Key Audit Matters Disclosure and Audit Report Lag: The Moderating Effect of Audit Firm Partner Gender Diversity

Articles in Press

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

• Mohsen Khotanlou ¹
• Mahdi Kazemioloum ²

¹ Assistant Prof., Department of Accounting, Faculty of Economics and Social Science, Bu-Ali Sina University, Hamedan, Iran

² Assistant Prof., Department of Accounting, Faculty of Economics and Social Science, Bu-Ali Sina University, Hamedan, Iran.

10.22067/ijaaf.2025.94375.1571

Abstract

In recent years, the mandatory implementation of Auditing Standard 701 has affected the audit process. The inclusion of the key audit matters (KAMs) section in the audit report, as mandated by Standard 701, may result in increased effort and additional time spent by auditors, potentially leading to delays in issuing the audit report. Therefore, the objective of this study is to investigate the effect of disclosing key audit matters on audit report lag, while considering the moderating effect of gender diversity among audit firm partners on this relationship. In this applied research, data from 124 companies listed on the Tehran Stock Exchange were collected over the period from 2018–2023. The research hypotheses were tested using panel data and multiple regression analysis. The findings indicate that a higher number of disclosed key audit matters leads to delays in audit report issuance. Additionally, the results suggest that gender diversity among audit firm partners moderates and weakens the relationship between key audit matters and audit report lag, aligning with the efficiency approach. The findings of this study highlight the impact of Standard 701 on the audit process in the Iranian context and underscore the role of auditor gender in the composition and selection of audit engagement partners. Based on these results, the implementation of Standard 701 and the inclusion of key audit matters result in delays in audit report issuance, indicating that auditors should consider this in planning the audit process and its time budget.

Keywords

• Audit Report Lag
• Audit Firm Partner Gender Diversity
• Key Audit Matters

Main Subjects

• Auditing

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