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1 INTRODUCTION The necessary of this research Accounting information system (AIS) is a sub-system of management information system that has key functions include recording, processing transactions and providing financial information of enterprise for stakeholders Research on evaluating the quality of accounting information systems and determinants influencing the quality of accounting information system are essential issues in both theoretical and practical aspects On the theoretical perspective: Firstly, it is information quality The strong application of information technology in accounting has required the quality of accounting information Previous studies showed that accounting information has not been properly assessed and is not a reliable source of information for making economic decisions Therefore, establishing evaluation criteria and identifying factors affecting the quality of accounting information systems based on the approaches of economic theory will bring theoretical significance Secondly, it is information processing The context of the strong application of information technology in the Industrial Revolution 4th has affected the accounting information systems of enterprises in general and small and medium-sized enterprises in particular However, the application of technology and information applications in small and medium-sized businesses focuses more on bookkeeping such as ledger, liabilities, or inventory control but has not equipped much for financial analysis, budgeting, or project management Thirdly, it is the changes in the global business context as well as the management requirement that need more studies to assess the quality of accounting information systems as well as investigate factors influencing the quality of information systems Based on the research results, the policy implication is suggested to improve the quality of accounting information systems in enterprises The current trend in the world is to use a variety of criteria to evaluate the quality of accounting information systems However, studies in Vietnam often stop at using single criteria to measure or propose combinations of multiple criteria but lack of empirical data to verify the scales Therefore, researching the quality of accounting information systems and factors affecting the quality of accounting information systems will bring new contributions to the theoretical framework From the practical perspective: Small and medium enterprises account for over 98% of the total number of businesses in Vietnam However, the facts show that small and medium-sized enterprises are still facing difficulties in the production and business activities such as low productivity issues, outdated technology, and shortages Regarding financial and human resources, and especially building a strong accounting information system that can provide useful financial information for business decision making Investigating factors affecting the quality of accounting information systems helps corporate governance, esspecially in the SME context Thus, theoretical and practical requirements show that there should be more research and development of criteria to comprehensively assess the quality of accounting information systems as well as identify factors affecting the quality of accounting information systems to propose appropriate solutions for the sustainable development of SMEs The research objectives The objectives are to determine the criteria for evaluating the quality of accounting information systems and investigate the factors affecting the quality of accounting information systems Then, the study proposed recommendations to improve the quality of accounting information systems in SMEs Research statement and scope 3.1 Research statement This research focuses on theoretical issues and the reality of the quality of accounting information systems and the factors affecting the quality of accounting information systems in small and medium enterprises 3.2 Scope - Content: The study approaches the content of accounting information system quality and the factors affecting the quality of accounting information systems - Space: Data was collected in Hanoi - Time: Data collected in 2018 Research question (1) Which criteria are suitable for evaluating the quality of accounting information systems for SMEs? What is the reality of the quality of AIS in SMEs in Hanoi? (2) What are the influencing factors and their influence on the quality of AIS in SMEs in Hanoi? (3) What are the recommendations to help improve the quality of AIS for SMEs in Hanoi? New contributions of this research Theoretical contributions: The results of the research contribute to the theoretical framework of the quality of accounting information systems in SMEs that including system quality and information quality The results show that contingency theory is suitable in assessing the impact of factors on the quality of accounting information systems Practical contributions: The research provides a picture of the quality of accounting informatin systems in SMEs in Hanoi By testig hypotheses, the research states the effect of five factors on the quality of accounting information systems The factor information technology hass a strong impact on system quality, whislt the participant of manager in implementing AIS has a strong impact on information quality This paper provides solutions to improve accounting information system quality and improve corporate governance efficiency The structure of the research Exclude introduction, the structure of the research includes chapters Chapter Literature review Chapter Theoretical framework of the quality of accounting information systems and factors affecting the quality of accounting information systems Chapter Methodology Chapter Results and discussion Chapter Recommendations to improve the quality of accounting information systems in small and medium-sized enterprises in Hanoi CHAPTER 1: LITERATURE REVIEW 1.1 The quality of accounting information system The criteria of the quality of AIS: The results of the previous studies show that organizational impact is a commonly used criterion to evaluate the quality of AIS It can be seen that the authors' approach to measuring the quality of technical information systems is based on the benefits of the accounting information system, through assessing the impact of the accounting information system on the operation process of enterprises (Sajady et al., 2008) However, the limitation of this measurement is not a comprehensive consideration of issues of the quality of accounting information systems such as system quality, information quality To overcome the limitations in the evaluation of the quality of accounting information systems, studies in recent years have tended to use a combination scale to evaluate the quality of accounting information systems Many studies use a combination of multiple criteria when measuring the quality of accounting information systems The study of Nicolaou (2000) or the study of Fardinal (2013) or the study of Susanto (2017) have employed a combination scale that reflect technical aspect and user satisfaction The study of Chalu (2012) was proposed a multidimensions mearsure of the quality of accounting information systems In Viet Nam, the study of Huỳnh and Nguyễn (2013) was proposed a combination in evaluating the quality of accounting information systems Characteristics of the context of the previous studies: The quality of accounting information systems was researched in the both of the developed countries like American in the study of Nicolaou (2000), and the developing countries like Iran (Sajady ctg., 2008), Jordan (Alzoubi, 2011), Indonesia (Fardinal, 2013; Susanto, 2017), Tanzania (Chalu, 2012) Research on the quality of accounting information systems is also conducted in enterprises of different sizes and different business sectors The characteristic of firm size also leads to the choice of measurement criteria for the quality of the AIS For example, listed enterprises or large enterprises operating in industrial zones have their financial department and separate IT department Therefore, the study of the quality of technical information systems in large enterprises, in addition to the director and the accounting department, needs to examine the assessments of the financial director or the IT department (Alzoubi, 2011; Nicolaou, 2000; Sajady et al., 2008) Meanwhile, small and medium-sized enterprises, with limited resources, may not have their finance or IT departments Therefore, studies in the context of small and medium-sized enterprises often focus on stakeholders such as business directors, chief accountants, and accountants 1.2 Literature view of factors affecting the quality of accounting information systems Researchers have many approaches to learn about factors affecting the quality of accounting information systems Studies can approach different background theories, using different methods, in different research contexts to select the appropriate factors and assess their impact on the quality of accounting information systems In the study of factors affecting aspects of accounting information systems such as the design, implementation or quality of accounting information systems, contingency theory is commonly used Contingency theory approaches factors affecting in the context of enterprises, taking into account both internal and external factors Besides, many studies have investigated a theoretical framework of influencing factors from the results of previous studies to build a research model of the factors affecting system quality Accounting information such as the research of Nguyen Thi Bich Lien (2012), Sačer and Oluić (2013), Rapina (2014), and Meiryani and Susanto (2018) In summary, the researches over the world had different theoretical approaches, so each study has proposed a research model of the factors affecting the quality of accounting information systems However, from the literature review, it is shown that contingency theory is an appropriate approach in studying factors affecting the quality of accounting information systems 1.3 Research gap - The lack of empirical studies on the quality of accounting information systems in SMEs in Vietnam The literature review shows that there is a lack of evidence on the quality of accounting information systems in SMEs in Vietnam While Vietnam is a developing country with more than 98% are SMEs The lack of research in Vietnam has created a gap that needs to be done to reinforce the theoretical framework for evaluating the quality of accounting information system in the context of SMEs of developing countries - The gap in the measurement of the quality of accounting information systems The research on the quality of accounting information systems in SMEs in Vietnam employed single scales such as the quality of output information, very few studies have conducted the assessment of the quality of accounting information systems, using multidimensional measurement or combining many evaluation criteria - Heterogeneity in previous results Heterogeneity of research results for factors affecting the quality of accounting information systems There is a lack of research on the influence of factors on the quality of accounting information systems in SMEs in Hanoi - The research method The results show that few studies use complex tests to assess the measurement of the quality of accounting information systems and the determinants in the Vietnam context Conclusion of chapter Chapter focuses on the literature view related to the quality of accounting information systems and factors affecting the quality of accounting information systems This chapter also illustrates the research gap CHAPTER 2: THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK OF THE QUALITY OF ACCOUNTING INFORMATION SYSTEM AND FACTORS AFFECTING QUALITY OF ACCOUNTING INFORMATION SYSTEMS 2.1 Theoretical framework 2.1.1 System theory System theory suggests that the accounting information system is a subsystem in the enterprise management information system Therefore, when considering the system change, it is necessary to place the accounting information system in the context of the business, taking into consideration the implications for other departments In addition, when proposing solutions, there should be integration and consensus among the subsystems towards the goal of the enterprise System theory also provides the basis for the selection of factors affecting the quality of accounting information systems, including internal and external factors 2.1.2 Communication theory and information system success model The communication theory and IS success model is a suitable theory to identify the criteria and variables to measure the quality of accounting information systems Therefore, this study will approach the measurement and employ the measurement for evaluating the quality of accounting information systems - this approach has been evaluated in recent years because the criteria in this measure will fully assess the aspects of the system However, this study will also select appropriate criteria for the accounting information system in SMEs context based on inheriting the results of previous studies The content of determining the criteria 10 for measuring the quality of accounting information systems will be presented in section 2.2.2.2 2.1.3 Contingency theory Many studies use contingency theory in management information systems and accounting information systems such as Gordon Miller (1976); Gordon & Miller (1976), Weill Olson (1989), Nicolaou (2000) hay Ghorbel (2017) This shows that contingency theory is suitable to identify factors affecting the quality of AIS Based on contingency theory, this study identifies factors that belong to the nature of enterprises and the business environment The content of the determinant of factors is going to show in section 2.3 2.2 Accounting information system and the quality of accounting information systems 2.2.1 Accounting information system 2.2.1.1 Definition In this study, accounting information system is a subsystem of management information system, with a combination of components in the system to implement its function such as acquiring, processing, analyzing, and providing financial and nonfinancial information for stakeholders as well as controlling activities in the enterprise 2.2.1.2 The role of the accounting information system - A tool to help businesses evaluate the performance of businesses - An effective information tool - A tool to help manage business activities - Providing conditions to help businesses develop sustainably 2.2.1.3 Elements of accounting information system 11 In this study, the main components of the accounting information system are divided similarly to the study of Allahverdi (2011) The accounting information system consists of main components: (1) User, (2) Data resources, (3) Data collection, (4) Data processing, (5) Database management 2.2.2 The quality of accounting information system 2.2.2.1 Definition Quality of accounting information system is integrated between components in the system to perform the functions of collecting, processing, storing and provide accounting information that meets the standards in the information processing process as well as accounting information standards and brings satisfaction to the users 2.2.2.2 The criteria for evaluating the quality of accounting information systems The measurement of the quality of accounting information system can be used individually or in a combination of multiple criteria Petter, Delone, and McLean (2008) have asserted that the selection of criteria for evaluating the quality of an information system depends on the business context such as characteristics of the nature of the business and the purpose of the system In the context of the accounting information system, system quality and information quality are employed because these are the two best measures for all types of information systems (Delone & McLean, 2002) 2.3 Factors affecting the quality of accounting information system This study is based on contingency theory to find out the factors that affect the quality of accounting information system The factors affecting the quality of accounting information 12 systems in this research model include environment, organizational structure, information technology, the participation of managers in accounting information system implementation, accountant resource 2.3.1 Environment Because of the importance of business environment, this study inherits previous results The environment is measured by competitiveness in the business environment Businesses, especially SMEs, when operating in a highly competitive business environment, will need the information technology system to handle transactions quickly, as well as information quality helps firms react promptly to the environment Therefore, the study proposes hypotheses H1 and H2 2.3.2 Information technology Information technology plays an important role in promoting the design, implementation, and quality of accounting information systems in enterprises Previous research results have shown that businesses that apply good information technology will help the transactions processing be faster, as well as accounting information will be good in content and format So, hypotheses H and H4 are proposed 2.3.3 Organizational structure This study measures organizational structure by the degree of decentralization within the firm Study to develop the hypothesis H5 on the positive relationship of the degree of decentralization in the enterprise to system quality The proposed hypothesis H agrees with Ghorbel (2017) on the positive effect of the degree of decentralization in an organization on information quality 2.3.4 Participation of managers in accounting information system implementation 13 Based on the impact of the management's involvement in the accounting information system implementation, it is possible to confirm the role of managers and their impact on the quality of the accounting information system Hypotheses H and H8 are proposed with a positive relationship between the involvement of managers in implementing accounting information systems and the quality of the accounting information system 2.3.5 Accountant resource The study has affirmed the role of the accounting team measured by the capacity and engagement of the accounting team in improving the quality of technical information systems, specifically in improving the professional handling process as well as improving high- quality information Therefore, the study proposes a hypothesis for H9 and H10 Conclusion of chapter The content of chapter provides the theoretical framework of the quality of accounting information systems as well as the factors affecting the quality of accounting information system 14 CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY 3.1 Research model and hypotheses Based on the contingent factors in the study of Weill and Olson (1989), the results of previous empirical studies, and the interview results, the factors that affect the quality of accounting information systems are selected and employed in the proposed research model as Figure 3.1 F igure 3.1 Research model 3.2 Construct measurement • Quality of accounting information system The quality of accounting information systems is measured by two criteria system quality and information quality System quality and information quality are employed from the research of Gorla et al (2010) System quality and information quality are measured by the 7-points Likert scale in the ascending point from (1) Strongly disagree to (7) Strongly agree - Environment: This study measures environment by the competitiveness of the business environment according to Thong (1999) The competitiveness of the business environment is 15 measured by the 7-points Likert scale from to 7, with (1) Strongly disagree to (7) Strongly agree - Organizational structure: This study adopts the measure of Sabherwal et al (2006) and uses Likert 7-points scale, with (1) No decentralization and (7) Complete decentralization - Information technology: This study applies the measure of Sakaguchi and Dibrell (1998) The Likert scale that Louadi (1998) and Worrall, Remenyi, and Money (1998) proposed to measure perceptions of computerization in management is employed, with (1) No computer use, (2) Low computerization, (3) Medium computerization, (4) High computerization, (5) Very high computerization - Manager participation in the accounting information system implementation: The study applied Ismail and King's scale (2007) with Likert scale increasing from to 7, with (1) Strongly disagree, and (7) Strongly agree - Accountant resource: The accountant is adopted from Gooderham et al (2004) The research uses a 5-points Likert scale in ascending order from to 5, with (1) Strongly disagree, and (5) Strongly agree 3.3 Sampling The sample size was performed according to Nguyễn Đình Thọ (2013) cited Hair, Black, Babin, Anderson, Tatham (2006) that the sample size for exploratory factor analysis (EFA) With 21 measurable observed, the minimum sample size for EFA analysis was 105, so the study's expectation of 200 respondents  Object of survey Inheriting the viewpoints of previous studies, this study carried out a survey of subjects within the enterprise, including managers at all levels of the enterprise: Board of Directors 16 (general director, executive director executive, deputy director), chief financial officer, head of departments (in charge of sections such as purchasing, sales, manufacturing, IT), chief accountant or accountant; Accountant, general accountant 3.4 Research method and research design 3.4.1 Research method Data collection: Research using qualitative methods such as interviews, expert discussions Besides, data is collected directly and online through surveys Data analysis: The study used statistical techniques with the support of SPSS 20 and Amos software 3.4.2 Research design: Conclusion of chapter Chapter presented the research methods applied in the topic including modeling and research hypotheses, measurement of research variables, methods of data collection and analysis, and research design 17 CHAPTER 4: RESULTS AND DISCUSSION 4.1 Characteristics of small and medium-sized enterprises in Hanoi  Characteristics of the business sector  Characteristics of capital ownership  Characteristics of the age of firm  The competitiveness in the business environment of SMEs  Characteristics of organizational management in SMEs - Characteristics of manager participation in accounting information system implementation - Accountant resource in SMEs - The level of information technology equipment in SMEs in Hanoi 4.2 The results of testing the research model 4.2.1 Reliability test With the results of running the reliability test of Cronbach's Alpha coefficient from SPSS 20 software, the measurement factors of dependent and independent variables of the research model have Cronbach's Alpha coefficient ≥ 0.6, and the system correlation number - total ≥ 0.3 Thus, the measurement scales of the research variables ensure reliability 4.2.2 Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) The results of EFA, after being excluded from the SQ9 indicator are presented in Appendix The results show that the KMO coefficient = 0.989> 0.5 Bartlett’s test result is 15455,539 with a Sig significance level = 0.000 50% that is satisfactory The value of the factor Eigenvalues is 1,213> 1, stop at step The rotation results reveal factors 4.2.3 Confirmatory factor analysis The goodness of fit is good, including Cmin/df = 3,189 < 5, AGFI = 0.855> 0.8, CFI = 0.944> 0.9, TLI = 0.932 > 0.9, only GFI criterion = 0.891