Accounting, Auditing & Accountability Journal

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to contribute to an understanding of how auditing standard setting is adapted to changing patterns of resistance at various stages of its development.

Design/methodology/approach – The research is conducted as a longitudinal single case study of the auditing standard-setting activities of the Danish professional body 1970-1978. The case is based on extensive interviews with members of the standard-setting board at that time, supplemented with documentary studies.

Findings – The paper identifies and discusses five general measures to deal with the immanent resistance to auditing standard setting: alignment of interests, representation, due process, soft texts, and reference to ideology. It concludes by analyzing how these strategies are adapted to changing patterns of standard-setting resistance at various stages.

Research limitations/implications – The paper discusses auditing standard setting only. Although resistance to accounting standard setting may be dealt with in the same way, the patterns of resistance are most likely different and the adaptation strategies may therefore also be different.

Practical implications – Presenting insight into the processes of auditing standard setting, the paper is of interest to anyone involved in the process, either as developers or as users.

Originality/value – The paper supplements previous studies of standard setting by applying the Actor-Network Theory approach to auditing standard setting, thereby outlining a new general framework for the study of standard setting.