Balancing Integrity and Trust: Professional Skepticism, Professional Ethics, and Auditors’ Whistleblowing Decisions in an Emerging Economy
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.30741/assets.v10i2.1994Keywords:
Professional Skepticism, Professional Ethics, Whistleblowing, Organizational Culture, Auditors, Public Accounting FirmsAbstract
This study aims to examine the influence of professional skepticism and professional ethics on auditors' decisions to engage in whistleblowing, and to assess whether organizational culture strengthens or weakens this relationship. The data was obtained through a survey of 81 auditors working at Public Accounting Firms in South Sulawesi Province. The research instrument used a closed questionnaire with a five-point Likert scale. Data were analyzed using multiple linear regression and Moderated Regression Analysis in IBM SPSS Statistics 32. The results of the study show that professional skepticism has a positive and significant effect on whistleblowing. Professional ethics also have a positive and significant effect on whistleblowing. However, organizational culture does not moderate the influence of professional skepticism or professional ethics on whistleblowing. The theoretical contribution of this research lies in the expansion of the Goal-Setting Theory in the context of auditing by showing that the professional goals that have been internalized by auditors, namely maintaining integrity, objectivity, and public responsibility, are more dominant than organizational culture factors in encouraging whistleblowing. The novelty of this research lies in testing the limits of organizational culture's role as a moderator of the relationship between individual auditor factors and whistleblowing in the context of regional Public Accounting Firms. The study also confirms that professional skepticism needs to be understood as proportionate and evidence-based, rather than excessive suspicion that can damage the audit relationship. These findings imply that strengthening whistleblowing auditors should focus on the internalization of professional ethics, training in risk-based skepticism, and a safe reporting system.
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