Doctoral thesis of Philosophy: The diffusion of new public financial management innovation in developing countries: evidence from Sri Lanka

A major feature of public sector accounting reform has been the replacement of conventional cash-based accounting with accrual accounting. Even though accrual accounting is a regular practice in the private sector, little is known about the way in which these practices are diffused throughout large and complex public sector organisations. This thesis relies on Rogers’ (1983) Diffusion of an Innovation Theory (DOI) to explore the diffusion of accrual accounting across the three-tiered (Central - Provincial - Local) government of Sri Lanka. The primary purpose of this thesis is to explore and describe the way accounting innovation is diffused throughout different layers of public sector organisations in the context of a developing country.