Yuhan Gao
Current Organizations / Institutes
The organizations/institutes from the scholar's latest article
Research Subjects
Yuhan Gao has a total of 4 co-authors. Here are the top co-authors by number of shared publications:
- Chen Yang
School of Public Administration, Guangzhou University, Guangzhou, China
1 shared publication - Fengqi Ma
School of Education, Guangzhou University, Guangzhou, China
1 shared publication - Huifen Guo
School of Education, Guangzhou University, Guangzhou, China
1 shared publication - Zhen Zhou
Guangzhou University, Guangzhou, China
1 shared publication
Latest Publications
- Open Access
- 15 October 2025
- Published by Springer Nature in Scientific Reports
- Vol. 15 (1) , 1-13
The chain mediating role of critical thinking and AI self-efficacy in GenAI usage competence and engineering students’ creativity
This study investigates the impact of generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) on engineering students’ creativity, examining the mediating roles of critical thinking and AI self-efficacy in this relationship. We analyze the data collected using SPSS (v.24) and SmartPLS (v.4) to assess the variables’ structural relationships and effect sizes. The results demonstrate that GenAI usage competence significantly enhances engineering students’ creativity (t > 1.96, p < 0.05,f2 = 0.012). Furthermore, critical thinking partially mediates the relationships between GenAI usage competence and AI self-efficacy, as well as between GenAI usage competence and creativity (t > 1.96, p < 0.001). AI self-efficacy is also a partial mediator in the relationships between critical thinking and creativity, and between GenAI usage competence and creativity (t > 1.96, p < 0.05). This study identifies a chain mediation model in which critical thinking and AI self-efficacy sequentially mediate the relationship between GenAI usage competence and student creativity (t > 1.96, p < 0.001). These findings highlight the interplay between technological tools, cognitive abilities, and psychological factors, indicating that simply teaching technical skills is not enough. For engineering education, this implies that integrating GenAI tools into the curriculum must go hand in hand with fostering students’ critical thinking and AI self-efficacy to truly enhance creativity.
- 15 October 2025
- Published by Springer Nature in Scientific Reports
- Vol. 15 (1) , 1-13
Open AccessThe chain mediating role of critical thinking and AI self-efficacy in GenAI usage competence and engineering students’ creativity
This study investigates the impact of generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) on engineering students’ creativity, examining the mediating roles of critical thinking and AI self-efficacy in this relationship. We analyze the data collected using SPSS (v.24) and SmartPLS (v.4) to assess the variables’ structural relationships and effect sizes. The results demonstrate that GenAI usage competence significantly enhances engineering students’ creativity (t > 1.96, p < 0.05,f2 = 0.012). Furthermore, critical thinking partially mediates the relationships between GenAI usage competence and AI self-efficacy, as well as between GenAI usage competence and creativity (t > 1.96, p < 0.001). AI self-efficacy is also a partial mediator in the relationships between critical thinking and creativity, and between GenAI usage competence and creativity (t > 1.96, p < 0.05). This study identifies a chain mediation model in which critical thinking and AI self-efficacy sequentially mediate the relationship between GenAI usage competence and student creativity (t > 1.96, p < 0.001). These findings highlight the interplay between technological tools, cognitive abilities, and psychological factors, indicating that simply teaching technical skills is not enough. For engineering education, this implies that integrating GenAI tools into the curriculum must go hand in hand with fostering students’ critical thinking and AI self-efficacy to truly enhance creativity.