Disentangling Overall Audit Inspection Risk: The Effects of Inspection Focus and Inspection Likelihood

SYNOPSIS We extend research examining how PCAOB inspections impact auditor behavior by identifying inspection focus (i.e., the PCAOB’s explicit identification of inspection focal areas) as a critical component of inspection risk. We report the results of two experiments that demonstrate the impact of inspection focus under differing levels of resource constraints. The results support our predictions, which are based on regulatory focus theory. Specifically, we observe that inspection focus leads to greater audit effort in the focal area, regardless of the level of resource constraints. Further, under higher resource constraints, we find that inspection focus triggers significantly reduced effort in nonfocal, higher-risk areas. Our findings should interest researchers, regulators, and practitioners, as they identify potential unintended consequences of the current inspection process. JEL Classifications: M42; M48.