Effect of Machiavellianism on Dysfunctional Audit Behaviors

Dysfunctional audit behaviors are actions that reduce audit quality. Such actions are influenced by various factors, including behavioral factors. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between Machiavellian personality traits and dysfunctional audit behaviors in the auditing profession. For this purpose, a sample of 242 people, using Cochran's formula, was randomly selected from auditors working in private audit institutions, members of the public accountants community. This research is applied in terms of its purpose and descriptive in terms of the correlational method, the data of which was collected through a questionnaire in 2024 . The test of research hypothesis was also done using multiple regression and with the help of SPSS No. 27 software. The results of the research hypothesis test show that there is a significant and positive relationship between Machiavellianism and dysfunctional audit behaviors. In other words, as the level of Machiavellianism in the auditors of the research sample increases, their dysfunctional behaviors increase. Also, the findings of this research indicate that the auditor's gender, education, work experience, and place of employment do not have a significant effect on dysfunctional audit behaviors. The general conclusion of this research is that auditors' organizational behaviors are dependent on their psychological and individual behaviors and characteristics, and this issue can dominate the quality of auditors' work.