All Faculty Deposits

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https://hdl.handle.net/10919/70873

The "All Faculty Deposits" collection contains works deposited by faculty and appointed delegates from the Elements (EFARs) system. For help with Elements, see Frequently Asked Questions on the Provost's website. In general, items can only be deposited if the item is a scholarly article that is covered by Virginia Tech's open access policy, or the item is openly licensed or in the public domain, or the item is permitted to be posted online under the journal/publisher policy, or the depositor owns the copyright. See Right to Deposit on the VTechWorks Help page. If you have questions email us at vtechworks@vt.edu.

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Land subsidence risk to infrastructure in US metropolises
Ohenhen, Leonard O.; Zhai, Guang; Lucy, Jonathan; Werth, Susanna; Carlson, Grace; Khorrami, Mohammad; Onyike, Florence; Sadhasivam, Nitheshnirmal; Tiwari, Ashutosh; Ghobadi-Far, Khosro; Sherpa, Sonam F.; Lee, Jui-Chi; Zehsaz, Sonia; Shirzaei, Manoochehr (Springer Nature, 2025-05-08)
Land subsidence is a slow-moving hazard with adverse environmental and socioeconomic consequences worldwide. While often considered solely a coastal hazard due to relative sea-level rise, subsidence also threatens inland urban areas, causing increased flood risks, structural damage and transportation disruptions. However, spatially dense subsidence rates that capture granular variations at high spatial density are often lacking, hindering assessment of associated infrastructure risks. Here we use space geodetic measurements from 2015 to 2021 to create high-resolution maps of subsidence rates for the 28 most populous US cities. We estimate that at least 20% of the urban area is sinking in all cities, mainly due to groundwater extraction, affecting ~34 million people. Additionally, more than 29,000 buildings are located in high and very high damage risk areas, indicating a greater likelihood of infrastructure damage. These datasets and information are crucial for developing ad hoc policies to adapt urban centers to these complex environmental challenges.
Asymmetric effects of music preference on emotional and behavioral responses: a reference dependence framework
Nicolau, Juan Luis; Casado-Diaz, Ana B.; Ruiz-Moreno, Felipe; Diaz-Lajara, Daniel (Emerald, 2025-04)
Purpose: This study explores how liking music shapes customer behavior in foodservice settings by addressing three central questions: (1) To what extent do positive emotions from liking music influence time spent, choice of establishment and spending? (2) How do asymmetries between positive and negative emotional deviations from expected emotions affect these behaviors? (3) Does the influence of liking music vary across foodservice settings such as bars/cafés and restaurants? Design/methodology/approach: Using the stimulus–organism–response (S–O–R) model, the study explores how emotional responses triggered by liking music affect behavior. The concept of segment-specific thresholds is introduced, examining direct effects on behavior and asymmetric impacts due to emotional deviations. Regression analyses assess significant effects on time, choice and spending. Findings: The results reveal significant relationships between liking music and customer behavior across different foodservice settings, underscoring the distinct role of emotions and the need to consider contextual and segment-specific nuances. Notably, the study highlights asymmetric effects, where negative emotional deviations exert a stronger influence on behavior than positive deviations. Practical implications: The findings suggest that managers could promote customer engagement by tailoring music experiences to match segment preferences. Collaborations with music providers may further support targeted musical environments, enhancing brand differentiation. Originality/value: This research contributes to the hospitality literature by integrating a reference-dependence framework with the S–O–R model, emphasizing social comparisons and emotional asymmetry. The study provides insights into how music can strategically shape consumer decision-making.
Enhancing the interaction between guests and hotel managers: The value of guest-generated titles
Xu, Congyue; Wang, Guangyu; Nicolau, Juan Luis; Liu, Xianwei (Elsevier, 2025-10)
Online travel platforms not only help guests make booking decisions by providing online reviews but also serve as interaction channels between them and hotel managers. However, excessive reviews lead to information overload, thus challenging hotel managers in identifying valuable reviews and crafting personalized responses, ultimately preventing them from effectively interacting with guests. Using 384,562 reviews for 2510 hotels on Booking.com, we find that guests exerting additional posting effort tend to upload a guest-generated title, but hotel managers do not prioritize those reviews with guest-generated titles. By measuring these reviews’ title–content similarity and the personalization of managerial responses using a trained support vector machines model, we find that content-related guest-generated titles can help hotel managers craft personalized responses, especially for negative reviews. This research contributes to the literature on guest-generated titles in online travel platforms and provides theoretical and managerial implications for hotel managers and online travel platforms.
Enotourist satisfaction: A multidimensional approach
Sellers-Rubio, Ricardo; Nicolau, Juan Luis; Campayo-Sanchez, Fernando; Shin, Seunghun (Sage, 2025-04)
This study aims to analyze the dimensions that determine an enotourist’s experience when (s)he visits wineries. In addition, in a novel approach, this work examines the influence of wine routes on this experience. On the basis of a set of reviews posted by wine tourists on TripAdvisor, Latent Dirichlet Allocation analysis is conducted to identify the dimensions that determine the wine tourism experience. Subsequently, ordinal logistic regression analysis is performed to identify the most determinant dimensions of visitors’ assessments of their experiences and the influence of wine routes. Results indicate that the “staff” dimension, associated with the treatment provided by tour guides, is the most determinant dimension. In addition, significant differences are observed in the assessment of attributes across the different wine routes.
Passive back support exoskeletons do not effectively reduce physical demands during simulated floor tiling
Usmani, Ahmad Raza; Rajabi, Mohammad Sadra; Ojelade, Aanuoluwapo; Kim, Sunwook; Harris-Adamson, Carisa; Barr, Alan; Nussbaum, Maury A. (Elsevier, 2025-05)
Back-support exoskeletons (BSEs) have the potential to reduce physical demands during many occupational tasks, but their effectiveness in flooring work remains underexplored. Eighteen participants performed simulated floor tiling work under three intervention conditions (HeroWear Apex™ = HW, Laevo Flex™ = LV, and no device = ND), across two tile sizes (small vs. large), and two task types (tiling vs. grouting). HW use increased back muscle activation by ∼13-44 % compared to ND, while LV led to minimal changes. Some participants reported concerns with both BSEs, including movement restrictions, discomfort, and skin irritation. Significant interaction effects of intervention and tile size on muscle activity and subjective outcomes suggest the importance of considering task-specificity in BSE evaluations. Overall, the BSEs examined here did not effectively reduce physical demands during simulated floor tiling. Although we assessed BSE effects on tiling, our findings could also guide future implementation of exoskeletons in other similar construction tasks.
User Experiences and Adoption Factors for a Back-Support Exosuit in Automotive Logistics: Results from Field Testing up to 18 Months
Kim, Sunwook; Porto, Ryan; Nussbaum, Maury A. (Taylor & Francis, 2025-04)
Occupational Applications: We interviewed 24 automotive logistic workers who had used (or stopped using) a soft back-support exoskeleton (exosuit). These workers generally recognized potentially benefits of back-support exosuits, with 11 continuing use. Their use was primarily influenced by usability, compatibility, and comfort factors. We found wide variability in use patterns and adaptation periods, and that there were specific design concerns and concerns regarding thermal discomfort. To enhance long-term adoption of exosuits in industrial settings, organizations should consider: 1) implementing flexible, individualized training programs addressing specific usability challenges; 2) adopting a voluntary approach accommodating varied adaptation needs; 3) providing comprehensive education on potential health benefits; 4) using peer demonstrations to promote acceptance; and 5) collaborating with manufacturers to improve designs based on user feedback. These strategies may help enhance acceptance and sustained use of exosuits, potentially contributing to more effective support for occupational health during manual material handling tasks.
nMOWChIP-seq: low-input genome-wide mapping of non-histone targets
Liu, Zhengzhi; Naler, Lynette B.; Zhu, Yan; Deng, Chengyu; Zhang, Qiang; Zhu, Bohan; Zhou, Zirui; Sarma, Mimosa; Murray, Alexander; Xie, Hehuang; Lu, Chang (Oxford University Press, 2022-03-31)
Genome-wide profiling of interactions between genome and various functional proteins is critical for understanding regulatory processes involved in development and diseases. Conventional assays require a large number of cells and high-quality data on tissue samples are scarce. Here we optimized a low-input chromatin immunoprecipitation followed by sequencing (ChIP-seq) technology for profiling RNA polymerase II (Pol II), transcription factor (TF), and enzyme binding at the genome scale. The new approach produces high-quality binding profiles using 1,000-50,000 cells. We used the approach to examine the binding of Pol II and two TFs (EGR1 and MEF2C) in cerebellum and prefrontal cortex of mouse brain and found that their binding profiles are highly reflective of the functional differences between the two brain regions. Our analysis reveals the potential for linking genome-wide TF or Pol II profiles with neuroanatomical origins of brain cells.
Systematic evaluation of parameters in RNA bisulfite sequencing data generation and analysis
Johnson, Zachary; Xu, Xiguang; Pacholec, Christina; Xie, Hehuang (Oxford University Press, 2022-03-31)
The presence of 5-methylcytosine (m5C) in RNA molecules has been known for decades and its importance in regulating RNA metabolism has gradually become appreciated. Despite recent advances made in the functional and mechanistic understanding of RNA m5C modifications, the detection and quantification of methylated RNA remains a challenge. In this study, we compared four library construction procedures for RNA bisulfite sequencing and implemented an analytical pipeline to assess the key parameters in the process of m5C calling. We found that RNA fragmentation after bisulfite conversion increased the yield significantly, and an additional high temperature treatment improved bisulfite conversion efficiency especially for sequence reads mapped to the mitochondrial transcriptome. Using Unique Molecular Identifiers (UMIs), we observed that PCR favors the amplification of unmethylated templates. The low sequencing quality of bisulfite-converted bases is a major contributor to the methylation artifacts. In addition, we found that mitochondrial transcripts are frequently resistant to bisulfite conversion and no p-m5C sites with high confidence could be identified on mitochondrial mRNAs. Taken together, this study reveals the various sources of artifacts in RNA bisulfite sequencing data and provides an improved experimental procedure together with analytical methodology.
Egr2 Deletion in Autoimmune-Prone C57BL6/lpr Mice Suppresses the Expression of Methylation-Sensitive Dlk1-Dio3 Cluster MicroRNAs
Wang, Zuhang; Heid, Bettina; He, Jianlin; Xie, Hehuang; Reilly, Christopher M.; Dai, Rujuan; Ahmed, S. Ansar (Oxford University Press, 2023-12)
We previously demonstrated that the upregulation of microRNAs (miRNAs) at the genomic imprinted Dlk1-Dio3 locus in murine lupus is correlated with global DNA hypomethylation. We now report that the Dlk1-Dio3 genomic region in CD4+ T cells of MRL/lpr mice is hypomethylated, linking it to increased Dlk1-Dio3 miRNA expression. We evaluated the gene expression of methylating enzymes, DNA methyltransferases (DNMTs), and demethylating ten-eleven translocation proteins (TETs) to elucidate the molecular basis of DNA hypomethylation in lupus CD4+ T cells. There was a significantly elevated expression of Dnmt1 and Dnmt3b, as well as Tet1 and Tet2, in CD4+ T cells of three different lupus-prone mouse strains compared to controls. These findings suggest that the hypomethylation of murine lupus CD4+ T cells is likely attributed to a TET-mediated active demethylation pathway. Moreover, we found that deletion of early growth response 2 (Egr2), a transcription factor gene in B6/lpr mice markedly reduced maternally expressed miRNA genes but not paternally expressed protein-coding genes at the Dlk1-Dio3 locus in CD4+ T cells. EGR2 has been shown to induce DNA demethylation by recruiting TETs. Surprisingly, we found that deleting Egr2 in B6/lpr mice induced more hypomethylated differentially methylated regions at either the whole-genome level or the Dlk1-Dio3 locus in CD4+ T cells. Although the role of methylation in EGR2-mediated regulation of Dlk1-Dio3 miRNAs is not readily apparent, these are the first data to show that in lupus, Egr2 regulates Dlk1-Dio3 miRNAs, which target major signaling pathways in autoimmunity. These data provide a new perspective on the role of upregulated EGR2 in lupus pathogenesis.
Dynamics of RNA m⁵C modification during brain development
Johnson, Zachary; Xu, Xiguang; Lin, Yu; Xie, Hehuang (Elsevier, 2023-05)
Post-transcriptional RNA modifications have been recognized as key regulators of neuronal differentiation and synapse development in the mammalian brain. While distinct sets of 5-methylcytosine (m5C) modified mRNAs have been detected in neuronal cells and brain tissues, no study has been performed to characterize methylated mRNA profiles in the developing brain. Here, together with regular RNA-seq, we performed transcriptome-wide bisulfite sequencing to compare RNA cytosine methylation patterns in neural stem cells (NSCs), cortical neuronal cultures, and brain tissues at three postnatal stages. Among 501 m5C sites identified, approximately 6% are consistently methylated across all five conditions. Compared to m5C sites identified in NSCs, 96% of them were hypermethylated in neurons and enriched for genes involved in positive transcriptional regulation and axon extension. In addition, brains at the early postnatal stage demonstrated substantial changes in both RNA cytosine methylation and gene expression of RNA cytosine methylation readers, writers, and erasers. Furthermore, differentially methylated transcripts were significantly enriched for genes regulating synaptic plasticity. Altogether, this study provides a brain epitranscriptomic dataset as a new resource and lays the foundation for further investigations into the role of RNA cytosine methylation during brain development.
Independent and joint association of cord plasma pantothenate and cysteine levels with autism spectrum disorders and other neurodevelopmental disabilities in children born term and preterm
Raghavan, Ramkripa; Wang, Guoying; Hong, Xiumei; Pearson, Colleen; Xie, Hehuang; Adams, William G.; Augustyn, Marilyn; Wang, Xiaobin (2023-05-11)
Background: Pantothenate (vitamin B5) is a precursor for coenzyme A (CoA) synthesis, which serves as a cofactor for hundreds of metabolic reactions. Cysteine is an amino acid in the CoA synthesis pathway. To date, research on the combined role of early life pantothenate and cysteine levels in childhood neurodevelopmental disabilities is scarce. Objective: To study the association between cord pantothenate and cysteine levels and risk of autism spectrum disorder (ASD), attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and other developmental disabilities (DD) in children born term and preterm. Methods: The study sample (n = 996, 177 born preterm) derived from the Boston Birth Cohort included 416 neurotypical children, 87 ASD, 269 ADHD, and 224 other DD children, who were mutually exclusive. Participants were enrolled at birth and were followed up prospectively (from October 1, 1998, to June 30, 2018) at the Boston Medical Center. Cord blood sample was collected at birth. Plasma pantothenate and cysteine levels were measured using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. Results: Higher cord pantothenate (≥50th percentile vs. <50th percentile) was associated with a greater risk of ASD (adjusted odds ratio [aOR]: 1.94, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.06, 3.55) and ADHD (aOR: 1.66, 95% CI: 1.14, 2.40), after adjusting for potential confounders. However, cord cysteine alone was not associated with risk of ASD, ADHD, or other DD. When considering the joint association, greater ASD risk was noted when both cord pantothenate and cysteine levels were elevated (≥50th percentile) (aOR: 3.11, 95% CI: 1.24, 7.79), when compared to children with low cord pantothenate (<50th percentile) and high cysteine. Even though preterm and higher pantothenate independently increased the ASD risk, the greatest risk was found in preterm children who also had elevated pantothenate (≥50th percentile), which was true for all three outcomes: ASD (aOR: 5.36, 95% CI: 2.09, 13.75), ADHD (aOR: 3.31, 95% CI: 1.78, 6.16), and other DD (aOR: 3.39, 95% CI: 1.85, 6.24). Conclusions: In this prospective birth cohort, we showed that higher cord pantothenate individually and in combination with higher cysteine or preterm birth were associated with increased risk of ASD and ADHD. More study is needed to explore this biologically plausible pathway.
Endothelial deletion of EPH receptor A4 alters single-cell profile and Tie2/Akap12 signaling to preserve blood-brain barrier integrity
Cash, Alison; de Jager, Caroline; Brickler, Thomas; Soliman, Eman; Ladner, Liliana; Kaloss, Alexandra M.; Zhu, Yumeng; Pridham, Kevin J.; Mills, Jatia; Ju, Jing; Basso, Erwin Kristobal Gudenschwager; Chen, Michael; Johnson, Zachary; Sotiropoulos, Yianni; Wang, Xia; Xie, Hehuang; Matson, John B.; Marvin, Eric A.; Theus, Michelle H. (National Academy of Sciences, 2023-10-10)
Neurobiological consequences of traumatic brain injury (TBI) result from a complex interplay of secondary injury responses and sequela that mediates chronic disability. Endothelial cells are important regulators of the cerebrovascular response to TBI. Our work demonstrates that genetic deletion of endothelial cell (EC)-specific EPH receptor A4 (EphA4) using conditional EphA4f/f/Tie2-Cre and EphA4f/f/VE-Cadherin-CreERT2 knockout (KO) mice promotes blood–brain barrier (BBB) integrity and tissue protection, which correlates with improved motor function and cerebral blood flow recovery following controlled cortical impact (CCI) injury. scRNAseq of capillary-derived KO ECs showed increased differential gene expression of BBB-related junctional and actin cytoskeletal regulators, namely, A-kinase anchor protein 12, Akap12, whose presence at Tie2 clustering domains is enhanced in KO microvessels. Transcript and protein analysis of CCI-injured whole cortical tissue or cortical-derived ECs suggests that EphA4 limits the expression of Cldn5, Akt, and Akap12 and promotes Ang2. Blocking Tie2 using sTie2-Fc attenuated protection and reversed Akap12 mRNA and protein levels cortical-derived ECs. Direct stimulation of Tie2 using Vasculotide, angiopoietin-1 memetic peptide, phenocopied the neuroprotection. Finally, we report a noteworthy rise in soluble Ang2 in the sera of individuals with acute TBI, highlighting its promising role as a vascular biomarker for early detection of BBB disruption. These findings describe a contribution of the axon guidance molecule, EphA4, in mediating TBI microvascular dysfunction through negative regulation of Tie2/Akap12 signaling.
Monoubiquitination of histone H2B is a crucial regulator of the transcriptome during memory formation
Navabpour, Shaghayegh; Farrell, Kayla; Kincaid, Shannon E.; Omar, Nour; Musaus, Madeline; Lin, Yu; Xie, Hehuang; Jarome, Timothy J. (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press, 2024-03)
Posttranslational modification of histone proteins is critical for memory formation. Recently, we showed that monoubiquitination of histone H2B at lysine 120 (H2Bub) is critical for memory formation in the hippocampus. However, the transcriptome controlled by H2Bub remains unknown. Here, we found that fear conditioning in male rats increased or decreased the expression of 86 genes in the hippocampus but, surprisingly, siRNA-mediated knockdown of the H2Bub ligase, Rnf20, abolished changes in all but one of these genes. These findings suggest that monoubiquitination of histone H2B is a crucial regulator of the transcriptome during memory formation.
Neurological manifestations of encephalitic alphaviruses, traumatic brain injuries, and organophosphorus nerve agent exposure
VanderGiessen, Morgen; de Jager, Caroline; Leighton, Julia; Xie, Hehuang; Theus, Michelle; Johnson, Erik; Kehn-Hall, Kylene (Frontiers, 2024-12-13)
Encephalitic alphaviruses (EEVs), Traumatic Brain Injuries (TBI), and organophosphorus nerve agents (NAs) are three diverse biological, physical, and chemical injuries that can lead to long-term neurological deficits in humans. EEVs include Venezuelan, eastern, and western equine encephalitis viruses. This review describes the current understanding of neurological pathology during these three conditions, provides a comparative review of case studies vs. animal models, and summarizes current therapeutics. While epidemiological data on clinical and pathological manifestations of these conditions are known in humans, much of our current mechanistic understanding relies upon animal models. Here we review the animal models findings for EEVs, TBIs, and NAs and compare these with what is known from human case studies. Additionally, research on NAs and EEVs is limited due to their classification as high-risk pathogens (BSL-3) and/or select agents; therefore, we leverage commonalities with TBI to develop a further understanding of the mechanisms of neurological damage. Furthermore, we discuss overlapping neurological damage mechanisms between TBI, NAs, and EEVs that highlight novel medical countermeasure opportunities. We describe current treatment methods for reducing neurological damage induced by individual conditions and general neuroprotective treatment options. Finally, we discuss perspectives on the future of neuroprotective drug development against long-term neurological sequelae of EEVs, TBIs, and NAs.
Increasing H2B Monoubiquitination Improves the Transcriptome and Memory in the Aged Hippocampus
Kincaid, Shannon; Setenet, Gueladouan; Preveza, Natalie J.; Arndt, Kaiser C.; Gwin, Phillip; Lin, Yu; Xie, Hehuang; Jarome, Timothy J. (Society for Neuroscience, 2025-04)
A decline in cognitive abilities is associated with the aging process, affecting nearly 33% of US adults over the age of 70, and is a risk factor for the development of dementia and Alzheimer's disease. Several studies have reported age-related alterations in the transcriptome in the hippocampus, a major site of memory storage that is among the first regions impacted with age, dementia, and Alzheimer's disease. However, much remains unknown about why these transcriptional changes exist in the aged hippocampus and how this impacts memory late in life. Here, we show that monoubiquitination of histone H2B (H2Bubi), an epigenetic mechanism recently reported to be major regulator of the epigenome and transcriptome during memory formation in the young adult brain, decreases with age in the hippocampus of male rats. In vivo CRISPR-dCas9-mediated upregulation of Rnf20, the only ubiquitin E3 ligase for H2B, in the hippocampus significantly improved memory retention in aged rats. Remarkably, RNA-seq analysis revealed that in addition to the 18 genes typically upregulated in the aged rat hippocampus following contextual fear conditioning, Rnf20 upregulation caused learning-related increases and decreases in 40 and 11 unique genes, respectively, suggesting that these 51 genes may be among those most critical for improving memory in advanced age. Together, these data suggest that H2B monoubiquitination is a significant regulator of age-related dysregulation of the transcriptome and impairments in memory.
Performance Evaluation of Large Language Models for High-Performance Code Generation: A Multi-Agent Approach (MARCO)
Rahman, Asif; Cvetkovic, Veljko; Reece, Kathleen; Walters, Aidan; Hassan, Yasir; Tummeti, Aneesh; Torres, Brian; Cooney, Denise; Ellis, Margaret; Nikolopoulos, Dimitrios (2025-05-07)
Large language models (LLMs) have transformed software development through code generation capabilities, yet their effectiveness for high-performance computing (HPC) remains limited. HPC code requires specialized optimizations for parallelism, memory efficiency, and architecture-specific considerations that general-purpose LLMs often overlook. We present MARCO (Multi-Agent Reactive Code Optimizer), a novel framework that enhances LLM-generated code for HPC through a specialized multi-agent architecture. MARCO employs separate agents for code generation and performance evaluation, connected by a feedback loop that progressively refines optimizations. A key innovation is MARCO's web-search component that retrieves real-time optimization techniques from recent conference proceedings and research publications, bridging the knowledge gap in pre-trained LLMs. Our extensive evaluation on the LeetCode 75 problem set demonstrates that MARCO achieves a 14.6% average runtime reduction compared to Claude 3.5 Sonnet alone, while the integration of the web-search component yields a 30.9% performance improvement over the base MARCO system. These results highlight the potential of multi-agent systems to address the specialized requirements of high-performance code generation, offering a cost-effective alternative to domain-specific model fine-tuning.
Building the future: A practice-based approach to youth leadership development
Oyedare, Israel; Kaufman, Eric K.; Council, Austin (Emerald, 2025-05-06)
Purpose: While leadership is a popular field of research and practice, there is a need for more studies emphasizing youth leadership development. The importance of youth leadership development in solving complex societal and organizational problems cannot be overemphasized. The purpose of this teaching tool is, first, to contribute to the field of youth leadership development. Secondly, gleaning from nonprofit work in Africa, this article aims to explore emerging leadership education approaches for developing young leaders. Design/methodology/approach: This research maximizes a recent evaluation of the Teens and Youth in Leadership (TYIL) Fellowship program, conducted using a focus group interview with previous participants and assessing the impact and relevance of TYIL’s model for the leadership development among youth. Findings: Participants believed that the model adopted by the TYIL Fellowship for youth leadership development is relevant for their personal leadership successes and can be adopted by other youth leadership programs. Originality/value: The featured program is novel, with potential for broad application. Youth program leaders, faculty members and practitioners can utilize this teaching tool research for developing young leaders in their various contexts.
Essential validation criteria for rigorous covariance-based structural equation modeling
Gaskin, James; Lowry, Paul Benjamin; Rosengren, Warren; Fife, Thomas (2025)
Covariance-based structural equation modeling (CB-SEM) is a robust analytical technique for validating complex measurements and theoretical models. Despite criticisms regarding overfitting, misspecifica-tion, and sample size limitations, SEM remains invaluable for rigorous theoretical model testing when applied correctly. This Methods Article aims to streamline the extensive SEM criteria into essential con-siderations segmented across three critical stages: data preparation, measurement validation, and struc-tural modeling. This provides scholars with a comprehensive guide tailored to meet the stringent re-quirements of top-tier scientific journals. We outline data design considerations, progress through key SEM processes, and conclude with guidelines for testing specific hypotheses. We also illuminate rele-vant validation criteria for each stage, forming a foundational framework for rigorous SEM analysis. Ne-glecting any of these criteria can trigger irreversible analytical errors. We provide examples of how missing some criteria can drastically change results. We also demonstrate an ongoing issue with inade-quate reporting of these criteria in IS journals, exacerbating these issues. Currently, SEM instruction is dispersed across numerous books and articles across different fields and decades, often with complex explanations. Our principal contribution is consolidating a comprehensive set of validation criteria into an articulated guide for scholars not yet proficient in SEM. However, this is not a step-by-step walkthrough for advanced SEM users. We advocate for a structured, transparent reporting system for these criteria, shifting the responsibility for methodological clarity onto the author and facilitating a more precise understanding for readers. Our recommendations aim to enhance the integrity of SEM applications in research by elevating reporting standards.
Understanding the postadoption use of gamified learning systems against the conflicting role of the game layer
Li, Han; Luo, Xin Robert; Lowry, Paul Benjamin; Zhang, Jie (Elsevier, 2025-06)
Gamification is driving widespread application adoption, with a $70.4 billion projected market by 2030. However, the consequences of gamification on sustained use beyond initial adoption remain largely unclear. This study explores how the game layer may induce psychological fatigue and hinder continued use, particularly in learning systems. Drawing on self-determination theory and cognitive load theory, we analyzed the perceptions of 307 Duolingo users. The results reveal mixed impacts of the game layer on postadoption usage, influenced by gaming motivation and perceived learning complexity. This research underscores the nuanced effects of gamification and offers insights for improving gamified learning system design.
Uncovering the effects of non-hedonic social media use on knowledge workers' depression through the conservation of resources theory
Cui, Xiling; Lei, Yang; Huo, Baofeng; Lowry, Paul Benjamin; Yang, Xuan (Elsevier, 2025-06)
Leveraging the conservation of resources theory, this study investigates the influence of non-hedonic social media (SM) uses, namely broad socialization, deep communication, information retrieval, and information sharing, on forming knowledge-working professionals’ depression through SM overload and strain. The analysis of a two-wave data collection with 440 participants suggests that broad socialization and information sharing have both positive and negative effects indirectly on depression. In contrast, deep communication and information retrieval are beneficial in reducing depression. Our study contributes to the existing literature by exploring the distinct effects of the four non-hedonic social media use on depression.

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