The effect of electronic audit environments on performance

This study reports the results of an experiment that examines the impact of electronic work environments on auditor performance. It builds on research that has found that electronic work environments are more cognitively demanding than traditional paper environments and, thus, negatively impact performance. Forty-eight auditors with an average of 78 months of audit experience from one Big Four accounting firm participated. Auditors in the electronic work environment were less able to identify seeded errors and to use them properly in evaluating loan covenants than auditors in the traditional paper environment. Given these findings, suggestions are made as to how to maximize auditor performance in an electronic work environment.