Sample size and error containment judgments in non-statistical audit sampling - the sensivity of auditors to a revision of professional standards

Abstract

This cumulative dissertation deals with audit sampling theory, the revision of corresponding professional audit sampling standards, and the behavioral impact of the latter on auditors’ decisions over sample size and error containment, as well as the cognitive challenges that auditors are faced with when applying non-statistical sampling procedures. Three conceptual papers review the development of audit sampling techniques and technological demands throughout the profession over the last four decades. The dissertation identifies the audit sampling fundamentals that drive the most disruptive problems in the field and evaluates changes planned in the first revision of audit sampling standards in Germany in the past thirty years. Conceptual analyses show that audit sampling must be considered in any financial statement audit and that the presence of multiple methodological opportunities facilitates its broad-ranging application. However, the actual implementation of these procedures leads to potential flaws. In particular, a uniform utilization of audit sampling, suited to a variety of audit situations, is a goal that cannot be achieved by any of the currently available procedures provided through professional standards, whether national or international. Based on the outcome of a first empirical study, two experiments focus on the possible impact of a revision in professional auditing standards on auditor behavior regarding the desired audit scope and a reasonable treatment of disclosed error causes. Regarding the intended revision, our analysis assumes a positive association between the new guidance and the future performance of sampling procedures. Combined with the empirical results from the latter paper, the expectations involved point to a potential prevention of ongoing flawed auditor behavior by the acquisition of larger sample sizes and the offering of a better sensitization towards arbitrary error containment.