Gender differences in the auditing stereotype and their influence on the intention to enter the profession

Jou nal o Beha io al and Expe imen al Finance 37 (2023) 100784 Con en s lis s a ailable a ScienceDi ec Jou nal o Beha io al and Expe imen al Finance jou nal homepage: www.else ie .com/loca e/jbe Full leng h a icle Gende di e ences in he audi ing s e eo ype and hei in luence on he in en ion o en e he p o ession Josune Amonda aina,∗, M. Edu ne Aldazabalb, Ma cela Espinosa-Pikea aUni e sidad del País Vasco (UPV/EHU), Facul ad de Economía y Emp esa, A da. Lehendaka i Agi e 83, 48015 Bilbao, Bizkaia, Spain bUni e sidad del País Vasco (UPV/EHU), Facul ad de Economía y Emp esa (Sección Gipuzkoa), Plaza Oña i s/n, 20009 Donos ia, Gipuzkoa, Spain a icle in o A icle his o y: Recei ed 6 June 2022 Recei ed in e ised o m 27 Decembe 2022 Accep ed 28 Decembe 2022 A ailable online 2 Janua y 2023 Keywo ds: Audi ing Gende P o ession S e eo ype Business s uden s abs ac This s udy analyses gende di e ences in he audi ing p o ession s e eo ype and how hese di e ences impac he in en ion o wo k in audi ing. The esul s o he s udy ca ied ou among Spanish business s uden s e eal he exis ence o ele an gende di e ences in he pe cep ion o he audi ing p o ession and how ac o s, such as he pe cep ion o audi ing as a demanding ca ee o he in e es in audi ing wo k, a ec men and women di e en ly in hei in en ion o en e he p o ession. These esul s con ibu e o he audi ing s e eo ype as well as gende li e a u e as e y ew p e ious s udies ha e del ed in o he exis ence o gende di e ences in he audi ing s e eo ype li e a u e. This s udy has ele an implica ions o audi i ms. They may apply di e en s a egies o women and men alen a ac ion and e en ion in hei o ganisa ions, which will educe p esen and u u e olun a y o a ion, and may inc ease he bene i s ha di e si y gene a es in audi i ms. ©2022 The Au ho (s). Published by Else ie B.V. This is an open access a icle unde he CC BY-NC-ND license (h p://c ea i ecommons.o g/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/). 1. In oduc ion Today, a ac ing alen ed p o essionals means inco po a ing di e si y (ACCA,2020) and in pa icula , gende di e si y. The as majo i y o s udies conduc ed in ecen yea s e eal he bene i s o ha ing an inc easing numbe o women in manage- men and decision-making posi ions in companies. These bene i s e e o inc eased p o i abili y and inancial esul s (ACCA,2020; Dhi ,2015;G an Tho on,2019;ILO,2019;Pos and By on, 2015), inc eased inno a ion and c ea i i y (Cox and Blake,1991; Fogelbe g E iksson,2014;Øs e gaa d e al.,2011;Pauli e al., 2020), imp o ed employee ela ions leading o inc eased job sa is ac ion and o ganisa ional commi men (Ghani e al.,2018; La ie a-Rubín de Celis e al.,2015) and e en imp o ed co po a e social esponsibili y (Ben-Ama e al.,2017;By on and Pos ,2016; Fe nandez-Feijoo e al.,2014;Fo migoni e al.,2020). A he local go e nmen le el, a g ea e p esence o emale poli icians educes he isk o deb de aul (Gómez-Mi anda e al.,2022). In he audi ing con ex , he inc easing numbe o women in op posi ions may ha e ele an bene i s in imp o ing se ice quali y (Came an e al.,2018;Ha dies e al.,2016). Women audi- o s show a highe le el o independence (Be na di and A nold, 1997;By nes e al.,1999), mo e p o essional due diligence (Huse ∗Co esponding au ho . E-mail add esses: [email p o ec ed] (J. Amonda ain), [email p o ec ed] (M.E. Aldazabal), [email p o ec ed] (M. Espinosa-Pike). and Solbe g,2006;Jonne gå d e al.,2010;Sweeney e al.,2010), highe p o essional scep icism (Gold e al.,2009), and lowe in- en ions o engage in audi quali y educ ion beha iou s (I o- nen e al.,2013;Khalil and Nehme,2021;Nehme e al.,2021; Neide meye e al.,2003;Sweeney e al.,2010). The li e a u e also sugges s highe audi ing ees when he pa ne is a woman mainly due o emales’ less isk ole ance and less o e con idence, which implies a highe in es men in planning and de eloping he audi se ice (Aguila Ag eda e al.,2019;Ha dies e al.,2015; I onen and Peni,2012). The accoun ing p o ession is awa e o hese bene i s and is y- ing o change he adi ional masculinised iew owa ds a mo e di e se and inclusi e one (Bujaki e al.,2018;Edgley e al.,2016; Pica d e al.,2014). The li e a u e sugges s ha he a ac i eness o he accoun ing p o ession o women has inc eased in ecen yea s (AICPA,2019;ICAC,2018). Many public accoun ing i ms and co po a e o ganisa ions ha e es ablished p og ams and ini ia i es p ima ily designed o a ac , p omo e, and e ain emale accoun ing p o essionals (B oadben and Ki kham,2008;Cohen e al.,2020;Gold e al., 2009;Ko nbe ge e al.,2010). Women ha e achie ed signi ican success in he e y masculine p o ession. Indeed, emale audi o s in audi i ms ep esen nea ly 50% o all employees (AICPA,2019; ICAC,2018;ICJCE,2017). Howe e , males ou numbe women in audi i ms and signi ican ly in leading posi ions (AICPA,2020; B oadben and Ki kham,2008;Damb in and Lambe ,2012; Edgley e al.,2016;FRC,2019;Vidwans and Cohen,2020). Some s udies show ha emale audi ing p o essionals ep esen less h ps://doi.o g/10.1016/j.jbe .2022.100784 2214-6350/©2022 The Au ho (s). Published by Else ie B.V. This is an open access a icle unde he CC BY-NC-ND license (h p://c ea i ecommons.o g/licenses/by- nc-nd/4.0/). J. Amonda ain, M.E. Aldazabal and M. Espinosa-Pike Jou nal o Beha io al and Expe imen al Finance 37 (2023) 100784 han 25% o all pa ne s in audi i ms (AICPA,2020). In Spain, emale audi o s ep esen 18% o indi idual audi o s and 19.5% o pa ne s in audi i ms (ICAC,2021). This si ua ion may be explained no only by he adi ional disc imina ion agains women in audi i ms (Bi bol-Saba and Damb in,2019;Ca negie and Napie ,2010;Dal on e al.,2014; Damb in and Lambe ,2008;Haynes,2017;Koko ,2015) bu also by he idea ha women a e no as in e es ed as men in emaining in he accoun ing p o ession (Nou i and Pa ke ,2020). Indeed, he li e a u e e eals ha women end o lea e he audi p o ession o a highe ex en han men (Dal on e al.,2014;Nou i,2017). The a ac i eness o a p o ession has been s udied h ough he s e eo ype li e a u e. Accoun ing s e eo ypes ha e been widely s udied (A que o and Fe nández-Pol illo,2019;Daous ,2020; Dimnik and Fel on,2006;Du oche e al.,2016;E ans and F ase , 2012;F iedman and Lyne,2001;Jeacle,2008;Pica d e al.,2014; Richa dson e al.,2015;Saemann and C ooke ,1999); howe e , ew ha e ocused on he possibili y o gende di e ences in his s e eo ype (Caglio e al.,2019;Ge sson e al.,2017;Heia e al., 2007;Hun e al.,2009). Fu he , his s udy ocuses on he image o audi o s. In he Spanish con ex , audi o s di e om o he accoun ing p o ession- als as he only pa o he p o ession legally egula ed is audi ing. This implies ha he image o audi o s may di e om o he accoun ing p o essionals. This si ua ion is di e en om o he Eu opean coun ies whe e he accoun ing p o ession as a whole is no only p o essionally bu also legally egula ed. P e ious s udies ha e con i med he in luence o s e eo ypes on he in en ion o join a p o ession (Albu e al.,2011;Lips, 1992;King and Robe ,1968;Saemann and C ooke ,1999;Sang e al.,2009). The e o e, he e is a need o unde s and he gende di e ences in he pe cep ion o he p o ession and hei in luence on indi iduals’ decision o become a p o essional accoun an , which is he main aim o his s udy. This s udy add esses he call made by esea che s (Caglio e al.,2019;Ha dies e al.,2015;Haynes,2017;Khli and Achek, 2017) o conside gende di e ences in accoun ing esea ch. The li e a u e calls o new empi ical s udies ha in es iga e oday’s pe cep ions o he accoun ing p o ession and, in pa icula , em- pi ical esea ch on gende di e ences ega ding he pe cep ions o he images o accoun an s and hei consequences in e ms o he in e es in en e ing he p o ession. Ou esul s e eal a signi ican gende di e ence in he s e eo- ype o he audi ing p o ession, no only conce ning a be e pe cep ion o he p o essionals’ image bu also wi h ega d o emales conside ing audi ing as a mo e in e es ing and mo e p es igious p o ession han males. The s udy p o ides e idence o he in luence o gende on he decision o en e he ield o audi ing. This esea ch has impo an implica ions o he audi ing p o- ession. Unde s anding emale pe cep ions may help he audi ing p o ession and audi i ms de elop s a egies o make audi ing a com o able and a ac i e ca ee o women. In his sense, his may educe he high o a ion ha exis s nowadays, mainly among women, and inc ease he bene i s ha di e si y gene a es in any o ganisa ion’s unc ioning and wo k ou comes. Finally, his pape con ibu es o he gende and job li e a u e as he esul s sugges ha he di icul y o a ca ee , long wo king hou s, a ca ee di icul o achie e, and a s ess ul job, will no p e en women om choosing a p o ession. Howe e , in he case o men he esul s e eal ha hese ac o s a ec nega i ely o hei in en ion o en e ing he p o ession. The es o he documen is s uc u ed as ollows: The sec- ond sec ion de elops he hypo heses. The hi d desc ibes he esea ch me hodology applied, and in he ou h sec ion he esul s ob ained. The las sec ion p esen s he conclusions and ecommenda ions o u u e esea ch. 2. Li e a u e e iew and hypo heses de elopmen 2.1. Gende di e ences in unde g adua e s uden s’ pe cep ion o he audi ing p o ession How people pe cei e a pa icula g oup is e e ed as an s e eo ype. I shows a gene alised belie abou a pa icula g oup o people ha sha e ce ain cha ac e is ics o quali ies (Do idio, 2010). I is he ypical pic u e abou a pa icula social g oup (Lippmann,1922). S e eo ypes simpli y people’s pe sonali ies’ complexi y by gene alising g oups and g oup membe s’ a ibu es and beha iou s conside ed ypical (Hil on and on Hippel,1996). Some p e ious s udies ha e shown ha people ha e an s e eo- yped pe cep ion o accoun an s. The adi ional s e eo ype pe - cei e accoun an s as bo ing and conse a i e (Dimnik and Fel on, 2006;F iedman and Lyne,2001;Hun e al.,2004;Pica d e al., 2014;Richa dson e al.,2015) bu also as us ed and e hical (Bougen,1994;Caglio e al.,2019;Ca negie and Napie ,2010; Daous ,2020;Jeacle,2008;Nga and Wai Mun,2013). Some ecen s udies sugges ha he image o accoun ing p o essionals is changing owa ds a mul idisciplina y p o essional being seen no jus as igo ous and e hical bu also as an e ec i e manage , leade , and decision-make (Daous ,2020;Pica d e al.,2014). Mos o he p e ious s udies on accoun ing s e eo ypes ha e no del ed in o gende di e ences in he pe cep ion o he ac- coun ing/audi ing p o ession. Howe e , a pa o hem ha e done i , and mos ha e ound ha women show a mo e posi i e iew o he p o ession han males (By ne and Willis,2005;Caglio e al., 2019;Caglio and Came an,2017;Hun e al.,2009;Ma io and Ma io ,2003). These esul s could be explained by he social ole heo y (Eagly,1987). Resea ch on gende s e eo ypes has con i med he exis ence o socially cons uc ed ules ega ding di e ences in male and emale beha iou . These gende oles may in o m us di e en ly abou how men and women pe cei e o he s (Winquis e al.,1998). The pe cep ion o o he s is no only caused by he a ge , bu also by he cha ac e is ics o he pe cei e , which a e a leas as impo an as he cha ac e is ics o he a ge (Winquis e al.,1998;Xie e al.,2019). The li e a u e e eals ha he ex en o which pe cei e s and a ge cha ac e is ics con ibu e o he p ocess o imp ession o ma ion a ies sys ema ically ac oss gende and acial bounda ies (Winquis e al.,1998;Wood e al., 2010;Xie e al.,2019). Based on social ole heo y, li e a u e sugges s ha social oles and gende ole expec ancies lead o gende di e ences in pe cep ions and, in pa icula , ha due o emales’ communal ole, women will pe cei e o he s mo e a ou able (Winquis e al.,1998). This leads us o conside ha he e could be gende di e ences in he pe cep ion o he audi ing p o ession. Conside ing his social ole heo y and p e ious s udies on accoun ing s e eo ypes, we s a e he ollowing hypo hesis: H1: The e a e gende di e ences in he audi ing p o ession s e eo- ype. 2.2. Gende di e ences in he in en ion o en e he audi ing p o es- sion S e eo ypes li e a u e a i ms ha one g oup’s pe cep ion may de e mine he in e es in belonging o ha pa icula g oup. In his way, public a i ude owa ds he a ac i eness o a p o es- sion is in luenced by s e eo ypes (Albu e al.,2011;Fe nández e al.,2006;Powell e al.,2012;Saemann and C ooke ,1999;Sang e al.,2009). Gende is pa icula ly a ec ed by occupa ional seg ega ion, which means ha he wo k a ea o ield is gende speci ic (Adisa e al.,2021) and p oduces an unequal dis ibu ion o males and emales among di e en occupa ions. 2 J. Amonda ain, M.E. Aldazabal and M. Espinosa-Pike Jou nal o Beha io al and Expe imen al Finance 37 (2023) 100784 Accoun ing as a p o ession has adi ionally been iewed as a male-domina ed p o ession (Del Baldo e al.,2019;Haynes,2017; Jackling and Cale o,2006;Ki kham,1992;Whi e and Whi e, 2006), whe e women ha e been disc imina ed agains (Bi bol- Saba and Damb in,2019;Ca negie and Napie ,2010;Damb in and Lambe ,2008;G ey,1998;Haynes,2017;Lupu,2012). These iews may in luence iden i y and discou age women om en e - ing he p o ession (Haines e al.,2016;Piosik e al.,2019). Acco ding o he social ole heo y (Eagly,1987), gende iden- i ies and di e ences a e acqui ed by men and women as a esul o socialisa ion, de i ed om he disc epan dis ibu ion o men and women in social oles, bo h a home and wo k (Eagly,1987,1997;Koenig and Eagly,2014). Gende s e eo ypes desc ibe socially p e ailing belie s abou he cha ac e is ics and a ibu es associa ed wi h each sex (Be nd and Helle ,1986; Heilman,2012). These s e eo ypes a ec people’s expec a ions p io o en y in o he wo k o ce (Che yan e al.,2013;Sang e al., 2009). The accoun ing and audi ing p o essions a e mo e linked o masculine alues, inhibi ing eminine quali ies (B oadben ,1998). When a p o ession is ypically masculine, women may pe cei e a ‘lack o i ’ be ween hei a ibu es and hose equi ed o succeed in he occupa ion and i s o ganisa ional posi ions (Heilman,1983, 2012;S eele,1997). This may explain ha women sel -alloca e o occupa ions wi h which hey iden i y (Ake lo and K an on, 2010). Howe e , some s udies e eal ha he gende o he s uden does no a ec he in en ion o become an accoun an (Jackling and Cale o,2006;Sugaha a e al.,2009). Indeed, mo e emales ypically choose male occupa ions han males ypically choose women’s occupa ions (Simpson,2005;Twenge,1997,2001). Ex- pec ed beha iou s a e changing o a less no ma i e model, and women a e shi ing o beha ing acco ding o indi idual choices a he han cul u al no ms (Haines e al.,2016;Khilji and Pum oy, 2019). This easoning leads us o p opose he ollowing hypo hesis: H2: The e a e no gende di e ences in he in en ion o become an audi o . P e ious esea ch sugges s ha males end o s e eo ype mo e in hei judgmen s abou occupa ions han emales (Cla ke,1990; Jessell and Beyme ,1992). Lips (1992) s udied he scien is s e eo- ype and i s in luence on women and men’s academic and o- ca ional choices. The pe cep ion o he sociabili y o scien is s in luences bo h g oups in he pu sui o he scien is ca ee . Howe e , he s e eo ype had a lowe in luence on women’s in en ion o pu sue he ca ee han in he case o men, indica ing ha he in luence o he p o ession’s s e eo ype on academic and oca ional choices seems o be lowe in he case o women. In he pa icula case o he accoun ing p o ession, Caglio e al. (2019) and Hun e al. (2009) ound simila esul s and concluded ha he nega i e ep esen a ion o he accoun an s e eo ype has a lowe in luence on women’s han men’s in en ion o en e he accoun ing p o ession. Taking in o accoun hese lines o esea ch, we s a e he ol- lowing hypo hesis: H3: The e a e gende di e ences in he in luence o he audi ing s e eo ype on he in en ion o become an audi o . 3. Resea ch me hodology 3.1. Da a collec ion The s udy sample comp ises unde g adua e s uden s in he hi d and ou h yea s o hei deg ee, om 21 Spanish Economic and Business Highe Ins i u ions. The da a we e collec ed h ough a su ey o Business Adminis a ion, Finance and Accoun ing, Double deg ee in Business Adminis a ion and Law, Economics, Finance and Insu ance, Comme ce, Double deg ee in Business Adminis a ion and Compu e Enginee ing, Managemen o SMEs and Ma ke ing unde g adua e s uden s. They we e chosen as he sample o his s udy because hey may ha e some knowledge abou he accoun ing p o ession and hey a e possible p ospec s o he p o ession. In Spain, he deg ees ela ed o economics and business a e he mos common ones o en e he p o ession. Indeed, he deg ee ha has lead adi ionally o he accoun ing p o ession is he Business adminis a ion one (A que o-Mon año e al.,2009). App oxima ely 760 ques ionnai es we e dis ibu ed, and we ob ained 656 alid esponses. 3.2. ope a ionalisa ion o he a iables A li e a u e e iew conduc ed o ind a iables o measu e audi o s e eo ypes e ealed h ee app oaches o e lec a ious aspec s o he audi ing p o ession: The independen a iables consis on h ee app oaches o he audi ing s e eo ype e ealed by p e ious li e a u e: audi ing p o ession o ca ee , audi o s’ wo k, and he audi o s hemsel es (Bekoe e al.,2018;Caglio e al.,2019;Espinosa-Pike e al.,2021; Ge sson e al.,2017;Jackling e al.,2012;Ma io and Ma io , 2003;Mcdowall and Jackling,2010;Richa dson e al.,2015). Audi ing ca ee . I e e s o he pe cep ion o audi ing as a p o essional ca ee . The ins umen includes 7 i ems ela ed o he oppo uni ies ha he audi ing ca ee o e s o p o essional de elopmen and o he s ela ed o he di icul y o succeeding in he ca ee . These we e selec ed based on ins umen s p e i- ously used in he academic li e a u e on accoun ing and audi ing (Ge sson e al.,2017;Ma io and Ma io ,2003;Mcdowall and Jackling,2010). Audi ing wo k. This scale included 10 i ems ela ed o he kind o wo k audi o s ca y ou , which was de i ed om p e ious s udies (Bekoe e al.,2018;Jackling e al.,2012;Ma io and Ma io ,2003;Mcdowall and Jackling,2010). Audi o s’ image. This a iable conce ns audi o image as in- elligen , bo ing, in e es ing, us y, and so on. This 16 i ems scale was d awn om p e ious s udies o accoun an s e eo ypes (Caglio and Came an,2017;Nga and Wai Mun,2013). The inal ques ionnai e con ained 33 ques ions ela ed o he audi ing ca ee , audi ing wo k, and audi o image. Pa icipan s had o indica e hei ag eemen wi h di e en ques ions using a Like scale anging om 1 o 5, whe e 1 indica ed ‘comple ely disag ee’, and 5 indica ed ‘comple ely ag ee’. The o iginal language o he i ems included in he ques ion- nai e was English. The i ems om he ques ionnai e we e ans- la ed in o Spanish by he au ho s and hey we e es ed among people om he popula ion o in e es o ensu e ha he e was no mis ansla ions o be adjus ed. A e his p ocess, he ques- ionnai e was dis ibu ed among he sample. 3.3. Responden s’ cha ac e is ics In o al, 656 esponses we e examined in his s udy. The gene al cha ac e is ics o he esponden s a e lis ed in Table 1. Responden s’ a e age age was 23 yea s, and 61% o he sample was emale. As can be seen in Table 1, s uden s we e en olled in di e en deg ees ela ed o business and economics. In pa icula , 69% o he s uden s we e en olled in Business Adminis a ion, 18% in Finance and Accoun ing, 9% in Double deg ee in Business Adminis a ion and Law, and 4% in o he deg ees. In his las ca ego y (O he s), we ha e included s uden s en olled in Finance and Insu ance, Comme ce, Economics, Double deg ee in Business Adminis a ion and Compu e Enginee ing, SME Managemen , and Ma ke ing. 3 J. Amonda ain, M.E. Aldazabal and M. Espinosa-Pike Jou nal o Beha io al and Expe imen al Finance 37 (2023) 100784 Table 1 Cha ac e is ics o pa icipan s. Gende N % Male 257 39% Female 399 61% Age N % Mean: 23.17 <21 yea s 28 4% 21–24 yea s 507 77% 25–30 yea s 99 15% >31 yea s 22 4% Deg ee N % Business Adminis a ion 454 69.2% Finance and Accoun ing 120 18,3 Double deg ee Business Adminis a ion and Law 58 8,8 O he s 24 3.7% To al 656 100% 3.4. Resea ch design Using he p incipal componen analysis echnique, we educed he 33 i ems ha cap u e he image o audi ing and i s p o- essionals in o 8 ac o s. Then, in o de o de ec di e ences be ween male and emale s uden s in he pe cep ion o he audi ca ee , audi p o essionals and he wo k hey do, we ca ied ou a compa ison be ween he means o he 8 ac o s o bo h g oups. Be o e ca ying ou he - es , we pe o med he Le enne es o iden i y he p esence o homoscedas ici y. In his way we we e able o e i y whe he hypo hesis 1 is ul illed. Nex , we pe o med a Chi-squa e es o de ec whe he he e a e di e ences be ween male and emale s uden s in he in en- ion o en e he p o ession and hus alida e ou hypo hesis 2. Finally, o es ou hi d hypo hesis and o examine whe he male and emale s uden s we e in luenced di e en ly by hei pe cep ions o he p o ession and audi p o essionals in hei decision o en e he p o ession, we cons uc ed successi e bi- na y logis ic eg ession models. The dependen a iable was he in en ion o en e he p o ession, a dummy a iable wi h yes o no answe s. The ini ial independen a iables we e gende and he 8 ac o s ob ained p e iously. Nex , we buil he same model spli ing he sample in o men and women, in o de o iden i y di e ences in hei beha iou . Finally, we cons uc ed a model inco po a ing he in e ac ions be ween he a iables and gende o iden i y whe he he obse ed di e ences we e signi ican . In o de o ca y ou he bina y logis ic eg ession, we selec ed hose s uden s who answe ed a i ma i ely o nega i ely o he ques ion abou hei in en ion o en e audi ing. We disca ded hose who did no answe o hose who exp essed doub s abou he answe , which ep esen ed 33.4% o he o al sample. O he emaining s uden s, only hose who answe ed he 33 i ems used o cons uc he ac o s in he p incipal componen analysis we e inally included. Those who did no answe any i em we e excluded om he inal sample. The selec ed cases included in he logis ic eg ession analysis we e 192: 77 males and 115 emales. 4. Resul s 4.1. Explo a o y ac o analysis As a p elimina y s ep, o s udy he ela ionship be ween he pe cep ion o he audi p o ession and he in en ion o en e he p o ession, we conduc ed an explo a o y ac o analysis in o de o educe he numbe o a iables ha collec in o ma ion abou he s e eo ype in o a smalle numbe o unde lying ac o s. The e was a high co ela ion among a iables o each g oup o i ems; he ela ionship among a iables was s ong. The co ela ion ma- ix de e minan was close o ze o, Ba le ’s es o Sphe ici y p- alue<0.001, and he Kaise –Meye –Olkin (KMO) measu e o sampling adequacy was highe han 0.7. These sample adequacy es s indica e ha he da a a e adequa e o he ac o ed analysis. The esul s o a p incipal componen ac o analysis using he Va imax o a ion a e shown in Table 2. All ac o s comp ised a leas h ee i ems, and all o hem we e loaded abo e 0.5 o each ac o . C onbach’s alpha o all componen s exceeds he alue o 0.6. Acco ding o Loewen hal and Lewis (2001), C onbach’s alpha coe icien s o app oxima ely 0.60 a e conside ed accep able o scales con aining ewe han 10 i ems. Wi h espec o he audi ing ca ee , he esul s o a p inci- pal componen ac o analysis e ealed wo ac o s (P o essional de elopmen and Demanding ca ee ) ha explain nea ly 63% o he a iance wi h eigen alues g ea e han one. P o essional de elopmen comp ises ou i ems e lec ing oppo uni ies o p o essional de elopmen du ing an audi ing ca ee . Demanding ca ee included h ee i ems ela ed o he di icul y and s ess o he ca ee . Wi h espec o audi ing wo k, he ac o solu ion o he p in- cipal componen ac o analysis e ealed ha h ee ac o s had eigen alues g ea e han one. These h ee ac o s accoun ed o 65% o he a iance. The i s ac o , igo ous/ esponsibili y in- cludes h ee i ems p esen ing audi ing wo k as igo ous and esponsibili y-d i en. The second ac o , soli a y, e ol es a ound he pe cep ion o audi o s’ wo k as in ol ing s ic compliance o ules and being soli a y. The hi d ac o , in e es ing, includes ou i ems e e ing o audi ing as an in e es ing ac i i y ha con ibu es o socie y. Finally, conce ning he audi o ’s image, he ac o analysis esul s e ealed ha h ee ac o s had eigen alues g ea e han 1. These h ee ac o s accoun ed o nea ly 58% o he a iance. The i s ac o , compe en , includes se en i ems e lec ing audi o s’ compe ence and skills. Fac o 2, e hical, includes six i ems ha e e o audi o s as e hical, us wo hy, and complian wi h he law. The hi d ac o , nega i e image, e ol es a ound some audi o s’ nega i e pe cep ions, such as bo ing people o easily in luenced. 4.2. Gende di e ences in audi ing s e eo ype and in en ion o en e he p o ession Once he ac o s desc ibing he audi o s e eo ype was con- s uc ed, he di e ences be ween men and women a e p e- sen ed in Table 3. Le enne’s es was ca ied ou o de ec non- homoscedas ici y and o adjus he - es . The esul s ob ained wi h he - es e ealed ha he e we e gende di e ences in he ac o s ela ed o audi o s e eo ype. Wi h espec o he audi ing ca ee , he esul s e ealed gende signi ican di e ences. In pa icula , women showed a signi ican posi i e di e ence in he pe cep ion o audi ing as a ca ee ha o e s p o essional de elopmen . Women had be e pe cep ion o he oppo uni ies o p o essional de elopmen , o he possibili y o achie ing an excellen long- e m sala y and a good p o es- sional aining, and highe pe cep ion o audi ing as a p es igious p o ession han men. The esul s also e ealed gende di e ences wi h espec o audi wo k. In pa icula , women showed a signi ican posi i e di e ence in he pe cep ion o audi ing as an in e es ing wo k. Women had be e pe cep ion o he a ie y o asks ha he audi ing wo k implies, and hei con ibu ion o socie y han men. Finally, wi h espec o audi o ’s image, he e we e also signi - ican gende di e ences. In his sense, women showed a signi - ican posi i e di e ence in he pe cep ion o audi o ’s image as 4 J. Amonda ain, M.E. Aldazabal and M. Espinosa-Pike Jou nal o Beha io al and Expe imen al Finance 37 (2023) 100784 Table 2 PCA Ro a ed componen ma ix. Ro a ion me hod: Va imax. Fac o Audi ing ca ee 1 2 P o essional de elopmen Audi ing ca ee o e s good p o essional aining 0.789 0.270 Audi ing is a p es igious p o ession 0.774 0.159 Audi ing ca ee o e s g ea oppo uni ies o p o essional de elopmen 0.757 0.020 The audi ing ca ee o e s he possibili y o achie ing a good long- e m sala y 0.699 0.371 Demanding ca ee Audi ing is a e y s ess ul job 0.015 0.836 In he audi ing ca ee , many hou s a e wo ked 0.238 0.778 The audi ing ca ee is di icul o achie e 0.392 0.576 % o a iance explained 35.62% 26.74% C onbach’s Alpha 0.73 0.63 Audi ing wo k 1 2 3 Rigo ous/Responsibili y Audi ing implies g ea esponsibili y 0.830 −0.091 0.194 Audi ing is a e y p ecise ac i i y ha wo ks he in o ma ion in dep h 0.808 −0.014 0.251 Audi ing in ol es e y s uc u ed wo k, ollowing e y de ined p ocesses 0.804 0.113 0.156 Soli a y Audi o s a e numbe -c unche s; hey seldom wo k wi h people −0.031 0.845 0.001 Audi o s wo k alone mo e han hey wo k wi h people 0.058 0.836 −0.163 Audi ing in ol es a lo o ixed ules; i does no in ol e concep ual skills o judgmen −0.005 0.818 0.11 In e es ing Audi ing in ol es a a ie y o asks 0.069 −0.027 0.769 Audi ing is in e es ing 0.135 0.050 0.736 Audi ing equi es wo king as a eam 0.284 −0.170 0.652 Audi ing con ibu es signi ican ly o socie y 0.390 0.095 0.637 % o a iance explained 22.48% 21.46% 21.28% C onbach’s Alpha 0.78 0.79 0.70 Audi o s image 1 2 3 Compe en Audi o s ha e p es ige 0.729 0.182 0.000 Audi o s a e ambi ious 0.698 −0.011 0.124 Audi o s ha e leade ship abili y 0.689 0.215 0.145 Audi o s a e achie e s 0.668 0.271 0.239 Audi o s a e in elligen 0.664 0.196 −0.105 Audi o s a e expe s 0.663 0.251 −0.216 Audi o s a e ha d wo ke s 0.652 0.313 −0.177 E hical Audi o s beha e e hically 0.213 0.807 −0.073 Audi o s comply wi h he law 0.255 0.754 −0.143 Audi o s a e hones 0.182 0.753 0.001 Audi o s a e us wo hy 0.311 0.728 −0.142 Audi o s a e inco up ible 0.024 0.704 0.199 Audi o s a e awa e o hei du y 0.416 0.604 −0.151 Nega i e Image Audi o s do no ha e social skills −0.046 0.163 0.781 Audi o s a e easily in luenced 0.145 −0.138 0.736 Audi o s a e bo ing people −0.058 −0.064 0.707 % o a iance explained 22.96% 22.38% 12.02% C onbach’s Alpha 0.81 0.84 0.66 compe en . Women pe cei ed audi o s as ha de wo ke s, mo e expe and in elligen , mo e ambi ious and p es igious, and wi h highe leade ship abili y han did males. Fu he , women had a signi ican ly lowe pe cep ion o a nega i e image o audi o s as bo ing o lacking in social skills han did males. The esul s suppo he con i ma ion o hypo hesis 1, which s a es ha he e a e gende di e ences in he audi ing p o ession s e eo ype. Conce ning he in en ion o en e he audi ing p o ession, he esul s shown in Table 4 e eal ha nea ly 35% o he pa icipan s did no in end o wo k as audi o s, while almos 31% in ended o do so. Fu he , he esul s show ha he e a e no gende di e ences in his in en ion. This leads us o accep hypo hesis 2. 4.3. Logis ic eg ession This sec ion es s he hi d hypo hesis de eloped in his s udy using logis ic eg ession. The dependen a iable is he in en ion o en e he audi ing p o ession, aking wo alues: yes o no. The independen a iables a e he eigh ac o s ob ained om he p incipal componen analysis: p o essional de elopmen , de- manding ca ee , igo ous wo k, soli a y wo k, in e es ing wo k, compe en , e hical and nega i e image, and gende . The esul s a e p esen ed in Table 5. The esul s showed ha he pe cep ion o audi ing in luences he in en ion o en e he p o ession. Indeed, h ee ac o s con- i m his in luence. In pa icula , he a iable ha has he g ea es in luence on he in en ion o wo k in audi ing is he pe cep ion o 5 J. Amonda ain, M.E. Aldazabal and M. Espinosa-Pike Jou nal o Beha io al and Expe imen al Finance 37 (2023) 100784 Table 3 Desc ip i e s a is ics and independence es . Table 4 In en ion o wo k in audi ing. F equencies and Chi Squa e es . Table 5 Bina y logis ic eg ession models. Va iables in he equa ion N= 192 Male N=77 Female N= 115 Sig. Exp(B) 95% C.I. o EXP(B) Sig. Exp(B) 95% C.I. o EXP(B) Sig. Exp(B) 95% C.I. o EXP(B) Lowe Uppe Lowe Uppe Lowe Uppe In en ion o en e ing he audi ing p o ession (Yes) Gende (Female) .569 0.798 .366 1.737 P o essional De elopmen .594 1.189 .630 2.243 .374 1.669 .539 5.167 .757 1.148 .479 2.752 Demanding ca ee **/**/ .028 0.600 .381 .946 .035 0.416 .184 .941 .413 0.789 .448 1.391 Rigo ous/Responsibili y demanding .429 1.240 .728 2.114 .415 0.637 .215 1.884 .075 1.843 .940 3.611 Soli a y .296 1.283 .804 2.048 .879 0.943 .445 1.998 .158 1.574 .839 2.953 In e es ing***/**/*** <.001 4.455 2.434 8.153 .029 3.383 1.129 10.134 <.001 5.594 2.420 12.935 Compe en .361 1.301 .740 2.287 .436 1.465 .561 3.825 .797 1.111 .497 2.486 E hical .095 1.482 .934 2.352 .109 1.860 .871 3.969 .498 1.244 .661 2.342 Nega i e Image***// .030 0.601 .379 .952 .144 0.562 .260 1.218 .057 0.551 .298 1.019 Cons an .532 1.175 .576 2.730 .400 1.329 .659 1.128 Cox & Snell R238.2% 39.7% 42.1% Nagelke ke R251.1% 53.0% 56.7% Hosme and Lemeshow Tes Sig. = 0.507 Sig. = 0.428 Sig. =0.854 Classi ica ion% 79.6% 77.6% 80.9% The e e ence ca ego y is: NO in en ion. Signi icance ** p<0.05 *** p<0.01. audi ing as in e es ing wo k. In his sense, he p obabili y o being willing o wo k in audi ing mul iplies 4.4 imes when audi ing is conside ed in e es ing. On he con a y, he in en ion o wo k in audi ing dec eases by nea ly 40% when audi ing is seen as a di icul ca ee and when he image o he audi o s is a nega i e one. Gende was no a signi ican a iable in his decision. How- e e , as he esul s o he s uden ’s - es e ealed signi ican gende di e ences in he pe cep ion o he audi ing ca ee , audi - ing wo k, and audi o ’s image, we may guess ha he ac o s ha in luence he decision may be di e en o males and emales. In an a emp o iden i y hese di e ences, we pe o med a sep- a a e logis ic eg ession o males and emales. The esul s a e p esen ed in Table 5. The esul s e ealed ha he signi ican ac o s o he in en- ion o wo k in audi ing a e no he same o males and emales. 6 J. Amonda ain, M.E. Aldazabal and M. Espinosa-Pike Jou nal o Beha io al and Expe imen al Finance 37 (2023) 100784 Table 6 Bina y logis ic eg ession model wi h he in e ac ion o gende and in e es ing wo k, and gende and demanding ca ee *. Va iables in he equa ion Sig. Exp(B) In en ion o en e ing he audi ing p o ession (Yes) Gende (Female) .528 P o essional De elopmen .661 Demanding ca ee .004 Rigo ous/Responsibili y demanding .319 Soli a y .303 In e es ing .001 Compe en .422 E hical .146 Nega i e Image .025 Female and Demanding ca ee ** .030 2.645 Female and in e es ing wo k .978 1.016 Cons an .223 Cox & Snell R239.9% Nagelke ke R253.5% Hosme and Lemeshow Tes Sig. = 0.217 Classi ica ion% 79.6% The e e ence ca ego y is NO in en ion. Signi icance: ** p<0.05. Demanding ca ee and in e es ing ac o s a e signi ican o males’ in en ion o wo k in audi ing while only he in e es ing ac o a ec s emales’ in en ion. Fu he , o emales, he in luence o he pe cep ion o audi ing wo k as in e es ing on he in en ion o en e he audi ing p o ession is highe han o males. To iden i y an in e ac ion e ec , we de eloped a bina y logis ic eg ession wi h wo mo e independen a iables, he in e ac ion be ween gende and in e es ing wo k and he in e ac ion be ween gende and demanding ca ee . The esul s a e p esen ed in Table 6. The esul s in Table 6 show he signi ican ele ance o he in e ac ion be ween gende and he pe cep ion o he audi ing ca ee as a demanding one. In pa icula , he esul s show ha he pe cep ion o audi ing as a demanding ca ee is only signi ican o males in hei in en ion o wo k in audi ing and no o e- males. Howe e , he in e ac ion be ween gende and in e es ing wo k does no signi ican ly ela e o he in en ion o wo k in audi ing. These esul s con i m ou hypo hesis 3, which s a es ha he e a e gende di e ences in he in luence o he audi ing s e eo ype on he in en ion o become an audi o . 5. Discussion o he esul s and conclusions This s udy analyses he cu en pe cep ion o he audi ing p o ession s e eo ype on he pa o hose who ha e o decide hei ca ee in hei nea u u e and he possible exis ence o gende di e ences in his pe cep ion. Fu he , his pape del es in o how hese di e ences in luence he indi iduals’ in en ion o en e ing he p o ession. The esul s ob ained in his s udy sugges ha a nega i e iew o he p o ession can be o e come. Unde g adua e business s uden s ha e a posi i e iew o he audi ing p o ession. S u- den s conside audi ing a g ea esponsibili y ha in ol es e y s uc u ed and p ecise wo k ca ied ou by expe , in elligen , and us wo hy people. Fu he , hey iew audi ing as o e ing he possibili y o achie ing a good long- e m sala y and as a p es igious ca ee wi h good oppo uni ies o p o essional de- elopmen . Ou esul s also e eal he pe cep ion o audi ing as a demanding and s ess ul ca ee equi ing long hou s o wo k. The esul s ob ained e eal he exis ence o gende di e ences in he pe cep ion o he audi ing p o ession. The di e ences ex- is in he pe cep ion o he audi ing ca ee , audi ing wo k, and audi o s’ image. Al hough bo h gende s show a good pe cep ion o he p o ession, hese esul s con i m p e ious esea ch whe e emales show a be e pe cep ion han males (By ne and Willis, 2005;Hun e al.,2009;Ma io and Ma io ,2003;Mcdowall and Jackling,2010). Howe e , con a y o wha could be expec ed, his be e pe cep ion does no imply a highe willingness o en e he p o ession among emales. The esul s e eal ha he ac o s ha in luence his in en ion di e be ween males and emales. Bo h gende s a e highly in luenced by hei in en ion o wo k in he audi ing ield due o hei in e es in he wo k, which is a ele an esul ha could be aken in o accoun in he a ac ion and e en ion policies. P e ious s udies (ACCA and IFAC,2021; A que o-Mon año e al.,2009;Bebbing on e al.,1997;By ne e al.,2012;Nelson e al.,2008) conclude ha he ocus o he a ac ion o he accoun ing p o ession has been placed on he possibili ies o p o essional de elopmen , sala y, a ailabili y o jobs, he p es ige o he p o ession, and ele ance o he aining ecei ed in he audi ing con ex . Howe e , ou s udy e eals ha unde g adua e business s uden s place a highe ele ance on ques ions such as he a ie y o asks in he audi ing wo k, he in e es in he wo k i sel , wo king as a eam, and he p o ession’s con ibu ion o socie y. Ou esul s con i m p e ious li e a u e abou he nega i e in- luence o pe cei ing audi ing p o essionals as bo ing and lacking social skills on he in en ion o wo k in he audi ing p o ession (A que o and Fe nández-Pol illo,2019;He manson e al.,1995; Saemann and C ooke ,1999). The hi d ac o ha nega i ely in luences he p o ession’s a - ac i eness is he pe cep ion o audi ing as a demanding ca ee . Howe e , his in luence is no he same o bo h gende s. The esul s e ealed a lack o in luence in he case o emales. I could ha e been expec ed in he audi ing con ex and, in gene al, in he business con ex , ha he di icul y o a ca ee , which implies long wo king hou s, a ca ee di icul o achie e, and a s ess ul job, will p e en women om en e ing he p o ession mainly because o he di icul y o achie e a wo k-li e balance in such jobs. Howe e , ou esul s do no suppo his hypo hesis. On he con a y, his di icul y p e en s male s uden s om wo king in audi ing, bu no emale s uden s. This is a ele an esul no p e iously s udied. These esul s ha e ele an implica ions o he audi ing p o- ession and he policies ha could be implemen ed o a ac and e ain he bes alen . I is key o de eloping success ul s a egies o alen a ac ion and e en ion in audi i ms o know he ac o s ha in luence he willingness o en e he p o ession and how hese ac o s a ec di e en ly o women and men’s in en- ion. The ele ance o he in e es in he audi ing wo k s esses 7 J. Amonda ain, M.E. Aldazabal and M. Espinosa-Pike Jou nal o Beha io al and Expe imen al Finance 37 (2023) 100784 he necessi y o ocus a en ion on he p ospec s o lea ning abou he a ie y o asks pe o med in he audi ing con ex , eamwo k, and he p o ession’s con ibu ion o socie y, which a e ele an ac o s o bo h gende s. This is mo e impo an han e e o educe he isk o a sho age o p o essionals in he nea u u e (Geo ge and Wallio,2017;Ge sson e al.,2017;Hall and Smi h, 2009;Hil ebei el and Leauby,2001;Johnson and Pike,2018; Nou i and Pa ke ,2020;Smi h e al.,2020). Fu he , he esul s sugges ha he ele ance o s ess and long hou s and he di icul y o he audi ing ca ee on male in en- ion o en e he p o ession, bu no emale, has o be conside ed in he s a egies o alen managemen in audi ing i ms and he p o ession in gene al. I seems ha he p ejudices owa ds a lowe emale commi men o he audi ing p o ession o he audi ing i m due o his di icul y a e no suppo ed. This does no p e en women om wo king in audi ing, bu i does p e en men. This sugges s ha he s a egies may need o be di e en o bo h gende s. Fu u e esea ch could del e in o gende di e ences on he ac o s ha a ec he a ac i eness o he p o ession o con i m o suppo ou esul s. These s udies could be done in o he cul u al con ex s and wi h di e en samples comp ising unde - g adua e s uden s om ma hema ics o compu e s deg ees, as hese s uden s can also be p ospec i e audi ing p o essionals. Fu u e esea ch could s udy gende di e ences in how young audi o s deal wi h he di icul y o hei ca ee , he long hou s, o he s ess in he audi ing con ex . This s udy has se e al limi a ions. Unde g adua e business s uden s a e jus pa o he po en ial p ospec s o he accoun ing p o ession. The e o e, he esul s migh be biased by he pe cep- ion o his sample. Fu he , as s e eo ypes seem o be in luenced by cul u e, ou esul s may no be gene alised o o he cul u al con ex s. The ques ionnai e me hodology employed in he s udy implies ha he da a o bo h he p edic o and dependen a i- ables we e ga he ed om he same sou ce. This condi ion is belie ed o cause po en ial p oblems o common me hod bias, which can in luence he esea ch esul s. We use p ocedu es as sepa a ing he measu emen s o he a iables and employing di e en scale ancho s o educe he e ec s o me hod bias. Compliance wi h e hical s anda ds Resea ch In ol ing Human Pa icipan s All p ocedu es we e in acco dance wi h he e hical s anda ds o he ins i u ional and na ional esea ch commi ees and wi h he 1964 Decla a ion o Helsinki and i s la e amendmen s. CRediT au ho ship con ibu ion s a emen Josune Amonda ain: Concep ualiza ion, Me hodology, Fo - mal analysis, W i ing. M. Edu ne Aldazabal: Concep ualiza ion, In es iga ion, Visualiza ion. 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