Explaining the Relationships between the Competency Characteristics of Internal Auditors of The Organization For Rural Cooperatives of Iran with the Structural Equation Modeling Approach

The aim of this study was to identify the effective factors and explain the relationship between the factors of the competency model of internal auditors of the Rural Cooperative Organization of Iran. This research is an applied research in terms of purpose and a survey research in terms of method. The statistical population, including internal auditors of the Rural Cooperative Organization of Iran, 186 people were selected by simple random sampling. The data collection tool was a researcher-made questionnaire, which was distributed among the statistical sample after determining its validity and reliability. Data analysis was performed using structural equations (partial least squares) and one-sample t-test. Calculation of coefficient of determination (R2) of the endogenous structures of the model was obtained more than 0.67 which showed that the endogenous structures of the model are desirable. The calculation of the Stone-Geiser criterion or Q 2 index showed that the value of the Q 2 index was positive in all cases and the fit of the appropriate model and the model had good predictive power. Also, the GOF index is 0.685, so the model has a good fit. Findings showed that the knowledge and skills of internal auditors have a positive and significant effect on the individual competencies of internal auditors. The personal knowledge, skills and competencies of internal auditors also have a positive and significant effect on the credibility of internal auditors. Individual competencies and credibility of internal auditors have a positive and significant effect on the ability of internal auditors. Therefore, it can be interpreted that the knowledge and skills of auditors, by affecting their credibility and individual competencies, ultimately lead to the ability of internal auditors of the Rural Cooperative Organization of Iran. Also, the review of the current status of the competencies of internal auditors showed that the competencies identified in the current situation are higher than the average level in the study population..