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PurposeThe perception of an inferior learning experience is the main challenge for online learning, which leads to higher dropout rates in online courses. The purpose of this paper focuses on investigating how the multi-dimensional construct of social presence would affect the behavior of online learners.Design/methodology/approachA conceptual model that describes online learner behaviors is proposed by including the four social presence variables, learning satisfaction and continuance intention, which is examined via the data collected by a survey of 237 online learners from a typical online learning platform in China. The relationships between variables were tested via structural equation modeling.FindingsThe results revealed that the intimate and immersive social factors have positive impacts on learning satisfaction, which in turn results in continuous intention in online learning. Thus, online learning platform providers should seriously consider building an intimate and immersive online environment for learners. Furthermore, this research provides a more comprehensive understanding of online learning from a social presence perspective for researchers and practitioners.Originality/valueThe study contributes to a better understanding of the social presence which is conceptualized as a four-dimensional construct, and shows how social factors influence learning satisfaction and continuous intention, providing a deeper understanding of the core relationship between social aspects and learning performance in online learning.

AbstractAs a rare disease leading to male infertility, idiopathic hypogonadotropic hypogonadism (IHH) has strong heterogeneity of clinical phenotype and gene mutation. At present, there is no effective diagnosis and treatment method for this disease. This study is to explore the possible new pathogenic gene of idiopathic hypogonadotrophic hypogonadism and the pathological mechanism affecting its occurrence. We performed a whole-exome sequencing on 9 patients with normosmic idiopathic hypogonadotropic hypogonadism (nIHH), 19 varicocele patients with asthenospermia, oligospermia, or azoospermia, 5 patients with simple nonobstructive azoospermia, and 13 normal healthy adult males and carried out comparative analysis, channel analysis, etc. After preliminary sequencing screening, 309–431 genes harbouring variants, including SNPs and indels, were predicted to be harmful per single patient in each group. In genetic variations of nIHH patients' analysis, variants were detected in 10 loci and nine genes in nine patients. And in co-analysis of the three patient groups, nine nIHH patients, 19 VC patients, and five SN patients shared 116 variants, with 28 variant-harbouring genes detected in five or more patients. We found that the NEFH, CCDC177, and PCLO genes and the Gene Ontology pathways GO:0051301: cell division and GO:0090066: regulation of anatomical structure size may be key factors in the pathogenic mechanism of IHH. Our results suggest that the pathogenic mechanism of IHH is not limited to the central nervous system effects of GnRH but may involve other heterogeneous pathogenic genetic variants that affect peripheral organs.