The Effect of Partner Preferences on the Development of Risk-Adjusted Program Plans

The results show that there was a significant interaction between auditors' risk assessments and partner preferences. When there was an incentive for efficiency as prompted by the partner, even though auditors recognized higher risks compared to the prior year, they did not correspondingly alter audit program plans. In contrast, a balanced partner preference led to higher risk assessments and a greater number of tests and hours than for the efficiency condition.