Moderating role of board independence on the relationship between auditor’s characteristics and financial reporting timeliness among non-financial service firms in Nigeria
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.33003/fujafr-2026.v4i3.385.18-29Keywords:
Attribution theory, Auditors’ experience, Auditors’ independence, Board governance, Financial reporting timelinessAbstract
Purpose: This study examined the moderation effect of board independence on the relationship between auditor’s characteristics and financial reporting timeliness and the moderating effect of board governance among listed non-financial service firms in Nigeria.
Methodology: The study used expo-facto research design where the secondary data were collected from non-financial service firms listed in the Nigeria Exchange Group. The study used simple random sampling technique to select sixteen (16) firms for the period covering 2018 to 2024 and analysed using descriptive statistics, correlation analysis and Generalized Linear Model Regression (GLM) technique.
Results and Conclusion: The results showed that auditor’s independence has a significant negative effect on financial reporting timeliness in listed service firms in Nigeria auditor’s experience has a significant negative effect on financial reporting timeliness in listed non-financial service firms in Nigeria. On the moderating, it was found that, board independence had no moderating effect on the relationship between auditor’s independence and financial reporting timeliness in listed non-financial service firms in Nigeria. However, board independence had a moderating effect on the relationship between auditor’s experience and financial reporting timeliness in listed non-financial service firms in Nigeria.
Implication of Findings: The finding highlights that auditor independence is a core value of auditor characteristics that enhance early disclosure of accounting information to the users.
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