Editorial: Envisioning Critical Futures for Higher Education

Higher education is at a critical crossroad, urgently needing transformation to address dynamic global challenges and historical legacies. This Special Issue of the African Journal of Inter/Multidisciplinary Studies (AJIMS) features research papers presented at the Durban University of Technology (DUT) Learning and Teaching Imbizo 2022 and two invited guest papers, all contributing to a progressive vision for the future of higher education. Under the theme Envisioning Critical Futures for Higher Education, the selected articles examine existing frameworks, pedagogical changes, and systemic obstacles while proposing innovative strategies for fostering a more inclusive, creative, and equitable academic environment. Central to this collection is a call for higher education institutions to reimagine, re-envision, and recreate new futures for higher education – ones that acknowledge both recent disruptions and deeper historical contexts. It is a call to rethink approaches to learning, teaching, and research in ways that promote inclusivity, equity, and transformation. The featured articles focus on critical areas, including support for postgraduate study, critical pedagogy, gender equity, curriculum decolonisation, academic literacy, and student engagement, all essential in shaping the ongoing evolution and transformation of higher education. These contributions emerge at a critical juncture when technological disruptions, socioeconomic inequities, and epistemological contestations demand urgent attention from all higher education stakeholders. We commence by providing an overview of the five articles in this issue that were presented at the Imbizo, followed by the two invited guest contributions

Contact Centre Agents' Perception on Technology Adoption in Promoting Quality Customer Service

A contact centre is a central key to any organisation and a tool for managing customer service in any private and public organisation. Technology today plays a significant role in the contact centre environment. For the organisation to provide effective customer service, a contact centre allows the organisation to build, maintain, and manage customer relationships. This can be achieved by conducting transactions, providing information, responding to inquiries, and resolving issues and complaints quickly and more effectively than in-person interactions. This paper is based on pilot data collected from respondents similar to the original study population. The purpose was to investigate contact centre agents’ perceptions of technology adoption in promoting quality customer service. A quantitative research approach and a survey design were employed. A closed-ended questionnaire was used to collect primary data. The findings reveal that contact centre agents found technology to be both easy to use and valuable in providing effective customer service. Therefore, it is recommended that agents need to perceive technology acceptance as an essential element of providing excellent customer service

Critical Factors for Growth and Sustainability of Small and Medium Enterprises: A Systematic Literature Review and Propositions for a Successful Transition into Large Corporate Organizations

In today’s contemporary business environment, small, and medium, enterprises (SMEs) play a vital role in driving a country’s economic growth. However, despite their undeniable significance, SMEs often struggle to evolve into large corporate organisations (LCOs) in Africa. The factors and requirements involved in this transition have been a subject of much debate and contention within the research community. This analysis aims to understand factors influencing SMEs' transition into sustainable LCOs, contributing to achieving sustainable development goals (SDGs), the Africa Agenda 2063, and fostering sustainable growth. The study adopts a systematic literature review (SLR) approach. A comprehensive assessment of 647 scholarly scientific research articles published from 2012 to 2022 was conducted, followed by a meticulous statistical analysis of 108 selected studies. The RStudio application, an integrated development environment (IDE) programming tool was used for the analysis of the graphical representation. The findings of this study revealed that leadership, business models, and human capital were crucial factors in SMEs evolving into LCOs. This research endeavoured to bridge the gap in understanding the factors driving the growth of SMEs into LCOs, thereby enabling more informed decision-making and policy development aimed at fostering sustainable economic development in Africa and beyond

The Concept of Domicile in Matrimonial Causes in Nigeria: A Critique of the Status Quo

Proof of domicile is a condition precedent to the assumption of jurisdiction by High Courts in Nigeria. Under the Nigerian legal framework, it is the husband's domicile that matters in matrimonial causes. The wife is incapable of independent domicile.  Women have always suffered untold hardship because of this rule. The husband seems to be at liberty to institute matrimonial proceedings anywhere he is domiciled with disregard to the wife's convenience. This research highlighted the difficulties confronting women as a result of this gender-insensitive mode of determining domicile in a matrimonial dispute. The paper employed the black letter research methodology and comparative learning to develop more effective and acceptable tests for determining domicile in matrimonial causes in Nigeria. This research concludes by recommending that the parties to the marriage's connecting factors, such as residence and convenience should be used in determining jurisdiction as opposed to solely the husband's domicile.

Collaborative Supervision Pedagogy for Increased Postgraduate Student Success: The Importance of Writing Camps as an Alternative Supervision Programme

A persistent challenge in postgraduate studies is the low retention and throughput rate following initial access, often due to delayed graduation. This issue is frequently exacerbated by the prevailing 'lonely scholar' model typically adopted by academic faculties and research supervisors. This paper proposes an alternative supervisory pedagogy grounded in a multifaceted, collaborative approach. It integrates the structured design of a writing camp with the traditional ‘master-apprentice’ supervision model. The study seeks to evaluate the effectiveness of this collaborative support system in accelerating the completion of postgraduate research reports – dissertations and research articles – while enhancing the quality of scholarly output. Adhering to established ethical standards in social science research, the study employed a qualitative approach within a descriptive and programme evaluation research design. Thirty-nine pipeline students were purposively selected to participate in a writing camp, based on a defined set of selection criteria. Data were gathered through participant testimonials and a post-camp telephonic survey, then analysed using Atlas.ti (Version 23). Ethical principles – including voluntary participation, the right to withdraw, confidentiality, and anonymity – were rigorously upheld. Findings highlight the substantial benefits of collaborative supervision models in strengthening research and academic writing skills, alleviating the supervisory burden, and incorporating specialist input to enhance the overall quality of student research. The study recommends the early integration of writing specialists into postgraduate supervision to build student confidence and improve throughput rates

Small and Medium Enterprises’ Success: Examining Social Media Effectiveness in Pietermaritzburg, South Africa

Social media has emerged as a crucial aspect of individuals' daily routines, particularly in the post-COVID-19 era. Consequently, it represents a promising channel for businesses to showcase their products and services to customers. This research aims to explore the perception of businesses regarding the effectiveness of social media in relation to business success in Pietermaritzburg’s beauty Small and Medium Enterprises (SME), South Africa. This study is qualitative in nature, purposively sampling 22 businesses and conducted semi-structured interviews. Thematic Analysis was utilised to analyse the gathered data. The results reveal the importance and effectiveness of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp in beauty SME marketing initiatives. Content creation was discovered as an important requirement of businesses with a focus on visual appeal. In addition, audience targeting, and engagement were emphasised as crucial components for building ties with customers and promoting brand loyalty. SMEs are encouraged to make use of all the functionalities of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp which offers SMEs opportunities to enhance online presence, engage target audiences and promote business success

Contemporary Trends in African Elections (2013-2023)

The paper investigates recent trends in African elections over the past decade and their implications for democracy and political stability. It utilises qualitative research methods and thematic analysis from secondary sources covering a decade spanning from 2013 to 2023. This period is of particular interest due to significant transformation in Africa's electoral processes. Within this period, Africa experienced increased deployment of technology in elections and greater youth political participation through social media and online tools. These factors spurred African people and societies to demand greater transparency and accountability in their electoral systems. To achieve its objectives, the paper employed a simple random selection technique to assess elections in various African countries and identify emerging trends. Based on identified trends, our conclusion reveals a complex landscape shaped by emerging realities of Africa’s social, political and economic dynamics. These new trends in Africa’s elections include constitutional coups, military resurgence, increasing women participation, youth renaissance, and populism, which underscore the current challenges being faced and emergent opportunities. The paper recommends a multi-stakeholder approach involving, among others, government institutions, civil society organisations, and international partners as paramount for ensuring more credible elections to deepen democracy in Africa

A Call for the Philosophising of Open, Distance E-Learning: Learning as the Art of Living in Twenty-First Century South Africa:

The Covid-19 pandemic and its consequent “lockdowns” caused many universities across South Africa to adopt the andragogical methodology of remote teaching and learning. This move was pragmatic rather than ideological: When students and lecturers could not meet face-to-face, teaching and learning had to continue. Aside from the necessities of the Covid pandemic, there are institutions mandated to teach at a distance as their norm, so this research has the potential to be relevant to both recently hybrid and strictly distance learning universities. Our survey of the available literature directs us to a lacuna in the purely philosophical research on “distance education” and “open distance e-learning.” For, whilst there exists literature that deals exclusively with the “philosophy of distance education”, there is scant literature available on the “philosophy of open education”, and more specifically an absence of what we deem as the “philosophy of open distance e-learning”. Herein we will argue that open distance e-learning, or, ODeL, is deserving of philosophical engagement by professional philosophers. Moreover, we will contend that if this is undertaken from an Aristotelian approach, then ODeL can be imagined as directing all involved in its project to living well

Submission in the Context of Gender Equality: An Obstacle to Curbing Violence against Women in Intimate Relationships

Despite the South African Bill of Rights, which envisages equality and protection of women against violence, discrimination and harmful practices, women in South Africa still experience a violation of their rights. Most women in intimate relationships are deprived of the right to equality with their male counterparts by virtue of their gender and the subordinate positions ascribed to them by, among others, tradition, religion, and socialisation. A critical analysis of women’s subordinate positions confirms that there is an impediment in the pursuit of gender equality and transformation. This article critically analyses how these subordinate positions hinder gender equality and frustrates the transformation agenda somewhat. The article highlights the consequences of women’s subordination in intimate relationships and suggests practical and ideological interventions to address the gender imbalances that perpetuate the oppression of women in South Africa

The San Code of Ethics Versus International Ethical Guidelines: A Cross-Cultural Analysis

This study was designed to compare the San (Khoisan) code of ethics against key elements of the revised Council for International Organization of Medical Sciences (CIOMS) ethical guidelines, and the World Medical Association (WMA) Declaration of Helsinki. The study aimed to identify similarities and draw inferences in applying the San code of ethics when conducting biomedical research among indigenous populations groups in Africa and globally. In-depth interviews lasting 45 to 55 minutes were conducted among a group of 12 purposively sampled biomedical researchers in South Africa. Interviews were recorded, transcribed, and analysed using thematic content analysis. Participants observed some important similarities between the San Code of Ethics, the CIOMS ethical guidelines and the Declaration of Helsinki. Nevertheless, the research discovered that San peoples were of the opinion, that community involvement in biomedical research reduces exploitation, and enhances human dignity, and should be based on mutual respect, honesty, justice, fairness, and the ethics of care