Studying the effect of artificial intelligence on improvement of various quality criteria in relation to audit work in Iran

Abstract

Considering huge volume of data and increasing trend of artificial intelligence technology in all of the scopes, classic auditing methods are insufficient; so, using artificial intelligence in the audit field has gained special importance. The study has been performed to the aim of studying the effect of artificial intelligence on quality of audit work in Iran. Also, the reasons for lack of tendency of Iranian auditors to use artificial intelligence technology have been reviewed. Data have been collected through questionnaires provided to 150 auditors and managers being accepted upon inclusion criteria. Four research hypotheses have been analyzed through statistical tests. The research results showed that applying artificial intelligence along with data analyses related to items in financial statements, fraud detection, and slight audit cost reduction have positive effect on improvement of audit work’s quality. Finally, it is advised that following points would be taken into consideration as for development of artificial intelligence in the field of auditing: strengthening professional capability of auditors in relation to artificial intelligence skills and knowledge; providing required substructure as for usage to be made of artificial intelligence in the field of auditing; and creating trust in auditors to use such technology.