International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) Adoption in Vietnam: From Isolation to Isomorphism

The chapter is aimed at analyzing the collective perception of the accounting community of Vietnam towards the adoption of International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). This perception is premised on the twin issues of legitimacy and isomorphism. A broad sample survey of 728 persons out of 3000 accountants, auditors and academics was undertaken with a detailed questionnaire sent to each. With a net response rate of 24 per cent from this community, there emerged a definite influence of coercive, mimetic and normative isomorphisms as well as legitimacy motives. The study provides practical implications for the policymakers of Vietnam for the transformation of the accounting profession in the country and the strategic planning towards full mandatory IFRS adoption by 2020.