AUDITOR EVIDENCE EVALUATION - EXPERT-SYSTEMS AS CREDIBLE SOURCES

Seventy-four experienced auditors from four Big-6 public accounting fi rms participated in a study of the effect of expert system use by subo rdinate auditors on superiors' decisions. Superiors were provided with information about a subordinate's decision and were told that the sub ordinate had or had not used an expert system. Superiors reported high er belief likelihoods and agreed more frequently with conclusions prov ided by subordinates who were expert system users, even when those con clusions were wrong. However, superiors' confidence in their own decis ions was not affected by subordinate's use of an expert system.