Abstract
Guided by the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology 2 (UTAUT2) framework, this qualitative study explores English as a Foreign Language (EFL) teachers’ continuance intention to use Learning Management Systems (LMS) at a regional Chinese university. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with 15 teachers who use the Chaoxing LMS. The results indicate that six of the seven UTAUT2 constructs — Performance Expectancy, Effort Expectancy, Social Influence, Facilitating Conditions, Habit, and Hedonic Motivation — collectively drive teachers sustained LMS engagement, whereas Price Value exerts negligible influence since the university provides the LMS free of charge. All seven dimensions exhibit distinct context-specific manifestations shaped by large EFL class sizes, intergenerational digital literacy divides, and institutional administrative rules. Beyond UTAUT2’s original dimensions, this study identifies three context-specific institutional and pedagogical factors: Institutionalized Collective Lesson Preparation, Teaching Evaluation Orientation, and EFL-Specific Resource Demand. These factors reconfigure the functional relationships among core constructs. This research further elaborates interactive mechanisms across UTAUT2 variables and distinguishes policy-induced passive compliance from voluntary habitual LMS integration. Theoretically, it extends the generic UTAUT2 framework by embedding the institutional logic of centralized collectivist Chinese higher education and discipline-specific EFL pedagogical requirements, filling the gap of localized qualitative extensions in existing educational technology scholarship. Practically, differentiated actionable strategies are proposed for university administrators, LMS developers, and EFL instructors to advance in-depth, pedagogy-centered digital integration.