In general terms, ‘explanation’ and ‘prediction’ are fundamental values of any theory because they allow the development of an understanding of actions and their consequences for the environment: explaining the way the world works and the effects of the theory’s predictions on the user. With regard to auditing, explanation means suggesting reasons for the practices observed, whereas prediction makes it possible to anticipate unobserved auditing phenomena. Unobserved phenomena in auditing may include those events that have occurred but for which systematic audit evidence has not been collected.
The practical experience of auditors is a factor in elaborating the audit function but this will be conditioned by the particularities of the cases and the environments in which they have occurred. Theoretical implications and empirical testing in auditing can help to provide more explanations and better understanding of the process, even if this again depends, to large extent, on the assumptions, models and substantive hypotheses taken into account.
In summary, theory provides a framework for interpreting accounting and auditing concepts, which is useful to many individuals. Managers and auditors generally have an implicit understanding of certain theoretical aspects of accounting and auditing, but they may not have the overall picture. Using theory provides a framework for the solutions, or at least clues to the solutions, to problems which the auditors are faced with in capital markets. As far as the members of the audit profession are concerned, an understanding of the basic ‘laws’ that govern the organization and also of the various activities of the profession is crucial.