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This study aims to examine trends in audit committee characteristics of companies and associates characteristics subject to major change with a fee-based proxy for audit committee effectiveness.

The research adopts an empirical approach. Using descriptive and inferential statistics, observations for 253 Financial Times Stock Exchange 350 companies’ audit committee characteristics gathered from annual reports at the beginning and end of a five-year period are evaluated against averaged non-audit fees (NAF) as a proportion of total audit fees.

Audit committee composition shows an increased incidence of female membership and of members with previous audit experience. The increase in members with previous audit experience is more marked where this is gained with the incumbent auditor. An increase is also shown in chief financial officers with previous audit experience. Previous audit experience is associated with reduced NAF as a proportion of total fees. This is marked where audit experience has been gained with the incumbent auditor. These results suggest that the benefits of financial expertise gained from audit experience outweigh impairments to independence due to social ties. Nevertheless, other studies indicate concerns about independence are still well-founded.

This paper’s original contribution is to evaluate the potential effect of previous audit experience on those involved in audit committees in light of concerns raised in the literature and by regulators that external auditor independence should be maintained. The innovative fee-based proxy for audit committee effectiveness facilitates an evaluation as to which influence prevails.

The effects of integrated reporting quality (IRQ) have been debated in increasing empirical studies. Several IRQ measures, different theoretical approaches and multiple contexts have been adopted and investigated, leading to mixed results. By using the meta-analytic technique, this study aims to contribute to the accounting literature, reconciling the conflicting results on the effects of IRQ and providing objective conclusions to complement narrative literature reviews.

A sample of 45 empirical papers from 2013 to 2022, with 653 effect sizes, was used to assess the effects associated with IRQ. The papers were clustered into five groups (market reaction, financial performance, cost of capital, financial analysts’ properties and managerial decisions) based on the different consequences of IRQ investigated in the primary studies. A random-effects meta-regression model was used to explore all sources of heterogeneity together.

The meta-regression results confirm that IRQ positively influences firms’ market valuation and financial performance and hampers opportunistic managerial behaviour by improving corporate transparency, mitigating information asymmetry and encouraging accountability. Moreover, differences in the study characteristics affect the strength of the relationship object of interest.

Through meta-analysis, this study provides a broader overview of the effects of IRQ by enhancing the generalisability of the findings. The results also pave the way for additional evidence on the outcome variables affected by the quality of integrated disclosure.