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Abstract

The audit report is in many cases the only contact between the auditor and a company’s stakeholders, it is therefore an important channel of communication. The fact that the auditor’s report is an important tool for communication is clear from the debate that has emerged in recent years. This study aims to highlight the auditors’ perspective on the audit report. As different stakeholders found to have distinct opinions when it comes to the content of the audit report, this study will also investigate how the auditor’s perceptions of the stakeholders affect what they want to convey in the audit report.

Based on a questionnaire survey, this study investigates what the qualified auditors in Sweden want to convey, and also which stakeholders are deemed to be important recipients of the audit report. The questionnaire was distributed to all qualified auditors who are members of FAR, which is the association for auditors in Sweden. Of the 3602 questionnaires sent out, the survey generated 317 responses. Hypotheses derived from the theoretical framework are tested by statistical analyses of material collected from the questionnaire survey.

The findings shows that there is a connection between which stakeholders the auditor considers as important, and what the auditor wants to communicate in the audit report. Furthermore, the results indicate that auditors are rather uninterested in expanding their reporting. This study shows that what the auditors want to convey in the audit report are in accordance with the information required by the law.