Innovation management for smart learning management system development in Chinese higher education: A structural equation modeling study

Abstract

This study seeks to investigate how innovation-driven academic and administrative management practices influence smart education development in higher education institutions in Guangxi Province, China, with a focus on the mediating roles of students' and lecturers' Learning Management System (LLMS) usage behaviors. A quantitative study approach was used, and data were gathered from university officials, professors, and students using a standardized questionnaire. SEM with bootstrapping approaches was used to investigate direct, indirect, and total effects among constructs. The findings show that both academic and administrative management have a considerable favorable impact on student learning management system usage (SLMS) and lecturer learning management system (LLMS). In turn, SLMS and LLMS provide important contributions to smart education growth, with LMS adoption by students having a greater impact. Mediation study demonstrates that SLMS and LLMS mediate the linkages between innovation-driven management practices and smart education development in both collaborative and independent ways. The indirect effects of learning management system (LMS) use are statistically significant, supporting a dual-pathway mediation mechanism. These findings show that innovation management has an impact on smart education development both directly and indirectly by altering key stakeholders' LMS engagement patterns. Practically, the study offers evidence-based guidance to university leaders and policymakers on how to prioritize innovation-oriented academic and administrative management strategies that improve effective LMS utilization, thereby supporting long-term smart education development in the Chinese higher education context.