FACTORS INFLUENCING ACCOUNTING UNDERGRADUATES' EMERGING TECHNOLOGY SKILL LEVELS: EVIDENCE FROM STATE UNIVERSITIES IN THE WESTERN PROVINCE OF SRI LANKA.

Abstract

Rapid developments in emerging technologies have transformed the accounting profession, altering traditional practices and required skill sets. In this context, evidence of insufficient emerging technology skill levels among accounting undergraduates raises concerns about their readiness to meet the profession’s future demands. Therefore, this study was conducted to assess the level of emerging technology skills among accounting undergraduates in Sri Lanka and to identify the factors influencing the possession of these skills. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire administered to 208 final-year accounting undergraduates from state universities in the Western Province of Sri Lanka. Based on the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) and Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB), perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use were used as the variables that

affected the dependent variable, namely the possession of emerging technology skills. Self- efficacy, experience, subjective norms, and the inclusion of emerging technologies in the

curriculum were used as external variables. The partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) technique was used to test the objectives of this research. The findings suggest that accounting undergraduates’ emerging technology skill levels range from low to intermediate. It also revealed that both perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use have a significant impact on the possession of emerging technology skills of the accounting undergraduates, while self-efficacy, subjective norms, and emerging technologies in the curriculum have a significant positive impact on perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use. Further, it revealed that experience significantly impacts perceived ease of use; however, it does not significantly impact perceived usefulness. These findings are expected to have significant policy implications.