Evidential Reasoning for WebTrust Assurance Services.

Author List: Srivastava, Rajendra P.; Mock, Theodore J.;
Journal of Management Information Systems, 1999, Volume 16, Issue 3, Page 11/1/1932.
We study two aspects of assurance services in electronic commerce. The first deals with the type(s) of evidential networks that will allow a professional accountant to provide assurance. Here, we develop an evidential network model for "WebTrust Assurance," a service being provided by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) and the Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants (CICA). Our model augments the AICPA/CICA approach and provides goals, subgoals and evidence relevant to the overall assurance to be provided. The aggregation of evidence and the resolution of uncertainties follow the belief-function approach. Next we develop a decision-theoretic model for the assurance-planning problem. Our approach is based on estimating the expected value of providing various levels of assurance and is illustrated with several different scenarios that may be faced in practice. We also consider the role of ambiguity in decision situations such as planning WebTrust engagements and calculate bounds in expected value based on whether auditors are conservative or not in their approach to risk.
Keywords: assurance services; decision theory; electronic commerce; WebTrust
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#112 0.148 services service network effects optimal online pricing strategies model provider provide externalities providing base providers fee complementary demand offer derive
#191 0.127 model models process analysis paper management support used environment decision provides based develop use using help literature mathematical presented formulation
#247 0.115 online evidence offline presence empirical large assurance likely effect seal place synchronous population sites friends increases isomorphism rewards drop intermediaries
#127 0.076 systems information research theory implications practice discussed findings field paper practitioners role general important key grounded researchers domain new identified
#264 0.072 risk risks management associated managing financial appropriate losses expected future literature reduce loss approach alternative mitigate failures failure cause mitigation
#84 0.063 electronic markets commerce market new efficiency suppliers internet changes marketplace analysis suggests b2b marketplaces industry examine easy product making physical
#31 0.062 problem problems solution solving problem-solving solutions reasoning heuristic theorizing rules solve general generating complex example formulation heuristics effective given finding
#195 0.051 pricing services levels level on-demand different demand capacity discrimination mechanism schemes conditions traffic paper resource expected based constraints solution latency