The Participation of Women in Internal Auditing Profession: Malaysian Perspective

Abstract

The development of professional internal auditing bodies has strengthened in recent years with the emerging of Institute of Internal Auditor (IIA) in most countries. However, the survey undertaken by The Institute of Internal Auditor Malaysia (IIAM) reveals that men dominate the internal audit profession. The study aims to identify some required criteria to be successful in internal audit profession, characteristic that should be possessed by women internal auditors and problems experienced by women internal auditor as perceived by internal auditors in Malaysia. The Likert Scale was used on various statements of required successful criteria, problems and characteristics mentioned in the mailed questionnaires. An independent t-test was carried out on the respondents' perceptions. The analysis noted that the perception of women and men internal auditors on the required successful criteria is not significantly different. Whereas, their perception on characteristics, in particular, interpersonal skills, leadership, creative thinking, communication skills, independence and proficiency are found to be significantly different. Meanwhile, the study revealed that the perception of both parties on the problems which are unsatisfying salary, unsatisfying compensation and benefits, Malaysian culture, glass ceiling, low job stability, low career opportunity and old boys network are found to be significantly different. Finally, using the linear regression, the study found that there is a significant relationship between women's current position in internal auditing and problems experienced by women.