Influencia de la religiosidad en el escepticismo profesional en auditores independientes en Brasil

This study analyzed the influence of religiosity on professional skepticism among independent auditors in Brazil. An exploratory, quantitative survey was conducted with independent auditors from both Big Four and non-Big Four firms, using a questionnaire distributed through the professional social network LinkedIn®. The questionnaire was developed using Google Forms and comprised 40 items: 5 related to religiosity based on the Durel scale (2010), 30 based on Hurtt’s professional skepticism scale (2010), and 5 demographic questions. The questionnaire was made available via an access link sent to 1,484 independent auditors, resulting in 205 responses. Data analysis was performed using descriptive statistics, Pearson correlation, and simple linear regression. The findings indicate that male auditors exhibit higher levels of professional skepticism, while female auditors scored higher in the trait of judgment suspension and reported higher levels of religiosity. Although religiosity—when considered as an aggregate variable—did not show a statistically significant influence on overall professional skepticism, further analysis revealed that when both religiosity and skepticism are broken down into their specific dimensions, statistically significant relationships emerge between certain aspects of these constructs. These results suggest that the influence of religiosity on skepticism is not uniform but rather varies according to the type of religiosity (organizational, non-organizational, or intrinsic) and the specific dimension of skepticism being considered.