Auditing in family firms: Past trends and future research directions

Abstract

ABSTRACT This systematic literature review synthesizes and maps existing research on auditing in family firms across multiple areas of study. The review includes 71 systematically selected academic articles published through to 2023. Our findings suggest that many audit-related issues, such as audit fees, audit quality, and auditor choice, differ significantly among family and nonfamily firms. Our review suggests that the positioning of the issues across different disciplines adds complexity and, to some extent, hinders the development of the field. This complexity, resulting from the intermixing of multiple concepts from different disciplines, pushes the majority of the reviewed articles toward theoretical singularity rather than a leap forward in terms of empirical relevance or theoretical plurality. By developing a field map that identifies gaps in current knowledge, our review not only suggests improvements to the status quo, but provides future research directions inspired by recent developments in family business and auditing.