Role of the External Auditor in Narrowing the Expectations Gap from the Points of View of Individual Investors and Legal Auditors in the Amman Stock Exchange: A Field Study

Abstract

This study aims to identify the role of external auditors in narrowing the expectation gap among independence, fraud, and errors in financial statements, as well as the continuity and privacy of company business checker accounts of individual investors in the Amman Stock Exchange (ASE). A total of 150 questionnaires were distributed to individual investors in the ASE hall of trading. The profile of the individual investors was determined based on 106 questionnaires. Meanwhile, 180 questionnaires were distributed to licensed auditors and 128 of them have been restored. The following conclusions were drawn after conducting the necessary tests on the obtained data.

• There is no effective contribution was made by external auditors in narrowing the expectation gap among independence, fraud, and errors in financial statements, as well as in the continuity among individual investors, legal auditors based on the perspective of individual investors.

•   There is an effective contribution of external auditors was determined in narrowing the expectation gap regarding the privacy of business checker of accounts between individual investors and auditors.

Keywords: Expectation Gap, Independence, Continuity, Privacy of Company Business