Audit Socialization and Professional Success: Evidence from Thailand

Abstract

The objective of this study is to examine the effects of audit socialization and professional commitment on professional success of tax auditors in Thailand through individual learning as the moderator. The specific research questions are: (1) How audit socialization affects professional commitment, (2) How professional commitment influences professional success, and (3) How individual learning moderates the audit socialization-professional commitment relationships, the audit socialization-professional success relationships, and the professional commitment-professional success relationships. This study collected data from 249 tax auditors in Thailand by using questionnaire. To investigate the research relationships, both structural equation model and multiple regression analysis are implemented. Within the research results, audit socialization has a significant positive effect on professional commitment and professional success while professional commitment has an important positive influence on professional success. Similarly, individual learning positively moderates the professional commitment-professional success relationships. In summary, audit socialization is important for auditing professions and it is a key determinant of professional success. Thus, auditors need to pay attention to audit socialization through learning and understanding it and applying its concepts to audit works to increase auditors' professional success, continuous survival and long-term sustainability.