AUDIT COMMITTEE AND INTEGRATED REPORTING QUALITY: EMPIRICAL EVIDENCE FROM AN EMERGING MARKET

This study aims to investigate the influence of audit committees on integrated reporting quality (IRQ). The characteristics of the audit committee that are taken into consideration include its size, independence, financial expertise, meetings, and audit committee chair expertise. A total sample of 64 companies was considered from 2017 until 2020, which resulted in the generation of 173 integrated reports. IRQ and audit committee data are hand-collected from the integrated reports using the content analysis method. The regression analysis using the Panel Corrected Standard Errors shows that audit committee size, independence, and chair expertise are positively related to integrated reporting quality. Meanwhile, audit committee meetings are found to be negatively associated with integrated reporting quality. The findings of thi study contribute to the existing body of literature in a variety of different ways, and they add to the vigorous discussion about integrated reporting that is taking place in academia and among practitioners. In addition, it is the first study in Malaysia to analyse such a link between audit committee and IRQ.