This study examines an aspect of earnings management that we refer to as audit management. We define audit management as a client’s strategic use of diversions to decrease the likelihood that auditors will discover earnings management during the audit. Specifically, we examine whether...

A critical and pervasive component of firm-specific audit firm inspection reports is the inclusion of detailed descriptions of the deficiencies uncovered by inspection teams. Prior research in psychology indicates that people are likely to focus on such anecdotal information without adequately...