Tystnadsplikt eller upplysningsplikt, en balansgång för revisorn

: En kvalitativ studie om balansgången mellan tystnadsplikt och upplysningsplikt i revisorsyrket

Abstract

The duty of confidentiality and the duty of disclosure are two essential duties an auditor must comply with in one's professional role. Since these two duties may conflict with each other, it is important for the auditors to find a balance by knowing in which situations they should relate to each duty. Previous research in the field of auditing has focused in other research issues or examined the duties separately. 

The purpose of this study is to contribute to an increased understanding of how the auditor balances between the duty of confidentiality and the duty of disclosure, as well as how these duties affect the auditors's work. To explore this purpose in an nuanced way, qualitative research methods have been applied consisting of semi-structured interviews and document analyzes. Five authorized auditors from auditing firms of varying sizes were interviewed. Key concepts and the personal construct theory have been used in order to understand thought patterns of auditors. 

The results indicate that audtitors have several different reasonings when making decisions concerning the two duties. Thus is the auditors' balancing between duties a difficult dilemma to assess, as the contrasts of the duties can affect the auditors' work in different ways. Disagreements arose as to whether the balancing act constitutes an obstacle in the work, but also as to the auditors's perceived security in situations when the duties are set against each other. A conslusion drawn is that ethical dilemmas are complex and that auditors make their own assessments based in their experiences and moral principles.