An Examination of the Professional Code of Ethics for Certified Internal Auditors

By its nature, the capitalistic economic system has produced numerous ethical conflicts. The professions, as well as business in general, have been impacted by the increased emphasis on ethical behaviour. In the past few years, there has been an increased interest in business ethics. One profession which has especially grown due to the increased awareness of ethical issues is internal auditing. This has been in part due to the need for more reliable accounting records, tighter administrative controls, and improved operational efficiency. In order to provide some guidance to its members regarding ethical behaviour, the Institute of Internal Auditors has constructed a code of ethics. Describes how, through the use of a questionnaire, the views of practising internal auditors regarding the currently used code of ethics were obtained and analysed. The responses revealed that a substantial number of internal auditors do consult the code of ethics for guidance in making ethical decisions. A majority of the auditors believe that the code of ethics could be more effective if better enforcement methods were put into effect. Most respondents also believe that the code is complete as it is currently written and does not need to be expanded.