Open Access
Article
SciPap-2624
How AI Use Influences Professional Skepticism: The Mediating Role of AI Capability Among External Auditors
by
Thi Mai Lan Hoang 1,* 
1 Faculty of Accounting and Business, Thuyloi University, 175 Tay Son, Kim Lien, Hanoi 100000, Viet Nam
* Authors to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Abstract: This study examines how artificial intelligence (AI) use influences professional skepticism (PS) of auditor by investigating the mediating role of AI capability and the effects of organizational factors on skeptical action. Data were collected from 256 external auditors in Vietnam and analyzed using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM). The results show that AI use significantly enhances AI capability, while AI capability positively affects skeptical judgment but has no significant effect on skeptical action. Mediation analysis further indicates that AI capability fully mediates the relationship between AI use and skeptical judgment, whereas no mediating effect is found for skeptical action. Among the organizational factors, culture of critical thinking, management support, and quality control positively influence skeptical action, while time pressure has a negative effect. These findings suggest that AI contributes to PS primarily by strengthening auditors’ capability to understand, evaluate, and interpret AI-generated information rather than by directly influencing audit behavior. The study extends the literature on AI in auditing by integrating The Theory of Technology Dominance, Trust in Automation, and PS, highlighting the distinct roles of technological capability and organizational context in shaping auditors’ judgment and actions.
Keywords: Artificial Intelligence, Audit, Ai Capability, Professional Skepticism, Skeptical Judgment, Ai Use
JEL classification: D83 - Search • Learning • Information and Knowledge • Communication • Belief • Unawareness, D91 - Role and Effects of Psychological, Emotional, Social, and Cognitive Factors on Decision Making, M15 - IT Management, M42 - Auditing, O33 - Technological Change: Choices and Consequences • Diffusion Processes
Received: 8 August 2026 / Revised: 9 September 2026 / Accepted: 9 September 2026 / Published: 22 September 2026
