Finally, although this study focuses on identifying change in auditors’ decision
making process, it is limited by the fact that the method used cannot directly
measure the changes that have occurred or have been enacted in audit processes.
Type 1 error rates, the tool of the present study, are measurable outcomes of this
process, indicating changed reporting habits but not specifically what changes
have occurred in the audit process. Future studies may attempt to collect more
direct evidence from audit firms (for example internal policy documents) to identify
whether in fact there is a genuine change in the criteria used for judging the
appropriateness of the GC assumption after 2001.