Earnings Management and Audit Opinion

Abstract

The subject of the present research is the study of the relationship between earnings management (accrual-based and real) and auditor’s opinion. Alongside putting the control variables into consideration, this this paper studies the relationship between earnings management (accrual-based and real) and auditors’ opinion. The purpose of this research is to examine the effect of income smoothing and manipulation on the opinion of independent auditors. This research includes two independent variables i.e. earnings management (based on discretionary accruals) and real earnings management, one dependent variable i.e. auditor’s opinion, along with control variables. In the first main hypothesis the relation between real earnings management and auditor’s opinion is examined; and the second hypothesis involves the association between discretionary accrual-based earnings management and auditor’s opinion. In this research some 117 firms in the time period 2008-2013 are empirically investigated and studied using logistic regression method. In conclusion, the second and third hypotheses are rejected; however examination of the first and fourth hypotheses confirms their significant association with auditor’s opinion.