Potential Factors on Blockchain Adoption in Malaysian Public Sector Auditing
Nik Haslina Nik Man, Dahlia Fernandez · 2023
Auditing and other blockchain-impacted industries have garnered attention as potential game-changers. Due to a lack of actual proof, most blockchain researchers remain unconvinced. Existing research largely examines blockchain’s potential effects on accounting practises and the accounting profession rather than empirically addressing public sector issues. This study examines what potential factors influence the adoption of blockchain in Malaysian public sector auditing. The Technology-Organization- Environment (TOE) framework is used to examine the potential blockchain’s adoption in public sector auditing. Qualitative data is collected from Malaysian public sector auditors. This study found that blockchain auditing is potentially adopted due to perceived benefits such data security, real-time auditing, and audit service quality. Complexity, cost, and risk make potential blockchain adoption challenging. This study is one of the first to provide empirical evidence of the potential factors impacting organizational level adoption of blockchain technology in public sector auditing, and thus makes a significant contribution to the accounting information systems (AIS) literature. In addition, by properly situating a well-established theoretical framework within the context of public sector auditing, the results bring additional dimensions to the potential blockchain adoption literature. The results can also be used to help the public sector better understand the potential difficulties associated with a blockchain auditing project’s execution and develop solutions. Finally, the results are helpful for both practitioners and the broader community of AIS researchers in their pursuit of an understanding of potential blockchain auditing in their respective jurisdictions.