Ritual and conflict in the audit profession

Conflicts are not new to the auditing profession, but why do they continue to persist? The purpose of this paper is to consider the ritualistic use of the audit process and its supporting standards to mask societal conflicts existing in the auditing environment. We suggest that conflict persists, in part, due to the ritualistic nature of the audit process and its supporting standards. In addition, we suggest that rituals are used to mask conflict in order to maintain social order and to legitimize the Profession's actions. This alternative view provides a new direction for future auditing research.