Iranian Auditors' Competence in Maintaining Independence in a Conflict with Client Management

 
Journal of Accounting Advances (J.A.A)
Vol. 5, No. 2, 2013, Ser. 65/3
 
 
Extended Abstract
 
Iranian Auditors' Competence in Maintaining Independence in a Conflict with Client Management
 




Dr. Mahmud Musavi Shiri*
Payam-e Noor University


Dr. Mehdi Salehi**
Ferdowsi University
 




Dr. Ahmad Zendedel***
Islamic Azad University,   Neishaboor Branch


Ima Farzadmehr****
Islamic Azad University,
Mashhad branch




 
Introuduction
In the discussion of auditors’ independence, two aspects are under consideration: independence in appearance and independence in fact. Independence in appearance focuses on auditors’ relationship with client management from the third parties point of view and independence in fact is related to the auditors’ state of mind in the audit process: having an unbiased mental attitude (Bartlett, 1993) or maintaining an objective and impartial mental attitude (Sridharan et al., 2002) throughout the audit from planning the audit, gathering and evaluating the evidence to issuing the audit report. Particularly, in an auditor’s conflict of interest situation, taking an unbiased viewpoint (Arnes & Loebbeck, 1997)/maintaining an independent mind, in order to make a judgment free from influences of the conflict on auditor's utility becomes more important.
The present study aims at examining the effects of two personality factors (ethical reasoning and belief in a just world) on auditors' competence in maintaining an independent mind in a conflict of interests situation
 
Hypotheses
The aim of the study is to examine the interactional effects of cognitive moral development and belief in a just world on Iranian auditors' competence to maintain independence of mind in a dispute with client's management. The primary goal of the research is to examine the effectiveness of these two factors on Iranian auditors' independence; then the research progresses to study the direction and quality of the effect. Thus research hypotheses are developed as follows:
H1. Auditors' personality characteristics (ethical reasoning and belief in a just world) influence auditors accede to client's management request.
H2. Auditors with high level of ethical reasoning and strong belief in a just world, accede to the client's management request less than other groups of auditors.
H3. Auditors with medium level of ethical reasoning and strong belief in a just world accede to the client's management request less than auditors with medium level of ethical reasoning and weak belief in a just world.
H4. Auditors with low level of ethical reasoning and weak belief in a just world, accede to the client's management request more than other groups of auditors.
 
Methods
The data required for the research were gathered through questionnaires distributed among members of IACPA. Three hundred questionnaires were distributed in two rounds and finally 182 questionnaires were collected; thirteen of them were incomplete and could not be scored; 169 questionnaires were complete and usable for the study. The questionnaire consists of a demographic information section and two other sections for measuring research variables: section "1. Audit Style"  for measuring dependent variable, section "2.A. Personality Style" for measuring independent variable the belief in a just world and section "2.B. Attitude Toward Social Problems" for measuring ethical reasoning the other independent variable.
With the aim of examining the effect of two personal characteristics on Iranian auditors' independence, a two-way ANOVA method has been used to compare the mean of dependent variable between six groups of auditors. The SPSS statistical package was utilized for running the analysis. There are two categorical independent variables in the research: ethical reasoning and belief in a just world which has respectively three levels and two levels.
 
Results
The first hypothesis was supported suggesting that the interaction of ethical reasoning and belief in a just world influences Iranian auditors professional decision making process and hence their independence of mind.
The second hypothesis was not supported by the data. Auditors at post-conventional thinking and strong belief in a just world maintain independence of mind more than auditors at pre-conventional thinking; however their competence in maintaining independence is equal with auditors at conventional thinking.
Research data did not support the third hypothesis. It suggests that the belief in a just world does not influence Iranian conventional auditors' response to the pressure of conflict of interests. In the other words, conventional auditors are not influenced by their perspective to personal consequences of acts and behaviors and maintain their independence regardless of the degree of belief in a just world similarly.
The fourth hypothesis was not supported. Iranian auditors with pre-conventional thinking and weak belief in a just world maintain independence of mind less than conventional and post-conventional auditors; but they are still more independent than pre-conventional auditors who have a strong belief in a just world.
 
Conclusion
Results indicated that ethical reasoning and belief in a just world have influence on independence of mind in Iranian auditors. Auditors' competence in resisting client management's request increases when ethical reasoning develops; though in a way that auditors at post-conventional and conventional levels of moral development have the same competence higher than pre-conventional auditors in maintaining an independent mind. This study found a positive association too; however auditors with post-conventional and conventional levels are equally influenced by their cognitive structure. The belief in a just world has not any determinant role in leading Iranian auditor's behavior and decision; rather it only moderates the effect of ethical reasoning and this moderating effect only appears in pre-conventional thinking. Iranian pre-conventional auditors' competence in maintaining an independent mind is influenced by their belief in a just world; so that having a weak belief in a just world makes them more capable of resisting management's request. The characteristic of pre-conventional thinking is to act by considering direct physical consequences of actions; an individual tries to avoid physical damage to self through obeying the laws and regulations. Auditors with strong belief in a just world believe that justice mechanism is so that they will be compensated according to their actions and behaviors. This belief goes to the same direction of their cognitive structure so they concentrate more on personal physical outcomes and consequences. Thus, in making professional decisions they put more emphasis on personal outcomes of a decision and show less independence of mind. The belief in a just world does not influence independence of auditors with conventional thinking. These auditors regardless of personal outcomes of the audit report remain similarly independent. Hence their personal belief about the just or unjust world does not influence their professional decision; they try to act up to the expectations of professional society.
Iranian auditors with post-conventional thinking do not take effect of their belief in a just world in issuing an independent opinion. In this level of ethical reasoning auditors with a strong belief in a just world and auditors with a weak belief in a just world have same resistance to client management's request.
Finally, considering the similar competence of post-conventional and conventional auditors and the great population of these two groups in the study, it can be said that cognitive structure of the majority of Iranian auditors is so that promotes their competence in ignoring conflict of interests' pressures and enables them to issue reports consistent with their real professional opinion.
 
Keywords: Independence of mind, Conflict of interests, Ethical reasoning, Belief in a just world.
 
 



* Assistant Prof. of Accounting Department
** Assistant Prof. of Accounting Department
*** Assistant Prof. of Math & Statistics Department
**** MSC student of Accounting