Department of Management Information Systems, Fowler College of Business
DIGITAL INNOVATION LAB
where research is about societal impact

We focus on the study, adoption, and implementation of new technologies to develop human-centered approaches to digital transformation. DiLab directs inquiry toward the diffusion of technological innovations, exploring the actualization of digital transformations and the democratization of digital entrepreneurship.
Redefining Digital Education
We study theories such as connectivism and networked learning and develop learning platforms and technologies to support innovation-based and authentic learning. Our research contributes to inclusive education and alternative models of education as the foundations of education reform.
Transforming Digital Entrepreneurship
We study how digital entrepreneurs can systematically expand their competencies to adapt and address new challenges. We explore concepts such as digital literacy and digital entrepreneurial mindset and their roles in driving digital entrepreneurship with an emphasis on accessible support systems.
Democratizing Digital Innovation
We study how companies develop strategies, allocate resources, and engage their employees, customers, and community in digital innovation initiatives. We study open digital innovation, research innovation culture, and its support systems, and examine the role of social computing and social technologies democratizing new product or service development across the industry.
Actualizing Digital Transformation
We focus on redefining the strategic role of IT from a human-centered perspective and its future technological ambition in different areas from design to business development. We also study the role of employees, their experiences and culture in digital transformation, its governance, and actualizing its values.
We strive to develop human-centered approaches to the design, adoption, and dissemination of digital technologies and nurture compassionate digital transformation leaders.
Contributions
Digital Innovation Research
Projects
Digital Transformation
– The Experiential Values of Work: A Case of Digital Transformation
– Future of Work: Emotion and Engagement in Digitized Workplaces
– Digital Transformation Co-governance: The Role of Digital Culture
– Pathway to Data Literacy in Public Institutions
– The Role of Self-service Analytics Technology and its Voluntary Use in Digital Transformation
– Role of Employees Experience and Engagement in Digital Transformation: The Case of Cybersecurity and Risk Initiative
– The Future of Customer Experience Management Systems
– From Accessibility to Inclusion: Theorization of Inclusive Digital Transformation from an Employee Experience Perspective
– Service Failure Recovery Strategies in the Sharing Economy
Digital Innovation
– Advancing Digital Innovation in SMEs: Challenges and Opportunities from a Employee Engagement Perspective
– From User Experience to Employee Experience: A Framework for Employee Engagement Platform Design
– Open Innovation Platform Design: A Study of User Experience
– Open Innovation Organizational Forms
– The Future of Open Innovation: Possibilities and Limitation
– Self-Monitoring Technology Design and Implementation: The Case of Inpatient Safety
– Social Platform Design: A Case of Social Travel Application
– The Use of Smart Sensor Technologies in Architectural Design
– The Role of Enterprise Social Networking Platforms in Fostering Innovation Productivity
– Service Failure Recovery Strategies in the Sharing Economy
– Enterprise Social Network Sites and Innovation during the COVID-19 pandemic
– Extended Reality (XR) Applications in Architectural Practice: Towards a Development Framework
– Actor Behavior and Platform Affordances in Open Innovation Networks
– Social Product Development: Process, Governance, and Technology
Digital Entrepreneurship
– Digital Entrepreneurship: Entrepreneurial Mindset and its Drivers
– Design a Smart Mentor Bot for Digital Entrepreneurship Education
– Digital Intrapreneurship Experience: Phenomenological perspective
– Entrepreneurship Education Platform Design: A Study of User Experience
– Digital Entrepreneurship: The Role of Work Climate
Digital Education
– The Design of Educational VR Applications for K-12: The NAF Perspective
– The Future of Higher Education: From Connectivism to Education Value Networks
– The Future of Inclusive Education: The Authentic Social Learning Model
– Digital Mindfulness: From Mindset to Action
– Self-monitoring Technology, Goal Setting and Productivity in Educational Settings
– Social Innovation: A Teaching Mechanism for Modern World
Publications
Last Update: September 2021
Roy, V., Nobis, E., Abhari, K., Dagoc, F. & Parsons, M. (2022). Open Innovation Platform Design: The Case of Social Product Development. Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences.
Su, N., McGuckin, S. & Abhari, K. (2022). The Limits of Open Innovation: A Literature Review and Research Agenda. Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences.
Dagoc, F., Abhari, K., Roy, V. & Nobis, E. (2022). Entrepreneurship Education Platform Design: The Relationships between Autodidactic Affordances and Experiential Learning Needs. Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences.
Abhari, K., Davis, D., Ness, H. Pagador, J., Parsons, M. & Brodskiy R. (2022). Data Swagger: A Systemic Approach to Train, Motivate and Engage Data Savvy Employees. Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences.
Abhari, K., Davidson, E., & Xiao, B. (2022). Inventing Together: The Role of Actor Goals and Platform Affordances in Open Innovation. Journal of the Association for Information Systems.
Abhari, K., Sanavi, A., Ly, J., & Wright, M. (2021) ‘Employees First’: The Relationship between Employee Experience Management Systems and Customer Experience Management. AMCIS 2021.
Abhari, M., Abhari, K., Drinkwine, M., & Sloan, J. (2021). Extended Reality (XR) Applications in Architectural Practice: Towards a Development Framework. HCI International 2020 – Late Breaking Papers. Lecture Notes in Computer Science. Cham: Springer.
Abhari K., Klase, M., Koobchehr, F., Olivares, F., Pesavento, M., Sosa L. & Vaghefi, I. (2021). Toward a Theory of Digital Mindfulness: A Case of Smartphone-based Self-monitoring. In Nah, F., & Tan, C. (Eds.) HCI in Business, Government, and Organizations Supporting Business. HCI International.
Rice, R., Abhari, K., & Pesavento, M. (2021). An Authentic Social Learning Model to Improve Collaboration and Engagement in Online and Hybrid K-12. AMCIS 2021.
Abhari K., Williams D., Pawar P., Panjwani K. (2021).Smart Entrepreneurial Systems: An Application of Deep Reinforcement Learning in Improving Entrepreneurship Mentorship. In: Arai K. (eds) Advances in Information and Communication. FICC 2021. Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing, vol 1364. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-73103-8_33
Abhari, K., Ostroff, C., Barcellos, B. & Williams, D. (2021). Co-Governance in Digital Transformation Initiatives: The Roles of Digital Culture and Employee Experience. Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences. http://hdl.handle.net/10125/71324
Abhari, K., Ascue, N., Boer, C., Sahoo, C. & Zarei, M. (2021). Enterprise Social Network Applications: Enhancing and Driving Innovation Culture and Productivity Through Digital Technologies. Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences. http://hdl.handle.net/10125/70700
Sosa, L., Abhari, K., Pesavento, M., Koobchehr, F., Xiao B., & Kohsuwan, P. (2021). Service Failure Recovery in the Sharing Economy: A Case Study of Airbnb. Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences. http://hdl.handle.net/10125/70710
Estell, P., Davidson, E & Abhari, K. (2021). Affording Employee Voice: How Enterprise Social Networking Sites (ESNS) Create New Pathways for Employee Expression. Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences. http://hdl.handle.net/10125/70950
Adzgauskaite, Marta, Abhari, K, & Pesavento P. (2020). How Virtual Reality is Changing the Future of Learning in K-12 and Beyond – Using Needs-Affordances-Features Perspective. In: Stephanidis C. et al. (eds) HCI International 2020 – Late Breaking Papers: Cognition, Learning and Games. HCII 2020. Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol 12425. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-60128-7_22
Young, R., Wahlberg, L., Davis, E., & Abhari, K. (2020). Towards a Theory of Digital Entrepreneurship Mindset : The Role of Digital Learning Aptitude and Digital Literacy. In AMCIS 2020 Proceedings. https://aisel.aisnet.org/amcis2020/culture_in_is/culture_in_is/7
Abhari, K., Ascue, N., Boer, C., Sahoo, C., & Zarei, M. (2020). Enterprise Social Networks and Innovation Productivity : The Role of Innovation Culture. In AMCIS 2020 Proceedings. https://aisel.aisnet.org/amcis2020/strategic_uses_it/strategic_uses_it/26
Abhari, K., Koobchehr, F., Huxford, C., Olivares, F., Kohsuwan, P., & Sosa, L. (2020). Redefining Education in the Digital Economy : The Role of Social Innovation- based Learning in Information Systems Education. In AMCIS 2020 Proceedings. https://aisel.aisnet.org/amcis2020/is_education/is_education/26
Abhari, K., Davidson, E., & Xiao, B. (in press). Modeling Social Product Development Process, Technology, and Governance. IEEE Transactions of Engineering Management.
Abhari M., Abhari K. (2020) Ambient Intelligence Applications in Architecture: Factors Affecting Adoption Decisions. In: Arai K., Kapoor S., Bhatia R. (eds) Advances in Information and Communication. FICC 2020. Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing, vol 1129. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-39445-5_18
Abhari, K., Vemero A., & Davidson E. (2020). Psychology of Business Intelligence Tools: Needs-Affordances-Features Perspective. The 53rd Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences. http://hdl.handle.net/10125/64344
Abhari, K., Davidson, E., & Xiao, B. (2019). Experience First’: Investigating Co-Creation Experience in Social Product Development Networks. AIS Transactions on Human-Computer Interaction. 11 (1). pp 1-32.
Abhari, K., Davidson, E., & Xiao, B. (2019). Collaborative Innovation in the Sharing Economy: Profiling Social Product Development Actors through Classification Modeling. Internet Research.
Abhari, M., & Abhari K. (2019). Design with Perfect Sense: The Adoption of Smart Sensor Technologies in Architectural Practice. The 52nd Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences.
Presentations & Talks
Roy, V., Nobis, E., Abhari, K., & Dagoc, F. (2021). Open Innovation Platform Design: From User Experience to User Interface Design. AMCIS 2021.
Dagoc, F., Abhari, K., Roy, V., & Nobis, E. (2021). How to Design Entrepreneurship Education Platforms: A User Experience Study. AMCIS 2021.
Su, N., & Abhari, K. (2021). The Limits of Open Innovation: A Case Study of a Social Product Development Platform. AMCIS 2021.
Sandoval., I. O., & Abhari., K. (2021). Profiling Digital Entrepreneurs. AMCIS 2021.
Klase, M., & Connors, O., & Abhari., K. (2021). Digital Mindfulness: The Role of Reflection. AMCIS 2021.
Koobchehr, F., Olivares, F., Abhari, K., Pesavento, M., & Sosa L. (2020). Use Smart, Not Less: Toward a Theory of Self-Monitoring in the Digital Age. ICIS 2020.
Abhari, K. & Bekeris, Z. (2020). Employee Experience Management during Digital Transformation: How to Measure the Experiential Values of Digital Transformation. ICIS 2020.
Abhari, K., Pesavento, M., Williams, D., & Bram, A. (2020). Adapt or Perish: Enterprise Social Networks and Innovation during Covid-19 Pandemic. ICIS 2020.
Pagador, J., Huynh, N., Davis, D., & Abhari, K. (2020). Data Swagger: Cultivating Data Literacy to Drive Digital Transformation. ICIS 2020.
Cabrera, C., Cardenas, M., Hardrick, L. L., & Abhari, K. (2020). Self-service Analytics Adoption: A Sociocultural Framework. ICIS 2020.
Adzgauskaite, M., & Abhari, K. (2020). Virtual Reality Applications and Experiential Learning Needs : The Needs-Affordances- Features Perspective. AMCIS 2020.
Abhari, K., & Solomon, Z. (2020). Reciprocal Relationship between Employee Experience Management and Digital Transformation. In AMCIS 2020.
Ostroff, C., Barcellos, B., & Abhari, K. (2020). Digital Culture , neither Strategy nor Technology , Drives Digital Transformation. AMCIS 2020.
Abhari, K. (2020). Digital Transformation and Experiential Values of Work. Interdisciplinary Conference on Advances in Communication and Information Sciences. HICSS 2020. Honolulu.
Abhari, K. (2020). Authentic Social Learning in Time of Crisis. San Diego State University, San Diego.
Abhari, K., (2020). Panel: Digital Entrepreneurship. California Entrepreneurship Education Conference.Use Smart, Not Less: Toward a Theory of Self-Monitoring in the Digital Age. ICIS 2020.
Ostroff, C., Barcellos, B., & Abhari, K. (2020). Digital Culture , neither Strategy nor Technology , Drives Digital Transformation. AMCIS 2020.
Abhari, K., & Solomon, Z. (2020). Reciprocal Relationship between Employee Experience Management and Digital Transformation. AMCIS 2020.
Abhari, K., Sue, S. & Furutani, D. (2020). Symposium: Secrets to Priming Entrepreneurship Platforms for Deep Learning & AI Research. The 52nd Hawaii International Conferences on System Sciences, Maui.
Contributors
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Current Members
Kaveh Abhari | Faculty Director
Morteza Safaei Pour, Ph.D. | Faculty Member
Kelsey Azmitia | Coordinator
Johanna Bernal | Information Systems (2024)
Aziz Bhullar | Information Systems (2024)
Carson Carroll | Information Systems (2022)
Melarie Cardenas | Master of Cybersecurity Management (2023) | Project Owner
Jordan Chen | Information Systems | (2024)
Olivia Connors | Psychology (2021)
Francezca Dago | Information Systems (2021) | Project Owner
Amara Duru | Psychology (2022)
Nhat Huynh | (2024)
Joey Kettle | Information Systems (2023)
Jordan Klair | Psychology (2022)
Melissa Klase | Psychology (2022)
Elijah Nobis | Information Systems (2022)
Mikay Parsons | Master of Communication (2022) | Project Owner
Ryan Christian Quiba | Information Systems (2022)
Vanessa Roy | Information Systems (2022)
Dylan Rubin | Information Systems (2022)
Timothy Seitola | MBA (2022) | Project Owner
Augusto Silva | Psychology (2022)
Jillian Micah Tan | Information Systems (2022)
Emma Tsztoo | Psychology and Cellular and Molecular Biology (2021)
Former Members
Tyrelle Adams | Economics & Information Systems (2020)
John-Patrick Akinyemi | PhD Student | Student Mentor | Project Owner
Andrew Anderson | Master of Communication (2021)
Lily Andrade | Information Systems and Marketing (2021)
Nathan Ascue | Information Systems and Marketing (2020)
Bailey Barcellos | Information Systems (2020)
Nohea Behler | Psychology (2021)
Zigurds Bekeris | Information Systems (2021)
Aliya Bram | Communication (2021)
Robert Brodskiy | Information Systems (2022)
Cooper Boer | Information Systems (2020)
Keith Buchanan |Business Administration and Management (2022)
Casiano Cabrera | Psychology (2022)
Lance Cameron | Master of Cybersecurity Management (2021)
Jeffrey Cardinez | Psychology (2021)
Sophie Chance | Information Systems and Engineering (2021)
Kadeem Coad | Information Systems (2022)
Estefania Cobos | Psychology (2021)
Lillian Chung | Information Systems (2019)
Brenda Damasceno | Information Systems (2022)
Darshan Davis | Information Systems (2023)
Elaina Davis | Information Systems (2020)
Madison Drinkwine | Master of Cybersecurity Management (2022)
Tim Do | Psychology (2021)
Armand Flores | Information Systems (2022)
Guillermo Gonzalez | Psychology (2021)
Lawson Hardrick III | Psychology (2021)
Gabriela Hernandez | Psychology (2022)
Nelson Huynh | Management (2021)
Cyrus Huxford | Business & Information Systems (2020)
Brandon Goodwin | Information Systems (2020)
Farzan Khoobchehr | Information Systems (2020)
Pocky Kohsuwan | Information Systems (2020)
Jennifer Ly | Marketing (2022)
Priya Magiya | Computer Science (2021)
Summer McGuckin | Marketing (2023)
Ajinkya Mehta | Information Systems (2020)
Harris Ness | Information Systems (2022)
Brandon Nordengreen | Information Systems (2020)
Fernando Olivares | Information Systems (2020)
Ivan D Ortiz S | Marketing (2021)
Sergio Ortiz | Information Systems (2020)
Chloe Ostroff | Information Systems (2020)
Janmae Pagador | Information Systems and Political Science (2021)
Jeremy Parson | Marketing (2021)
Pooja Pawar | Master of Computer Science (2021)
Michael Pesavento | Project Owner | Master of Communication (2021)
Alexandre Pouzikov | Information Systems (2021)
Mariana Ronzon | Psychology (2022)
Christopher Sahoo | Information Systems (2020)
Arsham Sanavi | Information Systems and Marketing (2021)
Zac Solomon | Information Systems (2020)
Lusis Sosa | Information Systems (2020) and Master of Information Systems (2023)
Elizabeth Springer | Psychology (2021)
Nan Su | Information Systems (2021)
Ali Szady | Information Systems (2020)
Tehauaroga Tehiva | Psychology (2021)
Bree Thompson | Information Systems (2020)
Vincent Tran | Information Systems (2022)
Krista Uvero | Information Systems (2020)
Alessandro Vomero | Master of Information Systems (2019)
Luke Wahlberg | Information Systems (2020)
Marina Wright | Information Systems (2021)
Claire Wu | Accounting and Information Systems (2021)
Ryan Young | Information Systems (2020)
Brooke Zaferis | Information Systems (2020)
Mahsa Zarei | Information Systems (2020) and Master of Information Systems (2022)
Member Spotlight
Congratulations to the DiLab Members who Presented at the Student Research Symposium!
We are all extremely proud of all of our DiLab members who presented recently at the Student Research Symposium (SRS) event and want to congratulate those four who received awards! Below are the research projects that were presented at SRS: Digital...
DiLab members present research papers at Hawaii International Conference System Sciences’
DiLab members have recently presented four research papers at the Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences 2022. The papers include: ~ Open Innovation Platform Design: The Case of Social Product Development by Vanessa Roy, Elijah Nobis, Kaveh Abhari,...
“The Experiential Values of Work”- Employee Engagement being Maintained in the Workplace
Working on “The Experiential Values of Work: A Case of Digital Transformation,” Amara, Mariana and Manahil aim to add more clarity to the factors that impact an employee’s experience during digital transformation initiatives, specifically in public institutions. Their...
“Social Travel Platform”- The Social Travel Application, Tramigo
One of our UI/UX research teams is studying the design of ‘Social Travel Platforms’. They began their work by studying a new and promising social travel application, Tramigo, a San Diego based startup. Tramigo’s goal is to extend genuine connections amongst travelers...
Advancing Digital Innovation in SME’s: Challenges and Opportunities from Employees
Focusing on the limitations and challenges of advancing digital innovation in small-medium enterprises (SMEs), Liliann Andrade and Vincent Tran conduct a systematic literature review centered around the key dynamics and determinants of digital intrapreneurship from...
Operational Employees: The Leader of the Digital Transformation
Employees are neither costs nor assets but change agents in digital transformation. Emma Tsztoo works on a project that examines the role of operational employees in the implementation and governance of digital transformation. Emma is in her 4th-year undergraduate...
SERVICES FOR BUSINESSES AND COMMUNITIES
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Contact
Kaveh Abhari, Ph.D. | Faculty Director
Office: SSE3200 | email: kabhari@sdsu.edu | Phone: 619 594-0746
Kelsey Azmitia | Lab Coordinator
Office: SSE3200 | email: kazmitia8250@sdsu.edu