From emergency remote teaching to selective digital integration: an exploratory study on instructor technology acceptance in quantitative business education

Purpose This study aims to examine how instructors of quantitatively based business subjects perceive and selectively retain technology-enabled teaching practices after emergency remote teaching. Rather than treating the post-COVID context as a move from online back to campus, this study asks how instructors evaluate digital practices, such as recordings, voice-over demonstrations, spreadsheet-based problem-solving and simulcast teaching when instructing quantitative business subjects in higher education settings. Design/methodology/approach This study uses a qualitative, constructivist design. The authors conducted semi-structured interviews with 11 instructors teaching economics, finance, accounting, operations management and related quantitative business subjects in Germany, Austria, Romania and Canada. Thematic analysis combined deductive Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology 2 (UTAUT2) coding with inductive coding of quantitative-pedagogical practices and institutional context. The analysis specifies each UTAUT2 construct for instructor technology acceptance and reports convergences and divergences using participant evidence. Findings Instructors retained digital tools selectively, mainly for access, submission logistics, continuity and problem-solving support, but did not view fully online teaching as the default for quantitative business courses. UTAUT2 factors supported tool use when technology enhanced, rather than replaced, real-time problem-solving. Evidence for age, gender and cross-country effects was limited. Originality/value This study refines UTAUT2 for international business education by showing that technology acceptance depends on quantitative-pedagogical fit, instructor autonomy, perceived professional value and alignment with institutional positioning.