The Effect of Personality Traits (Conscience and Agreeableness), Feeling-thinking and Risk-taking on Auditor's Judgment regarding the Mediating Role of Self-efficacy

Dimensions of personality are effective in people's decision making and it can also overshadow the auditor's judgment.The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between conscientiousness, agreeableness, feeling-thinking and risk-taking with the auditor's judgment regarding the mediating role of self-efficacy.

This study is considered as applied in terms of purpose and descriptive correlational in terms of data collection. 380 auditors working as senior auditors and higher ranks were selected as available samples. The validity and reliability of the questionnaires were confirmed by the high Cronbach's alpha coefficient. Data analysis was performed using data exploratory analysis and structural equations.

The research findings showed that approach agreeableness reduces and avoidance agreeablenessimproves auditors' judgmental quality.Also,the results showed that auditors with thoughtful personality type had more professional judgment than the feeling type. Resultant risk-taking decreases the quality of auditors' judgmental quality and uncertain risk-taking improves it.In addition, all aspects of personality (except conscientiousness) mediated by professional self-efficacy had a significant effect on auditors' judgment.

The results imply the role of personality in auditors' judgment. Self-efficacy plays the mediating role in this regard, so these factors should be considered in improving the audit process.

The present study examined the mediating role of self-efficacy on the relationship between conscientiousness, agreeableness, feeling-thinking and risk-taking with auditors' judgment for the first time in Iran. The findings of the study contribute to the development of the literature on the field of audit behavior and its theories.