Professional scepticism
In this video, you'll learn what professional scepticism means in audit and why it's essential to your work under ISA 200.
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In this lesson
- 0:00 Professional scepticism in auditing explained
- 0:20 Questioning mind and critical assessment
- 0:51 Applying scepticism to risk identification
- 1:39 Challenging management without blind acceptance
- 2:28 Evaluating evidence for bias and incentives
- 3:06 Spotting contradictory evidence in accounts
- 4:04 Why judgement-heavy standards need scepticism
About this lesson
Professional scepticism is an attitude—a questioning mind that challenges the plausibility of management's assertions and the source and integrity of evidence, rather than accepting information at face value. You'll discover how to apply it during risk assessment procedures, when evaluating complex subjective areas like provisions, and when deciding how much reliance to place on management's evidence. This skill is increasingly critical for audit quality, particularly given recent corporate failures where insufficient scepticism contributed to audit failures. The video covers practical techniques including challenging management on judgmental matters, being alert to contradictory evidence, and recognising when specialist input is needed to form your own independent view.
Duration: 5m
Transcript
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