BOARD INDEPENDENCE, AUDIT QUALITY AND EARNINGS MANAGEMENT AMONG LISTED NON-FINANCIAL COMPANIES IN NIGERIA

Driven by agency disputes on real earnings management and board characteristics, this study examines the relationship between board independence, audit quality and earnings management. Using the information of quoted service firms on the Nigerian Exchange Group. The analysis of the data was conduct...

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Main Authors: Mohammed Ahmed, Mohammed Yabagi Ibrahim
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Kwara State University, Malete Nigeria 2024-10-01
Series:Malete Journal of Accounting and Finance
Subjects:
Online Access:https://majaf.com.ng/index.php/majaf/article/view/158
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author Mohammed Ahmed
Mohammed Yabagi Ibrahim
author_facet Mohammed Ahmed
Mohammed Yabagi Ibrahim
author_sort Mohammed Ahmed
collection DOAJ
description Driven by agency disputes on real earnings management and board characteristics, this study examines the relationship between board independence, audit quality and earnings management. Using the information of quoted service firms on the Nigerian Exchange Group. The analysis of the data was conducted using multiple regression analysis, utilising a sample of 160 observations from Nigeria, an emerging market spanning from 2014 to 2023. Our results demonstrate that board independence does not mitigate real earnings management. However, we find that Big4 auditor reduces real earnings management and improves the quality of financial reporting. These results show that for a percentage increase of independent directors, the smoothening of earnings decreases while a significant number of services do not engage Big4 auditors in reporting the quality of their financial statements. Especially in a setting where the capital market is still in the process of developing and where legal protection and law enforcement are lacking, the findings of this research could prove to be beneficial to regulators in their efforts to limit the occurrence of earnings management and to enhance financial reporting quality.
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institution Kabale University
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spelling doaj-art-4a3749e496a54528951b7ab20c4167ba2025-02-11T23:08:02ZengKwara State University, Malete NigeriaMalete Journal of Accounting and Finance2735-96032024-10-0142BOARD INDEPENDENCE, AUDIT QUALITY AND EARNINGS MANAGEMENT AMONG LISTED NON-FINANCIAL COMPANIES IN NIGERIAMohammed Ahmed 0Mohammed Yabagi Ibrahim1The Federal Polytechnic Bida, Niger StateThe Federal Polytechnic Bida, Niger State Driven by agency disputes on real earnings management and board characteristics, this study examines the relationship between board independence, audit quality and earnings management. Using the information of quoted service firms on the Nigerian Exchange Group. The analysis of the data was conducted using multiple regression analysis, utilising a sample of 160 observations from Nigeria, an emerging market spanning from 2014 to 2023. Our results demonstrate that board independence does not mitigate real earnings management. However, we find that Big4 auditor reduces real earnings management and improves the quality of financial reporting. These results show that for a percentage increase of independent directors, the smoothening of earnings decreases while a significant number of services do not engage Big4 auditors in reporting the quality of their financial statements. Especially in a setting where the capital market is still in the process of developing and where legal protection and law enforcement are lacking, the findings of this research could prove to be beneficial to regulators in their efforts to limit the occurrence of earnings management and to enhance financial reporting quality. https://majaf.com.ng/index.php/majaf/article/view/158Board independenceAudit qualityBig4 auditorReal earnings management
spellingShingle Mohammed Ahmed
Mohammed Yabagi Ibrahim
BOARD INDEPENDENCE, AUDIT QUALITY AND EARNINGS MANAGEMENT AMONG LISTED NON-FINANCIAL COMPANIES IN NIGERIA
Malete Journal of Accounting and Finance
Board independence
Audit quality
Big4 auditor
Real earnings management
title BOARD INDEPENDENCE, AUDIT QUALITY AND EARNINGS MANAGEMENT AMONG LISTED NON-FINANCIAL COMPANIES IN NIGERIA
title_full BOARD INDEPENDENCE, AUDIT QUALITY AND EARNINGS MANAGEMENT AMONG LISTED NON-FINANCIAL COMPANIES IN NIGERIA
title_fullStr BOARD INDEPENDENCE, AUDIT QUALITY AND EARNINGS MANAGEMENT AMONG LISTED NON-FINANCIAL COMPANIES IN NIGERIA
title_full_unstemmed BOARD INDEPENDENCE, AUDIT QUALITY AND EARNINGS MANAGEMENT AMONG LISTED NON-FINANCIAL COMPANIES IN NIGERIA
title_short BOARD INDEPENDENCE, AUDIT QUALITY AND EARNINGS MANAGEMENT AMONG LISTED NON-FINANCIAL COMPANIES IN NIGERIA
title_sort board independence audit quality and earnings management among listed non financial companies in nigeria
topic Board independence
Audit quality
Big4 auditor
Real earnings management
url https://majaf.com.ng/index.php/majaf/article/view/158
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