoost machine learning algorithm, and sales arbitrage pricing models, capital asset pricing model, and Fama-French five-factor model have been used to analyze the anomalies of accruals. Results In this research after the testing of research hypotheses we got this result, if the effect of accrual anomaly on stock returns is considered, the risks of arbitrage pricing models, capital asset pricing model and the Fama and French five-factor model will be reduced and thus closer to the real stock price. This will increase the return and confidence of investors. The results of comparing the three models based on AdaBoost machine learning algorithm showed that the development of Fama-French five-factor model reduces the neural network training error with AdaBoost algorithm to a greater extent than arbitrage pricing models and capital asset pricing model. In explaining the abnormality of items, it has an obligation on stock returns. This result shows the effectiveness of the inclusion of accruals in the securities pricing models. In other words, the addition of anomalies of accruals to arbitrage financial models, capital asset pricing model, and the Fama-French five-factor model leads to an improvement in stock returns. Discussion and Conclusion Investors should distinguish between the stability of profit components (cash and accrual) when valuing companies. The disregard of this difference has made investors optimistic about the future performance of companies when the Firm-Specific Discretionary Accruals is high, and pessimistic about the future of companies when Firm-Specific Discretionary Accruals is low. So, the purpose of testing the first research hypothesis is to investigate the effect of adding accruals anomalies to stock returns of the financial arbitrage sales model; Therefore, using the Adabost machine learning algorithm, the expected return and the actual return have been calculated to determine its impact on market indicators. For this purpose, calculations have been performed without the anomalous effect of accruals. The test results of the first hypothesis showed that the percentage of accuracy and prediction of expected return has multiple errors. Then, calculations were performed based on the effect of accrual anomalies on market indices. The result of these calculations showed a reduction in errors in expected returns. The results of the second hypothesis showed that the addition of anomalies of accruals to the capital asset pricing model in assessing stock returns increases the predictive power of the model. This finding indicates that accruals have informational value. And plays an important role in the stock price valuation process; Because it reduces the scheduling problems and the lack of conformity in the cash figures. The purpose of testing the third hypothesis of the research is to investigate the effect of adding accruals anomalies to the stock returns of the Fama and French five-factor model. The results of testing the third hypothesis showed that adding anomalies of accruals to the capital asset pricing model in assessing stock returns increases the predictive power of the model. In general, the results of the third hypothesis of the research indicate that investors in the processing of accounting information, especially accruals and consequently the valuation of corporate stocks, are faced with incorrect pricing. The purpose of testing the fourth hypothesis of the research is the ability of the five-factor model of Fama and French compared to the traditional model of arbitrage of sales and pricing of capital assets in explaining the anomalies of accruals. The results of the fourth hypothesis test showed that there is an anomaly in accruals on the Tehran Stock Exchange and this anomaly is better explained by the five-factor model of Fama and Farang. For example, the real rate of return in 1387 is equal to 29.103, the projected rate of return after adding the anomaly of accruals to the arbitrage model of 021/28; The projected rate of return after adding the anomaly of accruals to the capital asset pricing model is 25.471; If the projected rate of return after adding the anomaly of accruals to the five factors of Fama and French is equal to 30.221. This trend continues in the same way for the rest of the years under study, and indicates that the predictability of the Fama and French five-factor model is greater than the arbitrage model and pricing of capital assets. Keywords: Accrual Anomaly, Arbitrage Pricing Model, Capital Assets Pricing Model, Fama-French Five-Factor Model

https://jaa.shirazu.ac.ir/article_6446_95c82af90ff5eab879f93add53c9c548.pdf

Shiraz University Journal of Accounting Advances 2008-9988 13 1 2021 04 21 The Effect of CEO's financial knowledge on Audit Quality: Considering the Moderating Effect of Managerial Ability CEO's financial knowledge The Effect of CEO's financial knowledge on Audit Quality: Considering the Moderating Effect of Managerial Ability CEO's financial knowledge 299 334 6427 10.22099/jaa.2021.41488.2166 FA Bahram Ghanizadeh Department of Accounting, Faculty of Isfahan (Khorasgan) Branch, Islamic Azad University, Isfahan, Iran Mohsen Dastgir Department of Accounting, Isfahan (Khorasgan) Branch, Islamic Azad University, Isfahan, Iran Afsaneh Soroushyar Department of Accounting, Faculty of Isfahan (Khorasgan) Branch, Islamic Azad University, Isfahan, Iran Journal Article 2021 08 16 Introduction: In the new era, the financial, administrative and operational activities of economic enterprises in the world have turned complex, extensive and, at the same time, knowledge-based, and relied on professional management. Leading, directing and controlling these companies in the third millennium require specialized managers with financial knowledge and high intellectual capabilities. The diversity and complexity of production and the expansion of geographical operations have increased the issue of separation of ownership and management more than ever. The need for CEOs with financial knowledge and managers with more capabilities to be profitable and to transmit quality and reliable economic information for rational decision-making is felt more than ever. On the other hand, certain factors such as the need to increase internal controls, improving the quality of financial reporting, the need for consistent financial reporting, improve audit quality, reducing information risk, creating value for the firm and the need for tax avoidance, explain why companies need managers with financial knowledge and higher capabilities. Due to the important and influential role of managers in the new era on the quality of economic reports, profitability and sustainability of companies, some new researches in the field of accounting have examined the impact of management factors, such as financial knowledge of CEOs and management ability on other accounting and auditing variables. Financial experts play an important and vital role in creating internal controls, making optimal financial decisions, accounting policy, improving the quality and content of reporting information, tax avoidance, profitability and continuity of operations in national and transnational markets. While increasing the quality of audit report, promoting the quality of financial statement reduce fee, time and auditing cost and abnormal auditing fees. This process also improves the quality of reports transmitted to the money and capital markets, reduces audit and information risk, and improves the rational decisions of investors. The personal features of CEOs including their financial knowledge and ability might affect their organizationl behavior and decision making and increase the profitability, flexibility, stability and transparency of financial reporting. This is why, such executives could be called superstars. Research questions and hypotheses: Base the above points, the important question is whether managerial factors such as the financial knowledge of the CEO and their ability affect other accounting and auditing variables, such as audit quality or not. According to the materials presented in the introductory sections, theoretical foundations and research background, three hypotheses have been proposed and evaluated. Hypothesis 1: Financial knowledge of CEOs has a positive and significant effect on audit quality. Hypothesis 2: Management ability to have a positive and significant effect on audit quality. Hypothesis 3: Management has reinforced the relation between Financial CEO knowledge and audit quality. Research Methods: The present reseach injoys the statistical population including all companies listed on the Tehran Stock Exchange.The statistical sample covers 147 companies seselcted by the systematic elimination method from 2011 to 2020. In this study, the model of Gounopoulos and Pham (2018) was used to estimate the financial knowledge of CEOs, the model of Demarjian et al. (2013) was used to estimate the management ability, and the model of Chi Lin et al. (2016) was used to calculate the audit quality. Also, to test the research hypotheses, combined data and multivariate regression using the generalized least squares method have been employed. Results: The results show that the CEO's financial knowledge and managerial ability affect audit quality both positively and significantl while the study’s other result reveals that Managerial ability has no significant effect on the relationship between CEO's financial knowledge and audit quality. Discussion and Conclusion: The first result of this study showed that having a university degree of CEO in the fields of accounting, auditing, financial management, management, banking and other fields related to financial management and accounting, can affect the quality of auditing. This impact is due to promoted internal controls, increased quality and content of financial reporting information, as well as increased quality characteristics of financial statements. This process ultimately improves the quality of information and audit reports and increases the public's reliance on audited information for decision-making by investors and other stakeholders. The second achievement of the research indicated that the ability of company managers can have the same results to improve the quality of auditing. Another result of the study was that managerial Ability does not have a significant effect on the relationship between CEO financial knowledge and audit quality. This result indicates that if in a company both features are used simultaneously with each other, it cannot increase the quality of the audit. Introduction: In the new era, the financial, administrative and operational activities of economic enterprises in the world have turned complex, extensive and, at the same time, knowledge-based, and relied on professional management. Leading, directing and controlling these companies in the third millennium require specialized managers with financial knowledge and high intellectual capabilities. The diversity and complexity of production and the expansion of geographical operations have increased the issue of separation of ownership and management more than ever. The need for CEOs with financial knowledge and managers with more capabilities to be profitable and to transmit quality and reliable economic information for rational decision-making is felt more than ever. On the other hand, certain factors such as the need to increase internal controls, improving the quality of financial reporting, the need for consistent financial reporting, improve audit quality, reducing information risk, creating value for the firm and the need for tax avoidance, explain why companies need managers with financial knowledge and higher capabilities. Due to the important and influential role of managers in the new era on the quality of economic reports, profitability and sustainability of companies, some new researches in the field of accounting have examined the impact of management factors, such as financial knowledge of CEOs and management ability on other accounting and auditing variables. Financial experts play an important and vital role in creating internal controls, making optimal financial decisions, accounting policy, improving the quality and content of reporting information, tax avoidance, profitability and continuity of operations in national and transnational markets. While increasing the quality of audit report, promoting the quality of financial statement reduce fee, time and auditing cost and abnormal auditing fees. This process also improves the quality of reports transmitted to the money and capital markets, reduces audit and information risk, and improves the rational decisions of investors. The personal features of CEOs including their financial knowledge and ability might affect their organizationl behavior and decision making and increase the profitability, flexibility, stability and transparency of financial reporting. This is why, such executives could be called superstars. Research questions and hypotheses: Base the above points, the important question is whether managerial factors such as the financial knowledge of the CEO and their ability affect other accounting and auditing variables, such as audit quality or not. According to the materials presented in the introductory sections, theoretical foundations and research background, three hypotheses have been proposed and evaluated. Hypothesis 1: Financial knowledge of CEOs has a positive and significant effect on audit quality. Hypothesis 2: Management ability to have a positive and significant effect on audit quality. Hypothesis 3: Management has reinforced the relation between Financial CEO knowledge and audit quality. Research Methods: The present reseach injoys the statistical population including all companies listed on the Tehran Stock Exchange.The statistical sample covers 147 companies seselcted by the systematic elimination method from 2011 to 2020. In this study, the model of Gounopoulos and Pham (2018) was used to estimate the financial knowledge of CEOs, the model of Demarjian et al. (2013) was used to estimate the management ability, and the model of Chi Lin et al. (2016) was used to calculate the audit quality. Also, to test the research hypotheses, combined data and multivariate regression using the generalized least squares method have been employed. Results: The results show that the CEO's financial knowledge and managerial ability affect audit quality both positively and significantl while the study’s other result reveals that Managerial ability has no significant effect on the relationship between CEO's financial knowledge and audit quality. Discussion and Conclusion: The first result of this study showed that having a university degree of CEO in the fields of accounting, auditing, financial management, management, banking and other fields related to financial management and accounting, can affect the quality of auditing. This impact is due to promoted internal controls, increased quality and content of financial reporting information, as well as increased quality characteristics of financial statements. This process ultimately improves the quality of information and audit reports and increases the public's reliance on audited information for decision-making by investors and other stakeholders. The second achievement of the research indicated that the ability of company managers can have the same results to improve the quality of auditing. Another result of the study was that managerial Ability does not have a significant effect on the relationship between CEO financial knowledge and audit quality. This result indicates that if in a company both features are used simultaneously with each other, it cannot increase the quality of the audit.

https://jaa.shirazu.ac.ir/article_6427_7269a1afd97cb259ad224e1a96ad52f6.pdf

Shiraz University Journal of Accounting Advances 2008-9988 13 1 2021 04 21 Investigating the usefulness of Relief and correlation variable selection methods in predicting and identifying optimal predictor variables affecting aggressive tax policy Investigating the usefulness of Relief and correlation variable selection methods in predicting and identifying optimal predictor variables affecting aggressive tax policy 335 377 6256 10.22099/jaa.2021.40567.2132 FA Hashem Kavianifard Ph.D. Student of Accounting, Department of Accounting, Yasooj Branch, Islamic Azad University, Yasooj, Iran Shokrollah Khajavi Professor, Department of Accounting, University of Shiraz, Shiraz, Iran (Corresponding Author) Fariborz Avazzadeh Fath Assistant professor, Department of Accounting, Gachsaran Branch, Islamic Azad University, Gachsaran, Iran Journal Article 2021 05 05 Introduction The main issue in this research is the study of factors affecting aggressive tax policy and also modeling the factors affecting aggressive tax policy. The present study seeks to provide empirical evidence to compare the performance of methods such as correlation-based methods and relief with other models before reducing the variables in predicting aggressive tax policy criteria of companies listed on the Tehran Stock Exchange. In this regard, the usefulness of correlation and relief methods for selecting optimal predictor variables was also investigated and compared. Hypotheses The purpose of this study is to investigate the performance of relief and correlation-based linear methods in predicting the optimal predictor variables affecting aggressive tax policy. According to this aim and the theoretical foundations, the research hypotheses were formulated as follows: Hypothesis 1: There is a significant difference between the predictive performance of aggressive tax policy using optimally selected predictor variables and the use of all predictor variables. Hypothesis 2: There is a significant difference between the usefulness of variable selection methods in predicting aggressive corporate tax policy. Method For this purpose, data related to 108 companies listed on the Tehran Stock Exchange for the period between 1389 to 1397 were used. The fixed effects pattern regression method was evaluated and tested using the panel data method. The sample includes 108 companies that were selected by elimination method (screening). The data were first sorted and classified in Excel software and then analyzed using EVIEWS software. Also, relief and correlation-based methods were used using VEKA software to select the optimal independent variables affecting taxation Results The results of testing the first hypothesis showed that the error of the first and second types and the coefficient of determination for all primary variables and the correlation-based method and the relief method are equal to (0.080, 0.060 and 0.597), respectively (0.090, 0.064 and 0.511) and (0.089, 0.064 and 0.522) which indicate a significant difference between the methods of reducing the variable and all the main variables; As a result, the first hypothesis is confirmed. Also, the error of the first and second types and the coefficient of determination for variable reduction methods including: correlation-based method, and relief method are equal to (0.090, 0.064 and 0.511) and (0.089, 0.064, respectively). And 0.522) and shows that the usefulness of Relief method> is based on correlation method and therefore it can be said that among the methods of reducing the variable Relief method is better useful and thus the second hypothesis is confirmed. Discussion and Conclusion The purpose of this study is to model the factors affecting tax planning in companies listed on the Tehran Stock Exchange. In this study, the measure of aggressive tax policy has been used to measure tax planning. Also in this research, two methods of variable reduction including (correlation-based method and Relief method) have been used to reduce the research variables and select the optimal variables. The results indicate that there is a significant difference between estimating all research variables and using variable reduction methods. The results also show that the usefulness of Relief method in modeling the factors affecting aggressive tax policy is more than the correlation method. In addition, the results indicate that among the factors affecting various tax criteria, the uncertainty of macroeconomic variables have a positive and significant effect on aggressive tax policy; In addition, the results showed that the uncertainty of macroeconomic variables has a positive and significant effect and the factors of audit quality, product market competition, and the characteristics of CEOs have a significant and negative effect on aggressive tax policy. Introduction The main issue in this research is the study of factors affecting aggressive tax policy and also modeling the factors affecting aggressive tax policy. The present study seeks to provide empirical evidence to compare the performance of methods such as correlation-based methods and relief with other models before reducing the variables in predicting aggressive tax policy criteria of companies listed on the Tehran Stock Exchange. In this regard, the usefulness of correlation and relief methods for selecting optimal predictor variables was also investigated and compared. Hypotheses The purpose of this study is to investigate the performance of relief and correlation-based linear methods in predicting the optimal predictor variables affecting aggressive tax policy. According to this aim and the theoretical foundations, the research hypotheses were formulated as follows: Hypothesis 1: There is a significant difference between the predictive performance of aggressive tax policy using optimally selected predictor variables and the use of all predictor variables. Hypothesis 2: There is a significant difference between the usefulness of variable selection methods in predicting aggressive corporate tax policy. Method For this purpose, data related to 108 companies listed on the Tehran Stock Exchange for the period between 1389 to 1397 were used. The fixed effects pattern regression method was evaluated and tested using the panel data method. The sample includes 108 companies that were selected by elimination method (screening). The data were first sorted and classified in Excel software and then analyzed using EVIEWS software. Also, relief and correlation-based methods were used using VEKA software to select the optimal independent variables affecting taxation Results The results of testing the first hypothesis showed that the error of the first and second types and the coefficient of determination for all primary variables and the correlation-based method and the relief method are equal to (0.080, 0.060 and 0.597), respectively (0.090, 0.064 and 0.511) and (0.089, 0.064 and 0.522) which indicate a significant difference between the methods of reducing the variable and all the main variables; As a result, the first hypothesis is confirmed. Also, the error of the first and second types and the coefficient of determination for variable reduction methods including: correlation-based method, and relief method are equal to (0.090, 0.064 and 0.511) and (0.089, 0.064, respectively). And 0.522) and shows that the usefulness of Relief method> is based on correlation method and therefore it can be said that among the methods of reducing the variable Relief method is better useful and thus the second hypothesis is confirmed. Discussion and Conclusion The purpose of this study is to model the factors affecting tax planning in companies listed on the Tehran Stock Exchange. In this study, the measure of aggressive tax policy has been used to measure tax planning. Also in this research, two methods of variable reduction including (correlation-based method and Relief method) have been used to reduce the research variables and select the optimal variables. The results indicate that there is a significant difference between estimating all research variables and using variable reduction methods. The results also show that the usefulness of Relief method in modeling the factors affecting aggressive tax policy is more than the correlation method. In addition, the results indicate that among the factors affecting various tax criteria, the uncertainty of macroeconomic variables have a positive and significant effect on aggressive tax policy; In addition, the results showed that the uncertainty of macroeconomic variables has a positive and significant effect and the factors of audit quality, product market competition, and the characteristics of CEOs have a significant and negative effect on aggressive tax policy.

https://jaa.shirazu.ac.ir/article_6256_52f67787e66c80a4c718758a3700edc1.pdf

Shiraz University Journal of Accounting Advances 2008-9988 13 1 2021 04 21 The effect of Financial Statement Comparability on Value Relevance of Earning and Book value with Emphasis on Financial Reporting Opacity and Internal Control Weakness The effect of Financial Statement Comparability on Value Relevance of Earning and Book value with Emphasis on Financial Reporting Opacity and Internal Control Weakness 379 409 6409 10.22099/jaa.2021.41061.2147 FA Majid Hashemi Dehchi Assistant Prof, Department of accounting, Ragheb Isfahani Higher Education Institute, Isfahan, Iran Naser Izadinia Associate prof. Department of accounting, university of Isfahan, Isfahan, Iran (corresponding Amin Hajiannejad Assistant Prof. Department of accounting, university of Isfahan, Isfahan, Iran Journal Article 2021 06 28 Introduction Value relevance is studied in order to observe the role of accounting information in explaining the return on securities. Accounting information plays an important role when evaluating the future investors of companies in their investment decisions. In accounting studies, the statistical relationship between accounting information and stock prices is used to assess the degree of value relevance of accounting information to shareholders. Value relevance can be considered as the ability of one or more accounting figures to explain changes in returns and prices. Factors affecting the value of accounting information. One of these factors is the accounting comparability. Comparability is one of the quality-enhancing features of financial reporting that enables users to identify similarities and differences between a set of economic phenomena. The accounting comparability helps users of financial statements to better understand and evaluate the economic performance of a company compared to their peers. Accounting information enables investors to make informed trading decisions and therefore be included in stock prices. However, the usefulness of accounting information for investors depends entirely on the extent to which the information can be modeled on similar companies. The Accounting Standards Board believes that comparability can increase the relevance of accounting information and facilitate investors' evaluation of alternative investment opportunities. More comparability enriches a company's information environment by facilitating benchmarking and giving investors access to a wider range of industry and market information. This means that increasing the supply of information from comparable companies leads to a richer information environment and makes the financial statements of the parent company more informative for capital market participants. Increases the comparability of the quality of information provided in financial statements. Previous studies have shown that comparability improves the accuracy of financial information and makes it easier for market participants to evaluate fairly reported financial statements based on information from similar companies and reduce uncertainty about their accuracy. Ability to compare the cost of collecting and processing company-specific information. Because comparability reduces the cost of collecting and processing investor information, enables accurate and effective evaluation of financial information, increases the value relevance of accounting information. Also, when there is a financial reporting opacity and a Internal control weakness, the effect of accounting comparability on the value relevance of accounting information is reduced. In the absence of complete transparency in financial reporting, managers are given the opportunity to hide negative information within the company in order to maintain their job and professional reputation. When a company's information environment is opaque, the benefits of comparability of financial statements diminish because investors cannot make a reliable estimate of the numbers reported. Weak internal control weaknesses also cause investors to revise their assessments of the quality and accuracy of existing accounting information. Investors react negatively to the disclosure of internal control deficiencies. Accordingly, ineffective internal financial reporting controls reduce investors' confidence in financial information. Therefore, when internal controls are weak, the advantages of comparability of financial statements are reduced. The purpose of this study is to investigate the accounting comparability on value relevance of earning and book value due to the role of financial reporting opacity and internal control weakness. Research Hypothesis: Hypothesis 1: The accounting comparability has a positive effect on the value relevance of book value per share. Hypothesis 2: The accounting comparability has a positive effect on the value relevance of earnings per share. Hypothesis 3: Financial reporting opacity reduces the effect of accounting comparability on the value relevance of book value per share. Hypothesis 4: Financial reporting opacity reduces the effect of accounting comparability on the value relevance of earnings per share. Hypothesis 5: Internal control weakness reduces the effect of accounting comparability on the value relevance of book value per share. Hypothesis 6: Internal control weakness reduces the effect of accounting comparability on the value relevance of earnings per share. Methods: The statistical the population of this study are all companies listed in Tehran Stock Market, in which 102 companies in the period 2013 to 2020 have been selected by systematic elimination method. For data analysis and hypothesis testing, multivariate regression model based on compound data is used Result: The results of estimating the research model indicate that the accounting comparability has a positive and significant effect on the value relevance of book value and earnings per share. The findings also showed that when the opacity in financial reporting is high, the effect of accounting comparability on the value relevance of book value and earnings per share decreases. In addition, when there is a weakness in internal controls, the accounting comparability does not have a significant effect on the value relevance of book value and earnings per share. Discussion and Conclusion: In general, the findings of this study are consistent with the claim of the Financial Accounting Standards Board that the accounting comparability increases the usefulness of accounting information decision and allows investors to better evaluate investment opportunities. Introduction Value relevance is studied in order to observe the role of accounting information in explaining the return on securities. Accounting information plays an important role when evaluating the future investors of companies in their investment decisions. In accounting studies, the statistical relationship between accounting information and stock prices is used to assess the degree of value relevance of accounting information to shareholders. Value relevance can be considered as the ability of one or more accounting figures to explain changes in returns and prices. Factors affecting the value of accounting information. One of these factors is the accounting comparability. Comparability is one of the quality-enhancing features of financial reporting that enables users to identify similarities and differences between a set of economic phenomena. The accounting comparability helps users of financial statements to better understand and evaluate the economic performance of a company compared to their peers. Accounting information enables investors to make informed trading decisions and therefore be included in stock prices. However, the usefulness of accounting information for investors depends entirely on the extent to which the information can be modeled on similar companies. The Accounting Standards Board believes that comparability can increase the relevance of accounting information and facilitate investors' evaluation of alternative investment opportunities. More comparability enriches a company's information environment by facilitating benchmarking and giving investors access to a wider range of industry and market information. This means that increasing the supply of information from comparable companies leads to a richer information environment and makes the financial statements of the parent company more informative for capital market participants. Increases the comparability of the quality of information provided in financial statements. Previous studies have shown that comparability improves the accuracy of financial information and makes it easier for market participants to evaluate fairly reported financial statements based on information from similar companies and reduce uncertainty about their accuracy. Ability to compare the cost of collecting and processing company-specific information. Because comparability reduces the cost of collecting and processing investor information, enables accurate and effective evaluation of financial information, increases the value relevance of accounting information. Also, when there is a financial reporting opacity and a Internal control weakness, the effect of accounting comparability on the value relevance of accounting information is reduced. In the absence of complete transparency in financial reporting, managers are given the opportunity to hide negative information within the company in order to maintain their job and professional reputation. When a company's information environment is opaque, the benefits of comparability of financial statements diminish because investors cannot make a reliable estimate of the numbers reported. Weak internal control weaknesses also cause investors to revise their assessments of the quality and accuracy of existing accounting information. Investors react negatively to the disclosure of internal control deficiencies. Accordingly, ineffective internal financial reporting controls reduce investors' confidence in financial information. Therefore, when internal controls are weak, the advantages of comparability of financial statements are reduced. The purpose of this study is to investigate the accounting comparability on value relevance of earning and book value due to the role of financial reporting opacity and internal control weakness. Research Hypothesis: Hypothesis 1: The accounting comparability has a positive effect on the value relevance of book value per share. Hypothesis 2: The accounting comparability has a positive effect on the value relevance of earnings per share. Hypothesis 3: Financial reporting opacity reduces the effect of accounting comparability on the value relevance of book value per share. Hypothesis 4: Financial reporting opacity reduces the effect of accounting comparability on the value relevance of earnings per share. Hypothesis 5: Internal control weakness reduces the effect of accounting comparability on the value relevance of book value per share. Hypothesis 6: Internal control weakness reduces the effect of accounting comparability on the value relevance of earnings per share. Methods: The statistical the population of this study are all companies listed in Tehran Stock Market, in which 102 companies in the period 2013 to 2020 have been selected by systematic elimination method. For data analysis and hypothesis testing, multivariate regression model based on compound data is used Result: The results of estimating the research model indicate that the accounting comparability has a positive and significant effect on the value relevance of book value and earnings per share. The findings also showed that when the opacity in financial reporting is high, the effect of accounting comparability on the value relevance of book value and earnings per share decreases. In addition, when there is a weakness in internal controls, the accounting comparability does not have a significant effect on the value relevance of book value and earnings per share. Discussion and Conclusion: In general, the findings of this study are consistent with the claim of the Financial Accounting Standards Board that the accounting comparability increases the usefulness of accounting information decision and allows investors to better evaluate investment opportunities.

https://jaa.shirazu.ac.ir/article_6409_a6701a1c9c5cba5ff82b785fa091c766.pdf