This study investigates the impact of corporate governance, financial leverage, and firm size on earnings management in companies listed on the Tehran Stock Exchange from 2017 to 2022. Utilizing panel data from 156 systematically selected companies, the study applies the Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) method to estimate the relationships between these variables. The results reveal that financial leverage positively influences earnings management, indicating that companies with higher debt levels are more likely to manipulate earnings. Firm size negatively impacts earnings management, suggesting that larger firms are less prone to earnings manipulation. Surprisingly, corporate governance shows a positive relationship with earnings management, contrary to the expected negative impact, raising concerns about the effectiveness of governance mechanisms in these firms. These findings have significant implications for policymakers, regulators, and company boards, highlighting the need for strengthened governance practices and increased scrutiny of highly leveraged firms to ensure the transparency and accuracy of financial reporting.
