The study looked at how friendships between auditors and company executives affect the quality of audits in China. They found that when auditors and executives were friends from work or school, the audits tended to have fewer errors and were more likely to give a positive review of the company's finances. Auditors who were connected to executives were also more likely to catch mistakes in the company's financial reports. Additionally, the type of friendship (work vs. school) had different effects on audit quality. The study also found that certain characteristics of auditors, like being a partner or having auditing experience, could lessen the impact of these friendships on audit quality. Lastly, companies with social ties to auditors were more likely to correct mistakes in their financial reports in the following years.