bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Analysing South Korea's ICT for Development Aid Programme
Authors: Lee Heejin , Jang Seungkwon , Ko Kyungmin , Heeks Richard 
Published: December 2017

AbstractSince the year 2000, there has been a significant growth in the ICT4D component of South Korea's aid programme. Given Korea's ICT capabilities and demands for ICT4D support from developing nations, this may make good sense. In this paper, though, we analyse a little deeper, starting to ask some initial questions about underlying perspectives and actual performance. We provide an overview of ICT4D expenditure levels, programmes, and key actors. We then reflect field data to date, which suggests some question marks over Korea's telecentre projects, some potential inequity in impacts, and a focus on Korean production of ICT goods and services. We analyse Korean ICT4D in terms of some basic concepts to find it associated with technological‐determinism and techno‐optimism, with the modernisation paradigm, with tied aid, and with the potential for creating dependency. However, Korea may not be unique among ICT4D actors in this and, in some ways, its techno‐optimism may be a useful counter to the techno‐pessimism that seems to have infected some Western donors. We conclude by noting some recommendations for Korea's ICT4D programme, and reflecting that Korea may be representative of a wider new wave of ICT4D donors such as India and China which may not follow quite the same line as Western donors.
Telecentres in Rural India: Emergence and a Typology
Authors: Mukerji Maitrayee 
Published: December 2017

AbstractThe term telecentre is a generic one for all kinds of arrangements – Rural Knowledge Centre, Information Kiosks, Village Knowledge Centres, etc – that seek to provide shared and mediated access to information and services by using new technologies especially computers and Internet. The paper traces the emergence of telecentres as developmental intervention in rural India and puts forth a typology of telecentres in rural India. The typology categorises the existing telecentre initiatives into groups thus making an attempt to delineate their main characteristics, strengths and shortcomings. The typology would serve as a starting point for further in‐depth studies to answer questions with regards to models and related issues like ownership, sustainability, and socio‐economic impact.
Students’ Perceived Barriers to In‐Class Participation in a Distributed and Gender Segregated Educational Environment
Authors: Mirza Abdulrahman A. 
Published: December 2017

AbstractEducation in Saudi Arabia has always been segregated based on gender as a result of the close governmental and societal adherence to Islamic traditions. This segregation causes a problem at the level of higher education due to the shortage of female faculty throughout the country. This problem has lead to the adaptation of several techniques by which higher‐level education is delivered to female students by male faculty. This paper presents a modern approach for course delivery adopted by a new Saudi University that combines old techniques with modern telecommunications technologies. This approach makes use of smart classrooms in delivering courses by male instructors to both male and female students in separate but adjacent lecture halls. One of the main goals for conducting this study was the author's perceived low‐level in‐class participation by female students in one of the courses of the Masters of Health Informatics program offered by the new University. This paper aims to present the perceptions of students regarding this modern approach of education. It also seeks to determine whether the presence (listening‐in) of students of the opposite gender plays a major role in limiting students’ level of in‐class participation. Findings of this study show that students in general are favorable of the modern course delivery approach, and that the greater barrier to participation had more to do with the technology rather than the presence of members of the opposite gender.
Information Technology Use, Strategy, and Subcultural Environments: An Exploratory Study of Brazilian Real Estate Agencies
Authors: Nelson Reed E. , Vasconcelos Eduardo 
Published: December 2017

AbstractAn exploratory study of strategy and information technology usage in the Brazilian real estate sector suggests that firm strategy and subcultural dynamics play an important role in IT adoption and internet usage. The broader questions raised by these results suggest challenges to traditional models of strategic thinking when subcultural and technological factors are taken into account.
Understanding Successful Use of Technology in Organisations in Developing Countries: A Structurational Perspective
Authors: Prasad Acklesh 
Published: December 2017

AbstractInformation Technology and its relationship to organisational performance has been a subject of continued interest to researchers and other stakeholders in developing countries. While there is concurrence that IT does contribute to performance, and we are efficiently expanding our knowledge on what factors cause better leveraging of IT resources in organisations, we have done little to understand how these factors interact with technology that results in improved performance. This paper suggests looking that the interaction between organisational resources and technology within the structurational lens, which recognises the recursive interaction between technology and people in the presence of social practices, and the norms that inform their ongoing practices. An ethnographic approach to understanding this interaction between technology and resources, as suggested by the structuration perspective, is suggested, aiming to provide richer insights on the nature of the environment that promotes better use of IT resources in developing countries. Such insights could provide the IT users in developing countries with at least an initial conception of the “IT usage platform” that they could promote in their organisations to leverage the most from their IT resources.
Using Blended Learning Techniques in Knowledge Dissemination
Authors: Dahawy Khaled , Kamel Sherif 
Published: December 2017

AbstractThe aim of any teaching institute is to provide suitable environments to accelerate the learning process. The Experiential Learning Theory suggests that there is a relationship between the learning environments, learning techniques and suitable teaching techniques. Therefore, it is important to study these relationships to improve the learning process, which is reflected on the outcome gained from the recipients of the knowledge disseminated. Learning and teaching techniques are classified into two groups: active‐like (A‐like) techniques and passive‐like (P‐like) techniques. The objective of this paper is to examine the importance level of these techniques and its relative implications. The methodology used is based on an empirical research with the use of a survey questionnaire where students studying courses in the department of management at the American University in Cairo were asked to complete a survey questionnaire to indicate the importance level for each technique. Students’ ratings support hypothesis regarding the passive‐like techniques. However, this proves that cultural factors robustly affect teaching preferences.
Monitoring Employee Use of the Internet in Philippine Organizations
Authors: Alampay Erwin A. , Hechanova Ma. Regina M. 
Published: December 2017

AbstractThis study examined the practices of Philippine organizations in monitoring employee use of the Internet. Surveys of 112 organizations representing a variety of industries reveal that two‐thirds of organizations provide Internet access to all its employees. Although the majority monitor employee Internet use, less than half have an Internet use policy in place. The majority of organizations blocked some online content and applications particularly those related to pornography, gaming and social networking. Most organizations report difficulties as getting virus due to downloaded materials and excessive chatting on the Internet. Results suggest the need for more organizations to articulate their policies on Internet use, educate workers on internet security and formulate mechanisms to ensure the integrity of employee monitoring.
Understanding Attitudes Towards Computer Use in the Police Department of Pakistan
Authors: Ellahi Abida , Manarvi Irfan 
Published: December 2017

AbstractThe extraordinary rate of development in information technologies can bring additional costs and failure if psychological reactions and organizational factors are ignored by system designers. Therefore, this research study explores the key factors of police officers’ acceptance and attitudes through a research survey and by gathering empirical evidence based on the integrated research framework. Data collected from 200 respondents was tested against the research model. The findings confirm the good model fit by supporting four out of six hypotheses. The results lead to make several suggestions for the police sector and IT policy‐makers to use as guidelines for the future development of this service.
Gender and Public Access Computing: An International Perspective
Authors: Terry Allison , Gomez Ricardo 
Published: December 2017

AbstractInformation and Communication Technologies (ICTs) and public access to computers with Internet connectivity in particular, can assist community development efforts and help bridge the so‐called digital divide. However, use of ICT may not be the same for women as it is for men. Technical, social and cultural barriers exacerbate women's exclusion from the benefits of ICT for development. This paper is based on a qualitative analysis of the benefits of ICT and the barriers facing women to fully realize those benefits, particularly through public access places such as libraries, telecenters and cybercafés. We describe individual benefits such as increased self‐esteem, reduced isolation, access to markets, empowerment and access to health information. We also describe collective benefits such as economic growth, improved health and education, capacity building and cultural transformation. Finally, we discuss barriers that are particularly significant to women such as location, infrastructure and connectivity; time and money; lack of relevant content; low education and literacy; and social norms and perceptions. This paper draws from reports of a larger study of public access venues in 25 developing countries around the world, which are publicly available online.
Analysis of Critical Success Factors in Implementing Enterprise Resource Planning Systems in Malaysian Business Firms
Authors: Supramaniam Mahadevan , Kuppusamy Mudiarasan 
Published: December 2017

AbstractIn order to survive in a rapidly changing business environment, Malaysian business firms must improve their own business practices and procedures through Information System. This paper describes the impact of Critical Success Factors (CSFs) during the Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system implementations using the responses from 151 organizations that completed or are in the process of completing an ERP implementation and identifying the key benefits of ERP implementation in the firm. The importance of these factors was investigated within Malaysian companies using questionnaire survey method. Our results provide advice to management on how best to utilize their limited resources to choose those CSFs that are most likely to have an impact upon the implementation of the ERP system.
Focus Group Strategies in Community Development
Authors: Alexander Bennett , Korpela Mikko 
Published: December 2017

AbstractThis paper presents a critical perspective on managing Focus Group Sessions (FGSs) that are focussed on pertinent development issues within socially disadvantaged communities; and particularly investigates the role of the interpreter in facilitating a discourse which extensively takes place outside the usual socio‐cultural domain of the researcher.The experiences around a series of FGSs are reported which were conducted as part of a broader ICT4D environmental assessment study that took place in the former Transkei region of the Eastern Cape as part of an ICT4D environmental assessment study. The paper explores, in particular, the perceived non‐reporting of information in the interpreter‐to‐participants exchanges (IPE) versus researcher‐to‐interpreter exchanges (RIE) – on the basis of observed imbalances in the IPE and RIE dynamics. This paper consequently focuses on the socio‐cultural and power relationships that may manifest within sessions and potentially compromise the effective gathering of data and information against the defined agenda of the researcher. The best traditions of qualitative research recognise the notion of shared control of the research experience (Krueger & Casey, 2000; Grudens‐Schuck et al., 2004); and the community should therefore be able to direct the fore‐grounding of their own agenda – if such exists in contrast to that of the researcher. This sets the scene for a power struggle within the FGS, and it is in this regard, that it is proposed that the interpreter could play an important role.Jojola (2000) warns that development is not charity; and communities‐in‐development should be the enablers of their own destiny; and external development participation in the communities should be based on principled and strategic approaches.This paper supports the views of Grudens‐Schuck et al. (2004) that FGSs can produce high quality data and information if correctly structured and argues that a critical approach is indicated to navigate the process through the challenges of the socio‐cultural divide. Furthermore, the researcher has to be conscientious of the character, capacity and the underlying power dynamics in the community that produces the experiences observed during the FGSs.
Quality Assessment of Information Systems in SMEs: A Study of Eldoret, Kenya
Authors: Ndiege J.R.A. , Wayi N. , Herselman M.E. 
Published: December 2017

AbstractThe use of Information Systems (IS) of acceptable quality has been viewed to be vital for improving the efficiency and effectiveness of business operations. Many SMEs in developing countries are beginning to embrace the use of IS to help improve their competitiveness. This venture, however, has not yielded the much anticipated benefits for many of these SMEs. For this reason, a number SMEs in developing countries have ended up dissatisfied with their IS investments. A considerable percentage IS solutions used within the SMEs in developing countries are inefficient and ineffective in helping meet the unique needs of the SMEs. This paper presents the results of an exploratory study into the quality of IS used within SMEs in Eldoret town, situated in Kenya. The study employs a qualitative research methodology with multiple case studies of seven SMEs. The results of the study indicate that the SMEs that participated in the study use IS solutions that were of unacceptable quality. The study further identifies factors that are responsible for this poor quality of IS and recommends actions that can be taken to improve the quality of IS within the SMEs.
Mobile Phones in Health Care in Uganda: The AppLab Study
Authors: Nchise Abinwi C. , Boateng Richard , Shu Ignatius , Mbarika Victor 
Published: December 2017

AbstractThis study explores the preliminary lessons in the use of mobile phones to promote access to health care information in Uganda. The project under study is the AppLab Uganda Project which operates a Health Tips application, educating users on sexual and reproductive health. Data was collected through in‐depth interviews with project developers, partners, medical practitioners and IT journalists and a survey of 149 people randomly selected from two tertiary educational institutions in Uganda. Findings tend to suggest that the need to access health information via mobile text messages is mediated by cost incentives, misconceptions of brand name ‘Google SMS’, and content relevance. There are questions concerning the appropriateness of text messaging as compared to using voice calls to access health information. These issues have implications on the objectives of the health care project and the individual strategies of project partners. Preliminary conclusions emphasize the need to integrate a referral system to registered health professionals and facilities and the need for education and/or a marketing strategy with an indigenous branding to address the misconception of the brand name ‘Google SMS’. Implications for research, policy, and practice are outlined.
Computerizing Primary Schools in Rural Kenya: Outstanding Challenges and Possible Solutions
Authors: Ogembo Javier Gordon , Ngugi Benjamin , Pelowski Matthew 
Published: December 2017

AbstractThis paper investigates the outstanding challenges facing primary schools’ computerization in rural Kenya. Computerization of schools is often envisaged as a ‘magic’, or at least a particularly efficient, solution to many of the problems that developing countries face in improving primary school education. However, while a great deal of consideration is given to the technical issues surrounding computer implementation, government policy makers, administrators, aid organizations and individuals participating in school computerization programs often have not carefully considered the contextual questions surrounding this endeavour. Specifically: 1.) what problems do rural schools actually want to solve with computerization; 2.) is computerization the most important priority for rural schools; 3.) are schools ready, in terms of infrastructure, for a computer in the classroom; or 4.) might there be better avenues for implementing access to the benefits of the digital age? These questions and the issue of school computerization are considered via results from a survey of thirty‐seven rural Kenyan primary public schools. Results indicate that, while all schools had low ICT status making them primary targets for computerization, only eleven percent had at least one ICT compliant teacher, of which all were considered to require further training. In addition we found inadequate infrastructural preparedness – lack of access to electricity, internet; no classroom computer space, few desks, secure walls and protective roofing – posing severe challenges to the outstanding conception of computerization. We consider these results and make recommendations for better adapting programs for computer introduction, and also suggest the use of new innovative devices, such as cell phones, which might already have overcome many of the technical challenges found.
Information Technology‐Mediated Issues in Sexual Health and HIV/AIDS Education
Authors: Musiimenta Angella 
Published: December 2017

AbstractLiterature on the usefulness of IT‐assisted HIV/AIDS interventions especially in the African setting is scarce. This leaves little to nothing known about the benefits of IT‐assisted HIV interventions from the experience of Africa moreover where the HIV pandemic is widespread. This qualitative research explores in‐depth the IT‐mediated issues that influence the adoption of an IT‐assisted sexual health and HIV/AIDS education intervention implemented in Uganda. It involves interviews with 33 participants including 30 intervention students, 02 intervention teachers and 01 head of the investigated school. Results indicate that such interventions can be sources of the otherwise denied sexuality information, are accessed irrespective of geographical boundaries, are sources of coping strategies for overcoming HIV risk behaviour, provide opportunities for tailoring the interventions to the varying needs of young people, are more interactive and engaging, and boosts teachers’ confidence in delivering intervention contents that they would otherwise feel embarrassed to deliver. Such benefits can provide vital benchmarks for designing, developing, implementing and evaluating IT‐assisted sexuality and HIV/AIDS intervention.
Data Warehouse Approach to Strengthen Actionability of Health Information Systems: Experiences from Tajikistan
Authors: Latifov Murodillo A. , Sahay Sundeep 
Published: December 2017

AbstractHealth Information Systems (HIS) in developing countries are notorious for not supporting action – implying the use of information for supporting health management. While authors have identified many reasons for this, we focus on the actionability of the HIS reflected through the data‐indicator linkage. The better this link, the stronger will be the actionability of the HIS, which we evaluate through the three item criterion based on completeness, fittingness and actionability. This framework is used to analyze the actionability of the Tajikistan HIS. Furthermore, this paper argues for the value of a data warehouse approach in strengthening the data‐indicator linkage. However, the data warehouse is far from being a mere technical artefact, but is something socio‐technical; in order to understand it, we draw upon theories of institutions. A key contribution of the paper is in understanding competing institutional logics, and how this requires a sensitive management of the installed base.
Imagining a Silicon Savannah? Technological and Conceptual Connectivity in Kenya's BPO and Software Development Sectors
Authors: Graham Mark , Mann Laura 
Published: December 2017

AbstractThis is a paper about expectations surrounding a potentially highly transformative moment in East Africa's history: the arrival of underwater fibre‐optic broadband communications cables into the Indian Ocean port of Mombasa. It combines a media content analysis with findings from interviews with business owners in Kenya's nascent business process outsourcing (BPO) and software development sectors in order to explore how such moments of technological ‘connectivity’ are imagined, marketed and enacted within economic development. It argues that connectivity is not just a matter of boosting physical/material capacity but also about redressing conceptual connectivity; bringing places ‘closer together’ involves rehabilitating the images of places in peoples’ minds and removing imagined senses of distance. As such, technologies of connectivity are marketed not just as tools of altered communications affordances, but more importantly, as momentary opportunities for revisiting the image of places from afar. Additionally, the cables reveal the importance of fostering internal linkages in order to better build international recognition and connections. ‘Moments of expectation’ that surround new ICT technologies reveal how discourse and representation play a strong role in enabling markets to form and change. The very idea of ‘connectivity’ itself is driving plans and policies throughout the region.
Factors Influencing The Usage Of The Tribal Land Information Management System For Land Management And Administration: The Case Of Mogoditshane Subordinate Land‐Board
Authors: Mooketsi Bojelo , Leonard Mpho 
Published: December 2017

AbstractLand Information Systems are touted to be critical for efficient land management and administration. If properly used and updated, they can inform decision makers in a timely fashion on land resources utilisation. The Government of Botswana has consequently implemented a Tribal Land Information Management System (TLIMS) at Mogoditshane Sub‐Land Board. This study seeks to evaluate the extent to which the TLIMS meets its intended purpose of improving land management and administration. The study also tries to establish the factors that affect usage of the TLIMS. The findings of the study show that there is no records consolidation amongst Land Boards. The main recommendation of the study is that information systems used by various Land Boards need to be standardised to ensure ease of integration of systems. This study contributes to research on information Systems in Developing Countries.