會計師簽證網絡與審計獨立性：來自繼續經營疑慮審計意見的實證分析

Auditors’Signing Networks and Auditor Independence: Empirical Evidence from Going-Concern Opinions

本研究利用臺灣審計市場會計師雙重簽證的特性，探討會計師的獨立性是否會受其簽證網絡強弱影響，並預期簽證網絡中心性越高的會計師，因可由網絡中獲得的資訊較多、受網絡的監督治理機制較強，有助於提升審計品質。本研究以是否出具繼續經營疑慮之審計意見作為獨立性之代理變數，並以2006年至2015年間國內公開交易之上市（櫃）公司，且為四大會計師事務所查核財務危機警訊之企業為研究對象，檢視會計師簽證網絡中心性是否影響其簽發繼續經營疑慮之審計意見的可能性。實證結果顯示，簽證網絡程度中心性與會計師出具繼續經營疑慮審計意見之可能性具顯著之正向關係，支持簽證網絡程度中心性越好的會計師，審計品質較高。本研究另以接近中心性、中介中心性以及特徵向量中心性作為簽證網絡強弱之代理變數，結果則僅部分支持簽證網絡中心性與出具繼續經營疑慮審計意見之可能性呈顯著正向關係。

"The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between auditors’signing networks in CPA firms and improved/impaired auditor independence, where auditor independence is replaced by auditors’propensity to issue going-concern audit opinions. We use degree centrality as the main proxy for the strength of the relationship network which is computed by the number of co-signed auditors in the CPA firms. The sample consists of publicly traded firms identified as distressed and audited by the Big 4 audit firms in Taiwan during the 2006–2015 period. The empirical results show that auditors’degree centrality can be one of the key determinants of auditors issuing going-concern opinions. We also use betweenness centrality, closeness centrality, and eigenvector centrality to examine the relationship between auditors’signing networks and auditor independence. These sensitivity tests only partially support the aforementioned finding."