Financial reporting quality in digital era: Evidence from Romanian professionals

The quality of financial reporting is an essential element of the efficient functioning of organizations and user trust, in a context marked by accelerated digitalization and the expansion of sustainability reporting requirements. The literature highlights that quality reporting depends not only on standard compliance, but also on the interaction between professional competence and ethics, technological infrastructure, organizational culture and institutional framework. However, empirical research in emerging economies, from the perspective of accounting professionals, is limited. The study analyzes the perceived determinants of financial reporting quality in Romania, using a quantitative cross-sectional design, based on a questionnaire applied to a sample of 161 accounting professionals. The associations between the perception of reporting quality and professional competence, ethics, digitalization and accounting information systems, organizational culture and internal control, and regulatory compliance are tested. The results indicate positive and significant relationships for all factors analyzed, with the model having high explanatory power. Professional ethics and digitalization stand out as key determinants, underlining the role of professional judgment and technological infrastructure. The study contributes by proposing an integrated model applied to an emerging economy and offers relevant implications for practice and regulation in the context of digital transformations and new sustainability requirements.