Decline of Auditors Financial Bias in Decision Making by Professionalism in Auditing: Rough Set Analysis

This research examines the role of professionalism in reducing auditors financial bias in decision making. The study employs an inductive-deductive approach, combining content analysis and Delphi analysis for data collection. Fourteen audit partners with academic degrees participated over a one-year period (2018-2019). The findings highlight two influential perceptual errors in the Iranian audit profession. The first is the Halo bias, which refers to the failure to separate context from content. The second is memory bias, associated with the experience of fraud detection in financial statements. Gray VIKOR theory analysis identifies audit professional maturity as the most important factor in reducing perceptual bias. The results demonstrate that achieving professional maturity in auditing significantly controls individual perceptual errors and improves auditors ability to handle pressure and tolerate stress. Enhancing cognitive capabilities in the audit profession facilitates professional and behavioral conceptualization, leading to better career outcomes and improved audit quality. Auditors with enhanced cognitive features are less prone to perceptual biases and errors throughout their careers. This research underscores the importance of professionalism in mitigating financial bias among auditors. It high lights the positive impact of cognitive development on decision making, job performance, and overall audit quality. By emphasizing the significance of professionalism in auditing, this study contributes to a better understanding of the factors influencing auditors decision-making processes and promotes the continuous improvement of audit practices.