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Andrew R. Kitto

Assistant Professor

Accounting
Professor Kitto’s research interests lie at the intersection of empirical accounting, economics and the public accounting profession, including issues such as audit firm mergers, and the impact of reg

Professor Kitto’s research interests lie at the intersection of empirical accounting, economics and the public accounting profession, including issues such as audit firm mergers, and the impact of regulation, market structure and audit market competition. His research has been published in the Journal of Accounting and Economics, Journal of Accounting Research, and The Accounting Review. His papers have been presented at a variety of conferences, including the PCAOB/Management Science Registered Reports Conference, the PCAOB/The Accounting Review Conference on Auditing and Capital Markets, and the International Symposium on Audit Research. Andrew has served as an Economic Research Fellow at the PCAOB and on the Editorial Board of The Accounting Review. Prior to joining Isenberg’s faculty, he taught at the University of Washington as a Visiting Assistant Professor. He received his PhD in accounting from the University of Florida, and an MS in accounting and a BS in management from Boston College.

Education

PhD in Accounting, University of Florida, 2017
M.S. in Accounting, Boston College, 2009
BS in Management, Boston College, 2008

Academic Appointments

Assistant Professor of Accounting, University of Massachusetts Amherst, 2018-Present
Economic Research Fellow, Public Company Accounting Oversight Board, 2018-2019
Visiting Assistant Professor, University of Washington, 2017-2018

Recent Honors / Awards

Program Committee for PCAOB/Contemporary Accounting Research Conference on Auditing and Capital Markets, 2026-present
Isenberg Research Excellence Award, 2025-2026
Program Committee for PCAOB/The Accounting Review Conference on Auditing and Capital Markets, 2025
Research Committee for American Accounting Association International Accounting Section, 2023-present
Editorial Board for The Accounting Review, 2020-2026
Economic Research Fellowship at the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board, 2018-2019

Research Interests

Audit Markets
Audit Regulation
Economics
Financial Reporting
Industrial Organizations

Teaching Interests

Undergraduate
  • Auditing
Masters
  • Assurance Services
Doctoral
  • Archival Research in Accounting
  • Directed Readings in Accounting
Selected Working Papers/Current Research“How do Auditors Respond to Litigation Risk? Evidence from U.S. Supreme Court Rulings” with Colleen Honigsberg, Matthew Sherwood, and Wei Zhang.“Audit Partner I

Selected Working Papers/Current Research

“How do Auditors Respond to Litigation Risk? Evidence from U.S. Supreme Court Rulings” with Colleen Honigsberg, Matthew Sherwood, and Wei Zhang.

“Audit Partner Internal Labor Market Consequences for Negative PCAOB and Internal Inspection Results” with Daniel Aobdia, Matthew Ege, and Jennifer Puccia.

Media, Industry, and Public ImpactCited by the SEC and PCAOB in the rulemaking releases for the Firm and Engagement Metrics standard (SEC Release No. 34-101724; PCAOB Release Nos. 2024-002, 2024-012)C

Media, Industry, and Public Impact

Cited by the SEC and PCAOB in the rulemaking releases for the Firm and Engagement Metrics standard (SEC Release No. 34-101724; PCAOB Release Nos. 2024-002, 2024-012)

Cited by the SEC and PCAOB in the rulemaking releases for Firm Reporting rules (SEC Release No. 34-101723; PCAOB Release Nos. 2024-003, 2024-013)

Quoted in Wall Street Journal article, “Lack of Crypto Audit Regulation Raises Questions About PCAOB Authority.” February 17, 2023. 

Interviewed for Journal of Accountancy article, “How an academic fellowship can boost your career.” March 9, 2021.

Professional LinksGoogle Scholar: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=q7zf9wsAAAAJ&hl=enSSRN: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/cf_dev/AbsByAuth.cfm?per_id=1894620LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.c

Professional Links

  • Google Scholar: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=q7zf9wsAAAAJ&hl=en
  • SSRN: https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/cf_dev/AbsByAuth.cfm?per_id=1894620
  • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrew-kitto-7821b035
  • ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2037-3149

Selected Publications

Kitto, A., and Williams, D. (2026). “The Economics of Audit Competition and Audit Fees” In D. Hay, W.R. Knechel, and M. Willekens (Eds.), Routledge Handbook on Auditing (pp. 44-56). Routledge

Ciconte, W., and Kitto, A. (2026), Profit Persistence in the U.S. Audit Market. Journal of Accounting Research, 64 (2): 633-679. 

Downey, D., Kitto, A., and Bedard, J. C. (2026). The Economics of US Multinational Group Audits: Evidence from PCAOB DataThe Accounting Review, 101 (4): 203-230.

Kitto, A. (2024). The Effects of Non-Big 4 Mergers on Audit Efficiency and Audit Market competitionJournal of Accounting and Economics77(1), 101618. 

The Quality of Audit Firms Entering the Public Company Audit Market” with Phillip Lamoreaux and Devin Williams (Conditionally accepted at Contemporary Accounting Research)