W. Robert Knechel
Chair/Director | University of Florida
Gainesville, FL, UNITED STATES
W. Robert Knechel is an expert in auditing, financial reporting, and factors affecting the scope and timing of audit engagements.
Biography
W. Robert Knechel is an expert in international accounting auditing, financial reporting, and factors affecting the scope and timing of audit engagements. He is the Frederick E. Fisher Scholar Chair, distinguished professor and director of the International Accounting and Auditing Center.
Areas of Expertise (8)
Financial Accounting
Issues Related to Assurance, Control, Performance Measurement and Auditing
Factors Affecting the Scope and Timing of Audit Engagements
Financial Reporting
Accounting
Business
Auditing
Risk Management
Media Appearances (2)
Public interest does not always come first in auditing
Accountant.nl (Dutch) online
2017-06-09
Among the international celebrities were Mark DeFond (University of Southern California) and W. Robert Knechel (director of the International Accounting and Auditing Center, Warrington College of Business at University of Florida). At the start of the conference, DeFond elaborated on the theme: controversies surrounding audit quality. Knechel was the moderator of a discussion entitled The vision for change of the auditing profession .
Accounting World, Still Resisting Sunlight
The New York Times online
2013-10-24
Such identification of auditors has been going on for many years in Sweden, where nearly all companies, private and public, are required to disclose their audits. That enabled three academics — W. Robert Knechel of the University of Florida, Ann Vanstraelen of Maastricht University and Mikko Zerni of the University of Vaasa — to study audits of different companies done by the same partners of the Swedish affiliates of the Big Four firms.
Articles (5)
Do Personal Beliefs and Values Affect an Individual’s “Fraud Tolerance”? Evidence from the World Values Survey
Journal of Business EthicsW Robert Knechel and Natalia Mintchik
2021-02-18
We introduce the concept of fraud tolerance, validate the conceptualization using prior studies in economics and criminology as well as our own independent tests, and explore the relationship of fraud tolerance with numerous cultural attributes using data from the World Values Survey. Applying partial least squares path modeling, we find that people with stronger self-enhancing (self-transcending) values exhibit higher (lower) fraud tolerance.
The Impact of Partners' Economic Incentives on Audit Quality in Big 4 Partnerships
The Accounting ReviewSimon Dekeyser, et al.
2021-02-18
Economic incentives are fundamental for understanding auditor behavior. In this paper, we investigate the association between the extent of partners' fee-based compensation, partners' observable net wealth, and audit quality. Using a sample of Belgian Big 4 audit firms and their predominantly private clients, our results suggest a negative association between audit quality and partner fee-based compensation, and a positive association between audit quality and partner observable net wealth.
How do audit team industry and client‐specific experience impact audit effort and audit fees?
International Journal of AuditingChristine Contessotto, et al.
2021-01-10
Prior research into the effect of different types of experience on audit fees and audit effort has been primarily conducted at the individual, office or firm level but rarely at the team level. An important motivation for team level research is that within team variation could influence the conduct, quality and pricing of an audit. Audit team industry specialization and client‐specific experience have been associated with higher audit quality.
The Future of Assurance in Capital Markets: Reclaiming the Economic Imperative of the Auditing Profession
Accounting HorizonsW. Robert Knechel
2020-08-02
Efficient capital markets rely on a continuous supply of reliable, timely, and audited information. The economic value of an audit derives from the reduction in risk of erroneous or manipulated information. Traditionally, the auditing has focused on annual financial reports. Given the speed of information creation and dissemination, the role of auditors may need to adapt.
Supplemental datasets for examination of the PCAOB's relationship with the audit profession in the United States
Data in BriefMatthew Ege, et al.
2020-06-07
These datasets have been co-submitted to this journal with the research article “A multi-method analysis of the PCAOB's relationship with the audit profession” [1]. The purpose of these datasets is to assist readers of the research article in obtaining further details on two analyses performed therein: a deviant case analysis of the interview data (enclosed here as Dataset 1) and content analysis of disagreement-report pairs (enclosed here as Dataset 2).
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