The relationship between narcissism, managerial overconfidence and comparability of financial statements of listed companies

Purpose This study aims to investigate the impact of managerial narcissism and overconfidence on financial statements’ comparability. In other words, this paper seeks to answer the question of whether the personality characteristics of managers may affect the level of financial statements’ quality of commercial entities or not. Design/methodology/approach The research hypotheses are tested using a sample of 896 observations taken from the Tehran Stock Exchange and 245 observations from the Iraqi Stock Exchange during 2012 and 2018 using the multiple regression model based on the combined data technique. Findings The findings show that managerial narcissism is positively and significantly associated with Iran’s financial statement comparability. In contrast, Iraqi data articulate a negative association between these two variables. This paper finds that Chief Executive Officer overconfidence and financial statements’ comparability are negatively related in both countries. Following the market variation, the different findings suggest that institutional settings such as the general managerial style, adopting international accounting standards (now IFRS) leading to the extent of auditing market globally in Iraq and suffering from international sanctions in Iran, the governing business environment may play an allocative role in preparing financial statements. Originality/value The present research is the first research conducted in two emerging markets (Iran and Iraq) examining the relationship between managers’ narcissism and overconfidence and financial statements’ comparability. Therefore, the present research in this area can significantly contribute to the development of science and knowledge.