Understanding the Challenges of Blockchain Adoption in Supply Chains: Development and Validation of an Integrated Model Using a Mixed-Methods Approach

Abstract

This study aimed to identify the principal drivers underlying the challenges of blockchain adoption in Iran’s supply chains and to propose a conceptual model for overcoming these barriers. Global statistics have reported a 92% failure rate for blockchain projects, while Iranian organizations have largely confined their activities in this area to the theoretical level without progressing toward operational implementation. The study employed a mixed-methods qualitative–quantitative design. The qualitative phase was based on thematic analysis, drawing on Braun and Clarke’s approach, and the required data were collected through interviews with 12 experts from the automotive industry. The qualitative findings were validated using the content validity ratio and Holsti’s coefficient of agreement. In the quantitative phase, structural equation modeling using AMOS and a one-sample t test using SPSS were employed to assess model fit and evaluate the status of the study indicators. The data analysis yielded 133 initial codes, which were subsequently condensed into 20 subthemes and ultimately into five overarching themes. These five overarching themes were organizational and cultural factors, technological readiness and infrastructure, legal, regulatory, and juridical barriers, financial and economic factors, and perceived benefits. The highest factor loading was associated with legal and juridical barriers, at 0.64, whereas the lowest factor loading was related to organizational and cultural factors, at 0.57. The results of the mean comparison test indicated that organizational and cultural factors, with a mean of 2.125 and a negative t statistic of −3.25, were significantly below the moderate level. The model-fit indices—including RMSEA = 0.44, CFI = 0.94, GFI = 0.98, and CMIN/DF = 2.59—were all within the acceptable range. The proposed model demonstrates that blockchain adoption in supply chains results from the synergy among four components: technological readiness, legal clarity, economic stability, and a transformation in organizational and cultural perspectives. The significant gap between perceived benefits, with a value of 3.746, and technological readiness (3.24) and organizational and cultural factors (2.125) indicates that organizations have a strong understanding of blockchain’s benefits; however, during implementation, they encounter structural and cultural barriers that diminish their operational capacity.