The auditor-management relationship in a microstate (Malta) : communication barriers

Abstract

The objective of this paper was to examine the major communication issues affecting the auditor-management relationship from the perspective of the microstate of Malta. Altogether twenty senior audit practitioners [A], and twenty financial executives (management [Ml) were interviewed. A number of communication barriers were identified, which included a tendency for the parties not to listen to one another, the managers' lack of understanding of accounting terminology, a mutual lack of feedback, and personality conflicts. One of the factors contributing to these barriers appears to be audit and reporting time pressures, however, the study has also identified the need for both parties to change their defensive attitudes.