The link between trait and state professional skepticism: A review of the literature and a meta-regression analysis

Motivated by the need to better understand the trait–state skepticism relationship, and also building upon prior literature syntheses, this study examines the literature that empirically investigates the trait–state skepticism relationship using experimental methodology. A meta-regression analysis is conducted on Pearson correlations between trait skepticism and state skepticism to identify the overall effect and key drivers of this relationship. On average, there is no noticeable effect size for the relation between trait and state skepticisim across the studies; however, there are three key determinants of the correlation across studies mainly (1) the use of the Inverse Rotter trait measure compared to other measures reduces the correlation, (2) the use of graduate auditor samples compared to seasoned professionals intensifies the correlation and (3) the use of a low risk environment in the research design reduces correlation. The review and analysis are timely as the literature re-examines how professional skepticism is conceptualized and operationalized moving forward.