Attribute sampling
Definition
A statistical sampling method that tests whether each selected item either has or lacks a specified attribute, for example whether a change ticket has an approved change-management record attached. Results are expressed as a deviation rate and compared against the tolerable deviation rate.
Related terms
- Confidence level
- An explicit label attached to an attribution assessment indicating how strongly the available evidence supports the conclusion. Standard tiers are low, medium,...
- Judgement sampling
- Selection of audit items based on the auditor's professional assessment of where errors or weaknesses are most likely to exist. Results cannot...
- Monetary unit sampling (MUS)
- A probability-proportional-to-size method that treats each currency unit in the population as a sampling unit. Larger transactions have a higher probability of...
- Risk-directed selection
- A judgmental sampling approach in which items are chosen because they exhibit specific risk indicators: unusual amounts, unusual payees, bypass of normal...
- Stratified sampling
- A sampling design that divides the population into homogeneous subgroups (strata) and samples each stratum separately. Allows the auditor to apply higher...
- Tolerable deviation rate
- The maximum error rate the auditor is willing to accept in the population without modifying the audit conclusion. If the projected error...
- Tolerable deviation rate (TDR)
- The maximum rate of control deviations the auditor is willing to accept before concluding that a control cannot be relied upon. Setting...
- Upper error limit (UEL)
- The maximum error rate that could exist in the population at the chosen confidence level, given the number of exceptions found in...
- Working paper
- The documented record of an audit procedure: what was tested, how items were selected, the evidence obtained, any exceptions found, and the...
Explained in these topics
- Audit Sampling Techniques and Working PapersA statistical sampling method that tests whether each selected item either has or lacks a specified attribute, for example whether a change ticket has an appro...
- Sampling Techniques in Fraud AuditsA statistical sampling method that tests for the presence or absence of a specific characteristic in a population item, such as an authorised signature or a ma...