IT Audit Acceptance Among External Auditors in Saudi Arabia: Mediating Role of IT Audit Importance

In this study the researchers aim to investigate the effect of IT audit self-efficacy, subjective norm, IT facilitating resources on both IT audit importance (perceived usefulness and perceived ease-of-use) and IT Audit utilization among Saudi external auditors. Moreover, the researchers investigate the effect of perceived usefulness and perceived ease-of-use on IT Audit utilization. Furthermore, they investigate the effect of perceived ease-of-use on perceived usefulness. In addition, they examine the mediating effect of IT audit importance between independent variables (IT audit self-efficacy, subjective norm, IT facilitating resources) and dependent variable (IT Audit utilization). To examine the hypotheses, the researchers use quantitative research. The researcher collects the data using a questionnaire survey to which 122 Saudi external auditors responded. They employ the partial least squares in structural equations modelling approach. The results reveal that all direct hypotheses were supported (IT audit self-efficacy, subjective norm, IT facilitating resources have significant impact on both IT audit importance and IT Audit utilization) except the impact of IT audit self-efficacy on IT Audit utilization was not supported. Additionally, the results show that perceived usefulness and perceived ease-of-use positively affects the IT Audit utilization. Furthermore, the results show that perceived ease-of-use positively affects the perceived usefulness. Significantly, the results also show the significant role of IT audit importance as mediation between independent variables (subjective norm, IT facilitating resources) and IT Audit utilization. However, the results indicate that IT audit importance has no mediating role between IT audit self-efficacy and IT audit utilization. The originality of this paper, has several theoretical and practical implications for academicians, policy makers and practitioners.