The Research On The Anchoring Effects In Audit Pricing

Since the audit services are over-supply and lack of demand, leading to fierce competition in the auditing market, the accounting firm's audit pricing behavior has shown a great degree of irrational mess. With the application of behavioral economics theory in the field of auditing judgment, the research of behavioral economics of audit pricing should also be concerned. However, the domestic and international research in this area is scarce at present.Based on this situation, this paper analyzed the application of the anchoring and adjustment heuristic theory and the prospect theory for the auditing pricing judgment and decision-making. Then, the paper tested the anchoring and adjustment effect during the process of the audit pricing from the point of view of experimental research. First of all, the author analyzed comprehensively the affect weight of every factor of the audit pricing using questionnaires. And then, the author tested several firm's employees in Changsha, Beijing and Shenzhen. The results are as follows: from the firm's point of view, the auditors conclude that the pricing factor from the customers is the largest degree, the factor from the audit market is the second largest degree, and the factor from the accounting firms is the third largest degree; During the auditors make pricing using the anchoring and adjustment heuristic, the standard of pricing developed by the local related departments where the customers inhabit will make the auditors lead to the anchoring effects under risk and uncertain, having a significant impact on the initial pricing; In the ongoing access to new information, pricing will be constantly re-adjust according to the new information on the basis of the initial pricing; The high or low risk degree of the customer and the good or bad situation of the firm's comprehensive evaluation both have a significant impact on auditing pricing; If the risk degree of the customer is high, auditors is very likely to raise the price on the basis of the previous price; On the contrary, it is possible to reduce the price; If the situation of the firm's comprehensive evaluation is good, the price is very likely to be raised on the basis of the previous price; On the contrary, it is possible to reduce the price. Finally, the paper put forward policy proposals for experimental findings.