Yunxiao Chen

Dr. Yunxiao Chen is an Associate Professor in the Department of Statistics at the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), where he co-leads a psychometric lab with Professor Irini Moustaki. Previously, he was an Assistant Professor at Emory University (2016–2018) and earned his PhD in Statistics from Columbia University (2016). His research focuses on developing statistical and computational methods for social data science, addressing challenges in high-dimensional data analysis, latent variable models, and educational assessment.

Education:

• PhD in Statistics, Columbia University, 2016

Research Interests:

• High-dimensional factor models (matrices, tensors, counting processes)
• Dynamic behavioral data analysis
• Sequential decision theory in personalized learning
• Statistical inference for large-scale item response data
• Applications in education, psychology, and marketing

Publications:

• Recent work includes advancements in factor analysis, change-point detection, and DIF statistical inference
• Key journals: Journal of the American Statistical Association, Psychometrika, Journal of Machine Learning Research

Awards:

• 2024 Psychometrics Society Best Reviewer Award
• 2022 Early Career Award
• 2018 NCME Loyd Dissertation Award

Advising & Grants:

• Accepts PhD students in statistical methodology
• Funded by National Academy of Education/Spencer Fellowship (2018–2020) and IEA R&D grants (2022–2023)

Labs & Teams:

• Runs LSE’s psychometric lab focused on educational measurement
• Collaborates with interdisciplinary teams on machine learning applications