Journal of Accounting and Management Vision

Journal of Accounting and Management Vision

The impact of political connections on corporate auditor selection decisions and auditor opinions.

Document Type : Original Article

Authors
1 Assistant Professor, Department of Accounting, Varamin-Pishva Branch, Islamic Azad University, Pishva, Iran.
2 Master's degree student in Accounting, Varamin-Pishva Branch, Islamic Azad University, Pishva, Iran.
Abstract
Political connections of companies can influence the selection of auditors, as companies prefer to choose audit firms close to government institutions or with informal ties to politicians to avoid detailed financial reviews or receive political support. This influence may also affect the auditors' opinions and lead to the modification of reports, concealment of violations, or provision of unrealistic assessments to protect the interests of companies related to power. This phenomenon weakens financial transparency and jeopardizes investor confidence, so strengthening the independence of auditors and independent oversight of these processes is necessary. This study examines the impact of political connections on the decisions to select corporate auditors and the auditor's opinion. A sample of 101 companies listed on the Tehran Stock Exchange was selected for this study. In this study, the impact of political connections on the decisions to select corporate auditors and the auditor's opinion was investigated for the period 1397 to 1402, with a total of 606 observations available for the study. The statistical method used in this study is panel data regression and logistic regression. The results of the research hypotheses indicate that there is a direct significant relationship between political connections, auditor selection, and auditor opinion.
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