The Effect of Audit Firm Specialization on Earnings Management and Quality of Audit Work

Abstract

This paper aims at investigating the effect of industry specialization on the audit quality and earnings quality. It examines the relation between industry specialization and earnings quality, financial reporting quality, and audit quality. The research posits that industry specialization constrains earnings management. In addition, it hypothesized a positive relationship between industry specialization and financial reporting quality. An experiment was conducted in an audit firm with international affiliation in Egypt to test the research hypotheses. The results indicate that there is no significant difference between industry specialist auditors and non-specialists in constraining earnings management. In addition, findings support that financial reporting quality was significantly higher when specialists conducted the audit. The results provide empirical evidence consistent with the hypothesis that auditor with industry specialization improves audit quality. Finally, industry specialization enables auditors to realize the amendments in auditing standards better than non-specialists.

Keywords: Audit industry specialization, Audit quality, Earnings quality, financial reporting quality

JEL Classification: M41