Can The Informal Hierarchy of The Board Of Directors Promote The Improvement Of Audit Quality?
Invisible status order based on differences in individual influence and reputation of board members,i.e.,informal hierarchy,may affect or even interfere with the board's supervisory ability,which in turn affects audit quality.Taking China's Shanghai and Shenzhen A-share listed companies from 2009 to 2022 as the research sample,this paper tries to explore the impact of board informal hierarchy on audit quality.It is found that:the informal level of the board of directors can promote audit quality,i.e.,the clearer the informal level of the board of directors is,the higher the audit quality will be;the mechanism test shows that the informal level of the board of directors promotes the audit quality by optimizing the internal control mechanism and alleviating the agency problem.In the heterogeneity analysis,it is found that the informal board hierarchy,which is characterized by political affiliation and social capital,has a more significant effect on audit quality than media attention.Further findings suggest that the audit quality enhancement effect of the informal level of the board of directors stems from the active and intrinsic governance role played by the board of directors and is not realized through the selection of high-quality audit firms.The findings of the article provide a strong theoretical basis and empirical evidence for the continuous optimization of corporate governance and the enhancement of audit quality.
informal board hierarchyaudit qualityinternal control
万方数据
维普
