Do as I Say: A Look at the Supervisor Behaviors that Encourage Upward Communication on Audit Teams
基于审计实习生报告的数据，研究了主管哪些行为会促进或阻碍下属向上沟通，帮助审计主管遵守PCAOB AS1201规定。
SYNOPSIS Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) AS1201 mandates that audit supervisors encourage auditors to raise critical issues and concerns to their attention. However, audit supervisors do not receive specific guidance on how to encourage upward communication. This may contribute to the AS1201 compliance issues suggested by research and PCAOB enforcement actions. We provide specific examples of supervisor behaviors that enhance and harm upward communication, thereby improving audit supervisors’ ability to comply with PCAOB AS1201. To do so, we report qualitative data from audit interns describing instances in which they chose to either speak up or not speak up about potential audit issues they encountered in the field. The instances illustrate the types of issues that interns encounter and reveal the role of supervisor behavior in influencing interns’ decisions to speak up. JEL Classifications: M40.