an amount or amounts that is less than the materiality for the financial statements as a whole ("overall materiality"). It includes materiality that is applied to particular transactions, account balances or disclosures. Paragraph 9 also states that the purpose of setting performance materiality is to reduce the risk that the aggregate total of uncorrected misstatements could be material to the financial statements. In terms of ISA 320, paragraph A1, a relationship exists between audit risk and materiality. This relationship is inverse. The higher the audit risk, the lower the materiality will be set. The lower the audit risk, the higher the materiality will be set. In terms of the Conceptual Framework (see "materiality in accounting" above), materiality also has a qualitative aspect. This means that, even if a misstatement is not material in "Dollar" (or other denomination) terms, it may still be material because of its nature. An example is if a disclosure is omitted from the financial statements. Materiality in securities regulation Materiality is also a concept used in securities regulation. However, some experts regard the concept as inadequately defined, based only on the development of case law. Methods of calculating materiality The IASB has refrained from giving quantitative guidance for the mathematical calculation of materiality. While ISA 320, paragraph A3, does provide for the use of benchmarks to calculate materiality, it does not suggest a particular benchmark or formula. Several common rules to quantify materiality have been developed by academia. Methods from a study funded by the Norwegian Research Council These include single-rule methods and variable size rule methods. Single rule methods: 5% of pre-tax income; 0.5% of total assets; 1% of equity; 1% of total revenue. "Sliding scale" or variable-size methods: 2% to 5% of gross profit if less than $20,000; 1% to 2% of gross profit, if gross profit is more than $20,000 but less than $1,000,000; 0.5% to 1% of gross profit, if gross profit is more than $1,000,000 but less than $100,000,000; 0.5% of gross profit, if gross profit is more than $100,000,000. Blended methods involve combining some or all of these methods, by using an appropriate weighting for each element. The research study also cites KPMG's formula-based method: Materiality = 1.84 times (the greater of assets or revenues)2/3. Methods from Discussion Paper 6: Audit Risk and Materiality, as issued in July 1984 These methods offer a suggested range for the calculation of materiality.