CAQ Announces 2019 Grants to Fund Academic Research in Auditing

The Center for Audit Quality (CAQ) has awarded five new grants to fund independent academic research on projects of interest to the auditing profession. Over the past 11 years, the CAQ has provided funding for 44 such projects through its Research Advisory Board (RAB) grant program.

“Independent academic research can have a significant impact on audit quality and the future of public company auditing,” said CAQ Executive Director Julie Bell Lindsay. “We congratulate this year’s award recipients, whose research projects address topics that are timely and relevant.”

The CAQ’s RAB, comprised of members from academia and the auditing profession, selected the following projects to receive funding:

“A Tale of Two Mindsets: Are Skeptical Judgment and Skeptical Action Facilitated by Contrasting Mindsets?” by Emily Blum, University of Alabama
“Artificial Intelligence Tools in Auditing – How Tool Training and Perceptions of Risk Affect Auditor Reliance” by Ryan Guggenmos, Cornell University; Kathryn Kadous, Emory University; and Patrick Witz, Cornell University
“Desirable Effects and Adverse Side Effects of Interventions Designed to Improve Auditors’ Exercise of Professional Skepticism” by Mark Peecher, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; and Alex Johanns, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
“Using Audit Programs to Improve Auditor Evidence Collection” by Michael Ricci, University of Florida; and Jacqueline Hammersley, University of Georgia
“Understanding How the Key Interactions within the Financial Reporting Supply Chain Impact Audit Quality” by Ken Trotman, University of New South Wales; Andrew Trotman, Northeastern University; and Arnold Wright, Northeastern University

To date, 16 of the academic research projects supported through the CAQ have been published in peer-reviewed journals. Access to these articles is available through the CAQ website, along with a list of previous grant recipients.