【正文】 94) states that internal control can be judged to be effective when the board of directors and management have reasonable assurances that they understand the extent to which the entity’s operational objectives are being achieved, the published financial statements are being prepared reliably, and the applicable laws and regulations are being plied with. Therefore, in this study effectiveness of internal control is defined in terms of management’s perceptions of how well these three internal control objectives are met. Similarly, in the frameworks a proper internal control structure is described in different terms, but the following five ponents can be identified: 1. The control environment ponent defines the ethos of an organization and the way it operates. This ponent refers to the creation of an atmosphere in which people can conduct their activities and carry out their control responsibilities. It creates the overall control culture in the firm. 2. The risk assessment ponent refers to the processes of dealing with the risks that pose a threat to achieving the firm’s objectives. It involves the identification, analysis and assessment of relevant risks. 3. The control activities ponent refers to policies, procedures and practices that assure management that the objectives are achieved and the risk mitigation strategies are carried out effectively. 4. The information and munication ponent ensures that relevant information is identified, captured and municated in a form and time frame that allows personnel to carry out their duties and responsibilities effectively. 5. The monitoring ponent refers to a process of assessing the quality of control. It covers ongoing and periodical evaluations of the external super vision of internal controls by management or other parties outside the process. In this research these five ponents define the internal control It is stated in the frameworks (., COSO 1994) that in order to have an adequate internal control system these ponents of internal control must be presented and function properly. Most of the research in this field focuses on examining particular control elements (Aquila 1998。 Simons 1987。 Hoque and James 2020。 Chenhall 2020) and in this paper, the literature is reviewed along with an analysis of the research based on these studies. The aim is to use contingency theory to understand characteristics affecting internal control structures and its observed effectiveness rather than to elaborate on contingency theory as such. Figure 1 illustrates the research framework based on contingency theory and internal control frameworks. The relationships between three sets of variables—the contingency characteristics, the internal control structure and the observed effectiveness—are the focus of this research. The first four research questions (RQ1–RQ4) aim to test if contingency characteristics (strategy, size, organizational structure and environmental uncertainty) affect the internal control structure. There is evidence in earlier management control studies (for example Chenhall 2020。 Fisher 1995。 Selto and Widener 2020). With a few exceptions (.,Stringer and Carey 2020) earlier studies have usually concentrated on particular control elements, such as the control environment (Aquila 1998), munication (Hooks et al. 1994) or risk assessment (Mills 1997). In this study the internal control concept is examined as a whole in different contexts. Second, the action of contingency theory on internal control has not been examined sufficiently within the prior literature even though that relationship plays a critical role in better understanding internal control within organizations. Third, there is a lack of knowledge about internal control from the point of view of management. The literature has so far concentrated on the external parties’view (Felix 1998), although organizing internal control in the organization is in fact the responsibility of management. Therefore, in this study the perceptions of the management of the surveyed firms are the focus. Fourth, this study examines important contingency characteristics that should be taken into account when focusing on the internal control in an organization. The aim is to determine which characteristics are helpful in explaining variations in an internal control system and its observed effectiveness. However, the model examined, yields different results w hen examined in a bivariate or in a multivariate setting. Therefore, this paper demonstrates how a contingency approach and SEM technique may be applied to internal control research. Understanding monalities and differences in internal control structures and observed effectiveness in alternative contexts makes a significant contribution to the internal control discussion. Thus, the study provides a means to iden