Acct 8630 Infomation Systems Assurance

Learning outcome

1. Develop audit objectives for risks of information systems
2. Design audit procedures
3. Implement audit procedures with database querying <--- target learning outcome
4. Communicate audit results

1. Represent attributes: Translate natural language representation into a statement of an information request
2. Map to data structure: Map attributes in information request to database data structure
   
   Outcome from 1 and 2: Mental model of of the information request in terms of attributes in the database.
   
3. Tranlate to syntax: Translate the mental model into query syntax by representing the query with operators in the query language.

Database querying is a kind of programming, which has been posed by Kim and Lerch (1997) as scientific discovery in multiple problem spaces (representation, rule, and instance). Although, BPM skill seems most closely related to working in the representation space with respect to database querying, it is not clear whether BPM skill might be integral to working in the rule and instance spaces.

BPM entails constructing situation models (Zwaan and Radvansky 1998, Psychological Bulletin 123: 162-185; Barsalou 1999, Discourse Processes 28: 61-80). Practitioners and researchers have been coming to the view that understanding business processes is a precursor to developing and executing audit procedures and interpreting results. The lack of a process model or reliance on an inadequate one obscures idiosyncrasies of the situation, which would predispose auditors to applying typical audit procedures in standard ways, which might not reveal the evidence they seek of inconsistencies or unusual conditions.

This model fails to:

1. Verify effectiveness of BPM training in developing BPM skill
2. Relate BPM skill to query performance
3. Measure sub components of query performance, i.e., working in representation, rule, and instance spaces

This model:

1. Requires more participants
2. Fails to assess whether BPM training develops BPM skill; fails to measure BPM skill; fails to model effect of BPM skill on query performance
3. Requires developing measures of querying skill each of the query spaces.
4. Omits language proficiency as an antecedent to BPM skill, querying skill, and audit performance

Model 3: Components of query performance with BPM skill

Q1: Does BPM skill mediate the relationship between BPM training and query performance?

Q2: Does query performance devolve to performance in the represen-tation, rule, and instance spaces?

Q3: Is query performance by query space associated with audit performance by audit subtask (develop audit objectives, develop audit procedures, implement audit procedures, communicate audit results)?

This model:

1. Depends on measures of BPM skill being created and validated. Because BPM is new, journal reviewers would likely be sympathetic to reasonable measures. Separate pre- and post-measures would be ideal, which would enable determining the effectiveness of BPM training.
2. Requires developing measures of querying skill for each query space.
3. Omits language proficiency as an antecedent to BPM skill, querying skill, and audit performance