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Accountability, completeness, credibility and the audit expectations gap
journal contribution
posted on 2004-06-22, 00:00 authored by C Adams, R EvansThis article deals with two concerns in achieving greater accountability in social reports: the lack of completeness of reporting, and the lack of credibility of reports. The article focuses, in particular, on the role of social audits in improving the completeness and credibility of reporting, thereby reducing the audit expectations gap. We suggest that this gap arises due to an over-emphasis on the validity of performance data at the expense of addressing completeness and credibility, both of which, we argue, require stakeholder involvement. The article reviews recent guidelines aimed at ensuring that companies produce reports that are complete in all material respects including those produced by the Global Reporting Initiative and the Federation des Experts Comptables Europeens, focusing particularly on AccountAbility's AA1000 Standard and AA1000S Assurance Standard. Finally, the article considers the development of a practical approach to social audit following principles increasingly being incorporated into developing assurance guidelines aimed at reducing the audit expectations gap.
History
Journal
Journal of corporate citizenshipIssue
14Season
SummerPagination
97 - 115Publisher
Greenleaf PublishingLocation
Sheffield, EnglandISSN
1470-5001Language
engPublication classification
C1 Refereed article in a scholarly journalCopyright notice
2004, Greenleaf PublishingUsage metrics
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