The Effect of Information Technology Utilization, Professional Skepticism and Auditor Competence on Remote Audit Quality with auditor ethics as a moderating variable

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a broad impact in various fields, one of which is the practice of public accounting. With the COVID-19 pandemic, there are constraints on the limitations of assignments in the field that have a direct impact on the collection of audit evidence such as limited access to travel and limited direct interaction with clients. There is a need for a new approach and the use of more sophisticated technology in conducting audits. The use of technology to conduct remote audits raises doubts about the collection of evidence, greatly impacting the provision of audit opinions. The ethics surrounding the auditor in carrying out audit practices, as well as the competencies possessed are the basis for determining remote audit quality. This study examines the effect of information technology utilization, professional skepticism, and auditor competence on remote audit quality with auditor ethics as moderating variable. Respondents in this study were auditors who worked at a Public Accounting Firm in Semarang, Indonesia. Determination of the research sample using purposive sampling method and obtained a sample of 110 auditors from 29 public accounting firms. The analysis method to testing the hypothesis using multiple regressions. The results show that the information technology utilization, professional skepticism, and auditor competence have a positive and significant effect on remote audit quality. Auditor ethics strengthens the positive effect of information technology utilization on remote audit quality but auditor ethics weakens the negative effect of auditor competence on remote audit quality, while auditor ethics does not moderate the effect of professional skepticism on remote audit quality.