1
Return

The Importance of Conscientiousness to Audit Quality: Engagement Partner Graduate Thesis Typos and Audit Adjustments

delete2026-02-01
delete0
PRE
AI
X
Xianjie He *
J
Jeffrey Pittman
S
Shuwei Sun
Z
Zili Zhuang
DOI:10.2308/TAR-2024-0397delete
deleteOriginal
deleteOriginal request for help
deleteShare
deleteSave
Abstract

Abstract

En 中文
Relying on the frequency of typos in engagement partners' graduate theses to measure their conscientiousness, we find that more conscientious partners conduct higher-quality audits, evident in that they are more likely to require an audit adjustment. Our core results hold for both upward and downward adjustments, implying that being conscientious is not equivalent to being overly conservative. Consistent with DeAngelo's (1981) theory, cross-sectional evidence suggests that the role that partner conscientiousness plays in audit quality comes through both the auditor competence and independence channels. Additionally, we find that the frequency of partner thesis typos is negatively associated with auditor effort. Collectively, our evidence implies that engagement partner conscientiousness plays a major role in shaping audit outcomes.
Keywords:
auditor conscientiousness
audit adjustment
thesis typos
engagement partner personal attributes

Journal

Accounting Review cover
Accounting Review
IF:
4.4
Papers:
2.4K
Citations:
2.0W

Organization

Z
Zhejiang University of Finance & Economics
Scholars:
158
Papers: 95
Citations: 0
C
chinese university of hong kong
Scholars:
2.0K
Papers: 995
Citations: 0
M
Memorial University Newfoundland
Scholars:
7.8K
Papers: 7.7K
Citations: 64
Cited Papers

Cited Papers

Citing Papers

Citing Papers