Showing papers by "DePaul University published in 2017"
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors proposed and tested a theoretical framework to explain resilience in supply chain networks for sustainability using unstructured Big Data, based upon 36,422 items gathered in the form of tweets, news, Facebook, WordPress, Instagram, Google+, and YouTube, via responses from 205 managers involved in disaster relief activities in the aftermath of Nepal earthquake.
430 citations
TL;DR: This paper investigated the effect of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) activities and their disclosure on firm value, and found that ESG strengths increase firm value and weaknesses decrease it, while disclosure plays a crucial moderating role by mitigating the negative effect of weaknesses and attenuating the positive effect of strengths.
426 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the effectiveness of augmented reality (AR) as an e-commerce tool using two products ( sunglasses and watches) was evaluated and participants' subjective opinions about AR were examined through opinion mining to better understand consumer responses to AR.
406 citations
27 Aug 2017
TL;DR: This paper introduces a flexible regularization-based framework to enhance the long-tail coverage of recommendation lists in a learning-to-rank algorithm and shows that regularization provides a tunable mechanism for controlling the trade-off between accuracy and coverage.
Abstract: Many recommendation algorithms suffer from popularity bias in their output: popular items are recommended frequently and less popular ones rarely, if at all. However, less popular, long-tail items are precisely those that are often desirable recommendations. In this paper, we introduce a flexible regularization-based framework to enhance the long-tail coverage of recommendation lists in a learning-to-rank algorithm. We show that regularization provides a tunable mechanism for controlling the trade-off between accuracy and coverage. Moreover, the experimental results using two data sets show that it is possible to improve coverage of long tail items without substantial loss of ranking performance.
288 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the basic ideas of blockchain are reviewed and a sample minimalist implementation in Python is presented, based on the same idea. But the implementation is different from the one presented in this paper.
Abstract: Blockchain is a new technology, based on hashing, which is at the foundation of the platforms for trading cryptocurrencies and executing smart contracts. This article reviews the basic ideas of this technology and provides a sample minimalist implementation in Python.
240 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors identify three key governance challenges that are central for implementing the sustainable development goals: cultivating collective action by creating inclusive decision spaces for stakeholder interaction across multiple sectors and scales; making difficult trade-offs, focusing on equity, justice and fairness; and ensuring mechanisms exist to hold societal actors to account regarding decision-making, investment, action, and outcomes.
188 citations
TL;DR: Digital Youth Divas as mentioned in this paper is an out-of-school program that uses narrative stories to launch the creation of digital artifacts and support non-dominant middle school girls' STEM interests and identities through virtual and real-world community.
Abstract: Women use technology to mediate numerous aspects of their professional and personal lives. Yet, few design and create these technologies given that women, especially women of color, are grossly underrepresented in computer science and engineering courses. Decisions about participation in STEM are frequently made prior to high school, and these decisions are impacted by prior experience, interest, and sense of fit with community. Digital Youth Divas is an out-of-school program that uses narrative stories to launch the creation of digital artifacts and support non-dominant middle school girls’ STEM interests and identities through virtual and real-world community. In this article, we discuss the framework of the Digital Youth Divas environment, including our approach to blending narratives into project-based design challenges through on- and offline mechanisms. Results from our pilot year, including the co-design process with the middle school participants, suggest that our narrative-centered, blended learn...
153 citations
TL;DR: The field of carbon dioxide reduction by homogeneous early transition metal complexes (groups 3-7) is reviewed in this article, where the main drawback of these systems is that they generally only produce the 2e− reduction products CO or formate.
150 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors developed a measure to assess participants' perceptions of these affordances, including accessibility, bandwidth, social presence, privacy, network association, personalization, persistence, editability, conversation control, and anonymity.
Abstract: The concept of affordances in communication technology research has proven to be heuristically provocative, yet perceived affordances are rarely measured. After extracting commonly cited social affordances from the literature, we developed a measure to assess participants’ perceptions of these affordances. The scale was tested across eight communication channels in two studies (face-to-face; texting; phone; email; posts on social networking sites, specifically Facebook; instant messaging; Skype videoconferencing; and mobile app Snapchat). A factor structure was developed in Study 1 and confirmed in Study 2. The resultant Perceived Social Affordances of Communication Channels Scale includes 41 items measuring 10 communicative affordances: accessibility, bandwidth, social presence, privacy, network association, personalization, persistence, editability, conversation control, and anonymity. Potential methodological and theoretical applications are discussed.
144 citations
TL;DR: This article found that exposure to or interaction with anthropomorphic consumer products (i.e., products featuring characteristics of being alive through design, interaction, intelligence, responsiveness, and/or personality) can also satisfy (at least partially) social needs, ultimately mitigating previously documented effects of social exclusion.
Abstract: Feeling left out has been shown to trigger primal, automatic responses in an attempt to compensate for threats to social belongingness. Such responses typically involve reconnection with other human beings. However, four experiments provide evidence that exposure to or interaction with anthropomorphic consumer products (i.e., products featuring characteristics of being alive through design, interaction, intelligence, responsiveness, and/or personality) can also satisfy (at least partially) social needs, ultimately mitigating previously documented effects of social exclusion. Specifically, interacting with anthropomorphic (vs. non-anthropomorphic) products following social exclusion reduces 1) the need to exaggerate the number of one’s current social connections, 2) the anticipated need to engage with close others in the future, and 3) the willingness to engage in prosocial behavior. These effects are driven by a need for social assurance, rather than positive affect. Moreover, an important boundary condition exists: drawing attention to the fact that an anthropomorphic product is not actually alive (i.e., the product does not provide genuine human interaction) limits its ability to fulfill social needs. Thus, in a time when consumer products are becoming increasingly anthropomorphic in design and function, the results reveal potentially important consequences for human-to-human relationships.
133 citations
TL;DR: It is shown that the complexity of decision variants of fixed-point problems, including Nash equilibria, are complete for this class, complementing work by Etessami and Yannakakis.
Abstract: We introduce the complexity class źź$\exists \mathbb {R}$ based on the existential theory of the reals. We show that the definition of źź$\exists \mathbb {R}$ is robust in the sense that even the fragment of the theory expressing solvability of systems of strict polynomial inequalities leads to the same complexity class. Several natural and well-known problems turn out to be complete for źź$\exists \mathbb {R}$; here we show that the complexity of decision variants of fixed-point problems, including Nash equilibria, are complete for this class, complementing work by Etessami and Yannakakis [13].
TL;DR: This review highlights recent developments in understanding of how neural circuits, pubertal hormones, and environmental factors contribute to adolescent-typical reward-associated behaviors with a particular focus on sex differences, the medial prefrontal cortex, social reward, social isolation, and drug use and introduces a new approach that makes use of natural adaptations of seasonally breeding species.
Abstract: Adolescence is a time of significant neural and behavioral change with remarkable development in social, emotional, and cognitive skills. It is also a time of increased exploration and risk-taking (e.g., drug use). Many of these changes are thought to be the result of increased reward-value coupled with an underdeveloped inhibitory control, and thus a hypersensitivity to reward. Perturbations during adolescence can alter the developmental trajectory of the brain, resulting in long-term alterations in reward-associated behaviors. This review highlights recent developments in our understanding of how neural circuits, pubertal hormones, and environmental factors contribute to adolescent-typical reward-associated behaviors with a particular focus on sex differences, the medial prefrontal cortex, social reward, social isolation, and drug use. We then introduce a new approach that makes use of natural adaptations of seasonally breeding species to investigate the role of pubertal hormones in adolescent development. This research has only begun to parse out contributions of the many neural, endocrine, and environmental changes to the heightened reward sensitivity and increased vulnerability to mental health disorders that characterize this life stage.
TL;DR: A relatively brief, time-limited, and accessible intervention may be efficacious for improving child and parent behaviors in families of young children with ASD by decreasing child disruptive behaviors.
Abstract: This study examined the efficacy of the Child-Directed Interaction Training (CDIT) phase of Parent-Child Interaction Therapy for children with an Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Thirty mother-child dyads with children ages 3-7 years with a diagnosis of ASD participated in this randomized controlled study. Following manualized CDIT, statistically significant and meaningful improvements in child disruptive behavior and social awareness as well as maternal distress associated with child disruptive behavior occurred. Across 8 sessions, mothers learned to provide positive attention to their children's appropriate social and play behaviors. Both child and parent changes were maintained at 6-week follow-up. A relatively brief, time-limited, and accessible intervention may be efficacious for improving child and parent behaviors in families of young children with ASD. By decreasing child disruptive behaviors, CDIT may also help to prepare children to benefit further from future interventions.
TL;DR: In this article, a model of how cognition-based work-to-family conflict manifests itself in the workplace, impacting employee job success was proposed, based on conservation of resources theory and the concept of loss spirals.
Abstract: Summary
Exploring the role of both the employee and supervisor, we tested a model of how cognition-based work-to-family conflict manifests itself in the workplace, impacting employee job success. Based on conservation of resources theory and the concept of loss spirals, we hypothesized that when an employee's work interferes with family demands, the resulting work-to-family conflict spills over to the work domain via employee emotional exhaustion. We further argued that the behavioral manifestation of employee emotional exhaustion in the workplace is low employee engagement, as assessed by the supervisor. Drawing on signaling theory, we proposed that supervisor assessments of employee engagement are related to promotability, performance ratings, and salary. Work scheduling autonomy, as a boundary condition, is examined as a resource that attenuates these relationships. Data collected from 192 employee–supervisor dyads of a Fortune 1000 company, as well as performance ratings and salary obtained from company records 9 months later, indicated support for our conceptual model. Future research examining employee work–family conflict and job outcomes is discussed. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
TL;DR: The crystal structures of the UGT74F2 wild-type and T15S mutant enzymes, in different substrate/product complexes are determined and it is shown that two threonines are key determinants of product specificity.
Abstract: Salicylic acid (SA) is a signaling molecule utilized by plants in response to various stresses. Through conjugation with small organic molecules such as glucose, an inactive form of SA is generated which can be transported into and stored in plant vacuoles. In the model organism Arabidopsis thaliana, SA glucose conjugates are formed by two homologous enzymes (UGT74F1 and UGT74F2) that transfer glucose from UDP-glucose to SA. Despite being 77% identical and with conserved active site residues, these enzymes catalyze the formation of different products: UGT74F1 forms salicylic acid glucoside (SAG), while UGT74F2 forms primarily salicylic acid glucose ester (SGE). The position of the glucose on the aglycone determines how SA is stored, further metabolized, and contributes to a defense response. We determined the crystal structures of the UGT74F2 wild-type and T15S mutant enzymes, in different substrate/product complexes. On the basis of the crystal structures and the effect on enzyme activity of mutations in the SA binding site, we propose the catalytic mechanism of SGE and SAG formation and that SA binds to the active site in two conformations, with each enzyme selecting a certain binding mode of SA. Additionally, we show that two threonines are key determinants of product specificity.
TL;DR: In the discourse on diversity in colleges and universities in the United States, an often-neglected population is nontraditional adult learners as discussed by the authors, and this invisible aspect of understudied adults is explored.
Abstract: In the discourse on diversity in colleges and universities in the United States, an often-neglected population is nontraditional adult learners. This article explores this invisible aspect of under...
TL;DR: The Visualization by Demonstration paradigm is presented, a novel interaction method for visual data exploration which allows users to provide visual demonstrations of incremental changes to the visual representation and a system which adopts this paradigm recommends potential transformations from the given demonstrations.
Abstract: Although data visualization tools continue to improve, during the data exploration process many of them require users to manually specify visualization techniques, mappings, and parameters. In response, we present the Visualization by Demonstration paradigm, a novel interaction method for visual data exploration. A system which adopts this paradigm allows users to provide visual demonstrations of incremental changes to the visual representation. The system then recommends potential transformations ( Visual Representation, Data Mapping, Axes, and View Specification transformations ) from the given demonstrations. The user and the system continue to collaborate, incrementally producing more demonstrations and refining the transformations, until the most effective possible visualization is created. As a proof of concept, we present VisExemplar, a mixed-initiative prototype that allows users to explore their data by recommending appropriate transformations in response to the given demonstrations.
TL;DR: A new theoretically based framework on emotional responses following triggering events to enhance outcomes is proposed, as well as recommendations designed to enhance health care customer well-being.
TL;DR: Regression results showed that great victimization, cyberbullying, and the offering of support online were positively associated with psychological distress, highlighting the importance of online contexts in shaping wellbeing for LGBtQ outh and young adults.
TL;DR: This paper examined the use and effectiveness of the discount window and Term Auction Facility and found that small banks increased small business lending, while large banks enhanced large business lending while both left loan contract terms unchanged.
Abstract: The Federal Reserve injected unprecedented liquidity into banks during the recent financial crisis using the discount window and Term Auction Facility. We examine these facilities’ use and effectiveness and have three main findings. First, small bank users were generally weak, large bank users were not. Second, the funds were weak substitutes to other funding sources. Third, these facilities increased aggregate lending, enhancing lending at expanding banks and reducing decline at contracting banks. Small banks increased small business lending, while large banks enhanced large business lending. Loan quality only improved at small banks, while both left loan contract terms unchanged.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examine the factors that influence entrepreneurial intentions through the interaction between cognitive factors and perceived environmental munificence, and demonstrate that the effect of one's perceived ability to become an entrepreneur on the intention to engage in such a behaviour is contingent upon the perception of an environment rich in entrepreneurial munificences, in this case, within an incubator setting.
Abstract: Adopting a social cognitive theory perspective, this article examines the factors that influence entrepreneurial intentions through the interaction between cognitive factors and perceived environmental munificence. Specifically, it introduces and demonstrates that the effect of one’s perceived ability to become an entrepreneur on the intention to engage in such a behaviour is contingent upon the perception of an environment rich in entrepreneurial munificence, in this case, within an incubator setting. Perceived entrepreneurial munificence also helps strengthen the relationship between risk-taking propensity and entrepreneurial self-efficacy. Results and implications for future research on entrepreneurial intentions at the interface between cognitive and environmental factors are discussed.
TL;DR: This paper examined the effects of a shock to the stock price formation process on the design of executive incentive contracts and found that an exogenous removal of short-selling constraints causes firms to convexify compensation payoffs by granting relatively more stock options to their managers.
Abstract: This paper examines the effects of a shock to the stock-price formation process on the design of executive incentive contracts. We find that an exogenous removal of short-selling constraints causes firms to convexify compensation payoffs by granting relatively more stock options to their managers. We also find that treated firms adopt new antitakeover provisions. These results suggest that when firms face the threat of bear raids, they incentivize managers to take actions that mitigate the adverse effects of unrestrained short selling. Overall, this paper provides causal evidence that financial markets affect incentive contract design.
09 Jul 2017
TL;DR: This paper re-define the recommender system as a multistakeholder environment in which different stakeholders are served by delivering recommendations, and suggests a utility-based approach to evaluating recommendations in such an environment that is capable of distinguishing among the distributions of utility delivered to different stakeholders.
Abstract: Recommender systems are typically evaluated on their ability to provide items that satisfy the needs and interests of the end user. However, in many real world applications, users are not the only stakeholders involved. There may be a variety of individuals or organizations that benefit in different ways from the delivery of recommendations. In this paper, we re-define the recommender system as a multistakeholder environment in which different stakeholders are served by delivering recommendations, and we suggest a utility-based approach to evaluating recommendations in such an environment that is capable of distinguishing among the distributions of utility delivered to different stakeholders.
TL;DR: Over this 115-year period, seed set became more variable for plants as a whole and for the particularly well-studied taxa of conifers and oaks, and the coefficient of variation in seed set, a measure of masting, increased over time.
Abstract: Mast seeding, or masting, is the highly variable and spatially synchronous production of seeds by a population of plants. The production of variable seed crops is typically correlated with weather,...
02 May 2017
TL;DR: The results suggest that citizens use technology to heighten the visibility of their concerns, to support mechanisms of government accountability, and to provide various options for resident participation in local governance.
Abstract: The partnership between local residents and city officials to inform policy and decision-making about government resources, or participatory governance, has been extensively studied. In addition to numerous ethnographic studies about how citizens engage in-person, there has been increased focus in HCI to understand the impact of technology on citizen participation in local governance. Building upon those studies, this paper provides unique insight from a 3-year longitudinal study on the use of online tools that were organically adapted by citizens to engage in local governance in three diverse Chicago neighborhoods. Though the responsiveness of government officials varied across communities, our results suggest that citizens use technology to heighten the visibility of their concerns, to support mechanisms of government accountability, and to provide various options for resident participation in local governance. We argue that while communities may be effective in their use of ICTs, technology may not increase their political power.
TL;DR: Dysfunctional consequences of crafting for performance-related outcomes are proposed in the form of a U-shaped relationship between job crafting and performance effectiveness and elements of the task context and the social context moderate these curvilinear relationships.
Abstract: Job crafting theory purports that the consequences of revising one's work role can be simultaneously beneficial and detrimental. Previous research, however, has almost exclusively emphasized the beneficial outcomes of job crafting. In the current study, we proposed dysfunctional consequences of crafting for performance-related outcomes in the form of a U-shaped relationship between job crafting and performance effectiveness (managerial ratings of job proficiency and peer ratings of citizenship behavior). We further predicted that elements of the task context (autonomy and ambiguity) and the social context (interdependence and social support) moderate these curvilinear relationships. Consistent with previous research, job crafting displayed positive and linear effects on work-related attitudes (job satisfaction and affective commitment). Consistent with our predictions, moderate levels of crafting were associated with dysfunctional performance-related outcomes and features of work context either exacerbated or dissipated these dysfunctional consequences of job crafting for individuals. (PsycINFO Database Record
TL;DR: The authors demonstrate the central importance of creditors' ability to use movable assets as collateral when borrowing from banks and demonstrate that weak movable collateral laws create distortions in the allocation of resources that favor immovable-based production and investment.
TL;DR: A summary of the most current literature is provided along with potential solutions to methodological challenges (e.g., high attrition, minimal participant racial/ethnic diversity, heterogeneity of technology delivery modes).
Abstract: Obesity is a prevalent health care issue associated with disability, premature morality, and high costs. Behavioral weight management interventions lead to clinically significant weight losses in overweight and obese individuals; however, many individuals are not able to participate in these face-to-face treatments due to limited access, cost, and/or time constraints. Technological advances such as widespread access to the Internet, increased use of smartphones, and newer behavioral self-monitoring tools have resulted in the development of a variety of eHealth weight management programs. In the present paper, a summary of the most current literature is provided along with potential solutions to methodological challenges (e.g., high attrition, minimal participant racial/ethnic diversity, heterogeneity of technology delivery modes). Dissemination and policy implications will be highlighted as future directions for the field of eHealth weight management.
TL;DR: It is a common refrain that anti-colonialism and the arguments that fall under its oeuvre is a failed project, that the new postcolonial states failed one after another, and that those argumentativ...
Abstract: It is a common refrain that anti-colonialism and the arguments that fall under its oeuvre is a failed project, that the new postcolonial states failed one after another, and that those argumentativ...
TL;DR: Findings suggest potentially influential differences between Twitter and Instagram, particularly regarding the role of PSR in fostering a general SOC, as a function of users' motives for use and users' PSR on the sites.
Abstract: Although research has explored the ways in which people form virtual communities to converse about media figures, television shows, and similar topics, little research has examined the link between virtual communities and the parasocial relationships (PSRs) that are often the focus of these conversations and users' experiences in those virtual communities. We examined sense of community (SOC) on Twitter and Instagram as a function of users' motives for use and users' PSR on the sites. In addition to examining the relative importance of different motives for using Twitter and Instagram, we predicted that PSR would mediate the association between motives for use and SOC. Results of an online survey revealed that Instagram users (n = 276) reported stronger social interaction motives than did Twitter users (n = 223). Social interaction and expressive information sharing motives were directly positively associated with SOC for users of both sites. Instagram users also exhibited indirect effects of exp...