Request for Proposals Access to Audit Personnel For Summer 2021

DEADLINE: Thursday, February 4, 2021

The Center for Audit Quality and the Auditing Section of the American Accounting Association request proposals for the Access to Audit Personnel program for the 2021 award cycle. The purpose of this program is to assist scholars in obtaining access to auditor participants for experimental/behavioral research. This program is open to doctoral students as well as assistant, associate, and full professors.

A committee of senior academics and practitioners will evaluate proposals based on the following criteria:

1. Ability to address important research questions that are relevant to practice
2. Ability to contribute to academic literature
3. Methodological soundness
4. Level and extent of resources requested.

All proposals MUST include the most recent version of the study’s data collection protocol/instrument, which should be at an advanced stage of development. Instruments from successful proposals will be subject to further review, which may result in refinements. The expectation is that the CAQ Governing Board firms will administer the data collection protocols between June 1 and August 31, 2021.

Please provide an abstract of no more than 200 words and a proposal of no more than five pages. The proposal should include the following:

• A description of the research question and its importance to practice.
• A description of how the research fits into the existing academic literature.

• A description of predictions, including theory-based explanations underlying the predictions. Please explicitly state the hypotheses that will be tested. Research without specific predictions (e.g., interview, case study, survey) should include a description of how the research relates to theory.
• A description of the proposed methodology, including the research design and key variables, if applicable, and the proposed methods of analysis.
• A description of request for participants, including the number of participants, level of experience (e.g., audit senior, manager, and/or number of years of experience), and any other selection criteria, as well as the estimated time required to complete the data collection protocol. Proposals must specify if additional participants will be required for pilot testing.
• A timeline for data collection, analysis, and report writing.

All proposals should also include the following items, which are not counted against the five-page limit:

• A list of references
• A well-developed research instrument, interview script, survey document, etc.
• Curriculum vitae for all members of the research team

A short video on elements of a successful proposal and a panel discussion at the 2017 AAA Annual Meeting about the Access program can be viewed on the CAQ website. We hope that these videos will assist in the development of successful proposals.

All selected research teams must obtain Institutional Review Board(s) approval prior to data collection. Given short deadlines, it is a good idea to start this process when you submit your protocol. 

Up to eight proposals will be selected for this program in 2021; a portion of these awards will be set aside for doctoral students and tenure-track professors. Those who submit proposals for Access will be notified of the status of their request by the end of April 2021. Researchers who do not receive an Access grant may obtain study participants through other avenues.

The Auditing Section, the CAQ, and its member firms do not fund travel, or any other expenses incurred by the researchers who are selected to participate in this program. Travel and other expenses are the responsibility of the researchers.

Proposals are due by 11:59PM PST, Thursday, February 4, 2021. Academics must complete an online application form and attach their proposal, data collection instrument, and other supporting materials as a single PDF or Word document. The online application form will be accepting submissions beginning December 1, 2020.

Questions should be submitted to Margot Cella, mcella@thecaq.org.