The effect of professional skepticism and professional ethics on dysfunctional auditor behavior: A research on independent auditors

This study aims to investigate the effect of professional skepticism and professional ethics on the dysfunctional auditor behavior. In addition the study investigates whether perception of professional ethics is mediator variable among the relationship between professional skepticism and dysfunctional auditor behavior or not. The survey which is formed based on the variables of developed research model is applied to independent auditors and the data obtained in accordance with the research purpose. The analysis of the data suggest that professional skepticism and professional ethics have negative effect on the dysfunctional auditor behavior. On the other hand professional skepticism has positive effect on the professional ethic perception of auditors. In addition, the findings of the study regarding the moderator variable show that the perception of professional ethics has a full mediating variable effect on the relationship between professional skepticism and dysfunctional auditor behavior. Key Words: Professional Skepticism, Professional Ethics, Dysfunctional Auditor Behavior