Dr. Mark Defond

Biography

Mark DeFond is the N. Mosich Chair and Professor at the Leventhal School of Accounting, University of Southern California. His research focuses on crucial issues in auditing, international accounting, and earnings management. DeFond has served as the Senior Editor for the Accounting Review and has been on the editorial boards of leading academic journals in his field. He is a recipient of the American Accounting Association's Notable Contribution to the Auditing Literature Award and has won the Golden Apple teaching award five times, highlighting his dedication to education. DeFond has also held the position of Associate Dean of Faculty at the Leventhal School. He earned his PhD from the University of Washington and worked previously as an auditor at Deloitte. DeFond’s work emphasizes the importance of auditor locality specialization and its implications for auditing quality and independence, based on empirical studies drawn from Chinese data.

Research Interests

Courses