Identification of Components Effective on auditing professions’ social status in Iran: A social identity theory perspective

Auditing develops within a social context. Our treatment of occupations as social identities draws heavily from identity theory in sociological social psychology. Among the most salient of social identities, occupational identities are an important basis for self-image, self-esteem, and personal motivation. Sociologists have long recognised the important role of occupation-induced status (or occupational prestige) in the overall determination of social status. This profession has a long history in Iran. In this research, we have tried to use data collected from interviews with 20 auditor's expert in 2021 and to use thematic analysis method, Components Effective on auditing professions’ social status in Iran have been identified.According to the results, components effective on auditing professions’ social status in Iran included four main themes known as generalities(Individual motivations for entering the auditing profession, characteristics of the auditing profession and social identity of the auditing profession), Dimensions of social stratification(Economic dimension, political dimension, social dimension, cultural dimension), expectations and challenges(Professional identity crisis, challenges of auditing profession, goals and expectations professional audit, historical trends of the auditing profession) and solutions improvement(Intra-professional, Macro actions). The results of this research can help to expand the internal literature of the research subject. Also, the Iranian Association of Certified Public Accountants and the auditorganization can use the results of this research to improve the social status of the auditing profession and reduce the challenges in the auditing profession.