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.
- Field
- Audit sampling and fraud examination
- Output
- A deviation rate
- Compared against
- Tolerable deviation rate
- Tests for
- Presence or absence of a defined attribute
Common questions
How does attribute sampling differ from variable sampling?+
Attribute sampling produces a yes-or-no result for each item, such as whether an approval signature is present, while variable sampling measures a numeric value, such as a dollar amount, and estimates a total or an average across the population.
What happens when the deviation rate exceeds the tolerable rate?+
The auditor concludes the control is not operating as designed at an acceptable level and typically expands testing, extends procedures to other areas, or reports the control as ineffective, rather than relying on it to limit further audit work.
Why would a fraud examiner choose attribute sampling over reviewing every transaction?+
Testing every transaction is often impractical given time and budget, so attribute sampling lets the examiner draw a statistically defensible conclusion about the whole population from a smaller, properly selected sample.
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 Papers
- 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...