Effects of blockchain technology on accounting and auditing practices

The accounting and auditing profession is undergoing a profound transformation under the influence of new digital technologies such as blockchain, artificial intelligence and data analytics. This transformation not only reshapes the technical infrastructure but also brings to the forefront professionals' perceptions of technology, their psychological readiness and their potential resistance to change. The aim of this doctoral thesis is to examine how accounting and auditing professionals' levels of technology awareness, conceptual awareness, technology readiness and technology resistance toward blockchain technology affect their attitudes towards this technology and their intention to use it. The population of the study consists of accounting professionals operating in Türkiye. Data were collected through an online questionnaire using convenience sampling. The analyses are based on the responses of participants who completed the survey in full and were retained after data cleaning procedures. The questionnaire includes multi-item Likert-type scales adapted from the relevant literature to measure technology awareness, conceptual awareness, technology readiness, technology resistance, attitudes towards blockchain technology and intention to use blockchain technology. Descriptive statistics were first employed to analyse the demographic characteristics of the respondents. Subsequently, outer loadings, Cronbach's alpha, composite reliability and average variance extracted (AVE) values were calculated to assess the reliability and validity of the measurement model. To test the structural relationships, the Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modelling (PLS-SEM) approach was adopted, and the analyses were conducted using the SmartPLS 4 software. The findings first indicate that technology awareness has a positive and statistically significant effect on conceptual awareness of blockchain technology. In addition, both technology awareness and conceptual awareness were found to strengthen attitudes towards blockchain technology. Technology readiness positively affects professionals' attitudes towards blockchain technology as well as their intention to use this technology. Technology resistance, on the other hand, has a statistically significant but rather weak negative effect on technology readiness, while its direct effects on attitude and intention to use are negative in sign but not statistically significant. As expected, attitude is confirmed as a direct and strong predictor of intention to use blockchain technology. The explained variance (R²) values indicate medium to high levels of explanatory power for the endogenous variables, providing empirical support for the proposed theoretical framework. This study contributes to the literature by proposing an integrated model of blockchain technology adoption in the context of accounting and auditing that jointly considers cognitive and psychological factors such as technology and conceptual awareness, technology readiness and technology resistance. From a practical perspective, the findings highlight the importance of policies and training programmes aimed at increasing technology awareness, strengthening conceptual knowledge and reducing technology resistance in the dissemination of blockchain-based applications by professional bodies, regulatory authorities and educational institutions. In this respect, the study offers strategic implications for the effective and sustainable adoption of blockchain technology in the digital transformation of the accounting and auditing profession.