INSTITUTIONAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP OF EXTENSIBLE BUSINESS REPORTING LANGUAGE (XBRL) IMPLEMENTATION AND ACCOUNTING CHANGE PROCESS: CASE OF QATAR STOCK EXCHANGE

Abstract

The main aim of this thesis is to investigate the conditions and processes by which the traditional financial reporting system was replaced by the eXtensible Business Reporting Language (XBRL). This thesis draws on a qualitative approach examining the case of the Qatar Stock Exchange, which recently adopted and implemented an XBRL-based platform called Q-Disclosure. This was done to facilitate information exchange amongst stakeholders, especially listed companies and information users. This investigation is driven by institutional theory with a particular focus on a strand of institutional entrepreneurship. A conceptual framework is developed that provides a detailed and processual account about the conditions and processes that enabled an actor to bring about an institutional change. The actor replaced the traditional financial reporting system with XBRL and eventually became an institutional entrepreneur. The findings showed that the actor's characteristics and social position, enabling field conditions and intervention strategies played important roles in allowing the institutional entrepreneur to bring about institutional change in the financial reporting system. By incorporating the notion of institutional entrepreneurship into this research, an original contribution is made to the understanding of XBRL adoption. Second, by focusing on an institutional entrepreneur who holds a peripheral position in the development of accounting innovations, it helps in enriching institutional entrepreneurship theory. Third, this thesis provides evidence that institutional change does not necessarily require a top-down approach and can instead arise from a bottom-up approach. Finally, this thesis provides a multi-level analysis of XBRL adoption, outlining the factors, the enablers of those factors and their interactions.