mHealth in Practice

This book is available as open access through the Bloomsbury Open Access programme and is available on www.bloomsburycollections.com. There has recently been an explosion of interest around the application of mobile communication technologies to support health initiatives in developing countries (mHealth). As a result, there is a need to promote and share rigorous research for better informed policy, programming, and investment. There are, however, few platforms for the exchange of information and proven practice between practitioners and researchers. The subtopic of prevention, well-being, and health promotion within mHealth is particularly ripe for deeper exploration. While many reports tout the potential of mobiles to influence behaviour change for health, there is limited knowledge about what works (and what does not work), and about how to evaluate current and future programs. This is a focused edited volume with contributions from leading researchers and practitioners to identify best practices in using mobile technologies to promote healthy behaviours (and reduce unhealthy ones) in resource-constrained settings with a special focus on developing countries. This topic is inherently interdisciplinary. Though the opportunities to leverage mobile phones for health are new, the challenges confronting researchers and practitioners are well-established and theoretically complex, with roots in decades of work on mediated behaviour change campaigns and theories

Bursting the broadband bubble

This thesis was submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy and awarded by Brunel University.Broadband has revolutionised the way the Internet is used and has become the critical enabling infrastructure of our modem and knowledge-based economy. Its widespread introduction has not only greatly enhanced the speed at which information online can be accessed, but also the range and sophistication of the content available. It is still penetrating the telecommunication market and is seen by some as the most significant evolutionary step since the emergence of the Internet. However in the rush to achieve market share, there is a risk that insufficient attention may be paid to quality issues, the central theme of this research. The research addresses the issues of broadband quality with a stated objective of assessing broadband quality by means of an integrated framework that encompasses factors beyond strict technical characteristics of broadband networks. Indeed, the concept of quality is a multi-facetted one, for which various perspectives can be distinguished. In this work, broadband quality as perceived by users, ISP and Government in the United Kingdom (UK) is looked at and a survey report is given and analysed. The aim of this doctoral research was to provide much needed empirical broadband quality framework that would guide the service provider as well as the UK government in the provision of quality broadband to its consumers. It will also stand as a benchmark to countries wanting to provide quality broadband to its citizens. A survey research approach was employed to achieve the overall aim and objective of this research. This was conducted using the response of 133 participants located in various boroughs in the UK. The results of the survey show that quality, though desired by many, has been short-changed by the desire to have access to the Internet via broadband at the lowest cost possible. However, this has not encouraged some consumers to switch to broadband from dial-up service despite continuous low prices being offered by service providers. Furthermore, the results also indicated that focusing on broadband quality will improve and promote investment in broadband capacity and decrease the uncertainty in consumer demand for applications such as multi-media content delivery, enhanced electronic commerce and telecommuting that exploit broadband access

TRANSFORMATIVE LEARNING THROUGH ORAL NARRATIVE IN A PARTICIPATORY COMMUNICATION CONTEXT: AN INQUIRY INTO RADIO DRAMA-BASED TRAINING AMONG ZAMBIAN CAREGIVERS OF ABUSED AND EXPLOITED CHILDREN

This research investigates instructional narrative interventions for transformative learning among high orality reliant peoples. Two research questions asked: “Does an oral strategy of radio drama in a participatory environment lead to significant changes in knowledge and beliefs,” with a hypothesis stating there would be significant positive changes; and “When listeners experience narrative transport can it affect receptivity leading to knowledge and belief change,” and the hypothesis stated that narrative transport would correlate to higher positive responses. The mixed methods design analyzed personal experiences and survey responses of treatment group and control groups. Quantitatively I assessed a treatment group using a matched pre/posttest survey related to learning goals and the Transportation Imagery Survey. The qualitative data was gathered in focus groups and personal interviews. The findings showed a significant change in treatment group in knowledge and beliefs (40%). The treatment group also scored 74% correct answers in contrast to the posttest only survey control group of 56%. The additional modified Transportation Imagery Survey (TMS) assessed the treatment group’s level of transport into the narrative (6.1/7) and a positive correlation (.65) to the change in answers for the posttest. The study presents relevant considerations for instructional communication designers and professionals serving higher orality reliant audiences and the power of participatory narrative instruction constructing healthier knowledge and beliefs