A structural model of the antecedents and consequences of internal crisis communication

Internal crisis communication has identified as a new area of study in crisis management research. In fact, extant literature has indicated a lack of theoretical development on this dimension of crisis communication. Even more, literature search shows that the measurement of internal crisis communication is lacking. Consequently, the objective of this study is to develop a valid measures for internal crisis communication. Moreover, the study examine the relationships between social media usage, leadership, crisis responsibility and error management culture on internal crisis communication as well as its impact on affective commitment and perceived organizational support in Nigerian context. In addition, Situational Crisis Communication Theory, Sensemaking Theory and Transformational Leadership Theory were used as theoretical foundation. The study employed a mixed methods approach with a dominant quantitative component. The first part of the study involves a semi-structured interviews (with 10 respondents) and content validity (with 18 expert opinions). Secondly, a pilot survey (with 60 respondents) to collect data for the development of measurement scales. Thereafter, the main survey (with 325 respondents) was conducted in order to test the research hypotheses and the proposed conceptual model. In particular, structural equation modelling was applied. The study developed an 11 items measures for the focal construct. Overall, the results depicted an accepted fit for the data, with satisfactory convergent, discriminant and nomological validity and reliability. From the statistical findings, together with support from the literature and the semi-structured interviews during the exploratory stage, this study finds significant relationships between leadership, error management culture and internal crisis communication. However, social media usage has a significant but negative relationship while crisis responsibility does not have a significant relations hip with internal crisis communication. Similarly, as expected, it was found that internal crisis communication is positively and significantly related to affective commitment and perceived organizational support. As managerial and policy recommendations, crisis managers should emphasize more on the need for organizational leaders to include employees as primary stakeholders during crisis situation. In addition, the policy makers should strive to gain a positive image through showing support and commitment to their employees’ welfare and wellbeing during crisis. Finally, directions for future research were discussed

Acceptance and Attitude toward Vaccination against COVID-19: A Cross-Sectional Study of Academic Librarians in Nigeria.

This study investigated the level of acceptance and attitude toward vaccination against COVID-19 among academic librarians in Nigeria. It is guided by two objectives, two research questions and two null-hypothesis. The population of the study consisted of 7,287 certified librarians spread across Nigerian. Krejcie and Morgan’s table for determining sample size for research activities was used, and a response rate of 231 was achieved out of the sample size of 364. A non-probability sampling involving purposive sampling techniques was used. Self-developed questionnaire was designed using Google Form mobile application with 4-Points-Likert scale, which was administered to respondents on several LIS professional social media platforms such as WhatsApp and Telegram. The instrument was subjected to reliability test by administering to 30 unregistered librarians in Nigeria using test-retest method. A Cronbach alpha value was obtained, r = 0.92. The study has established that the level of acceptance toward vaccination against COVID-19 was low and there were negative attitudes toward the vaccination among academic librarians in Nigeria. Moreover, the study found that there were significant relationship between academic librarians’ socio-demographic characteristics and acceptance as well as attitudes towards COVID-19 vaccination in Nigeria. The study recommended massive public enlightenment campaign / sensitization on the importance of vaccination against COVID-19 as well as developing policies that could easily enforce taking the vaccines among the citizens

Accessibility and utilization of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) facilities by lecturers of Adamawa State University, Mubi

This research work surveyed the impact of accessibility and utilization of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) facilities by Lecturers of Adamawa State University (ADSU), Mubi, Nigeria. The population of this study was 388 Lecturers of the university. Krejcie and Morgan (1970) table was used todetermine a sample size of 191 from the target population, while, simple random sampling technique was employed to administer the questionnaire. The main research instrument used for this study was questionnaire and the data collected was analyzed using a Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 17.0 and descriptive statistics of frequencies and percentages to present results in tables, pie charts and bar charts. Findings of the study revealed that accessibility and utilization of ICT facilities had positive impact on the performance of Lecturers which enhanced their teaching, research and learning output. However, respondents mostly used personal subscription to access the ICT facilities in the university due to problems such as poor ICT infrastructure, network fluctuation and low bandwidth size, among others. These problems had negative consequences on Lecturers’ academic activities. Recommendations made include provision of adequate funds to improve on ICT facilities, provision of alternative power sources and training of Lecturers on the use of ICT facilities for teaching, learning and research activities

Antecedents of internal crisis communication and its consequences on employee performance

This article is taking a conceptual approach to establish the relationship between organizational culture, leadership and social media content on internal crisis communication its consequences on employee performance.The concept of internal crisis communication is relatively new, therefore this article will explore the stage of development of the construct and its contrast with other related concepts.Moreover, Complexity Theory will underpin the study to understand the consequences of minor signals that trigger Internal Crisis Communication. The paper finally offered a framework to guide public relations practitioners on the implications of Internal Crisis Communication on employee performance

The Antecedents of Facebook Brand Page Engagement in Public Relations

Social media has increased the integration of marketing and PR. Consequently, due to this transition, businesses increasingly value customer relations above transactional marketing through social media brand pages communication. However, according to recent research, a practical problem has been identified: despite the significance of social media in marketing and communication, there is a lack of understanding among PR practitioners about how to successfully and strategically communicate via social media. PR practitioners still use social media asymmetrically and as promotional or advertising tools rather than for forming relationships with the public, which creates a lack of engagement. Secondly, a recent empirical study showed that humanise interaction can create customer and brand engagement through social media brand pages. Hence, recent public relations and social media-related research did not focus on humanised interaction influencing people to engage on brands’ social media Facebook pages. Thirdly, consumer brand engagement on social media was researched for several years. Furthermore, recent research conceptualised consumer engagement and brand engagement and called it social media brand engagement. Hence, social media brand engagement does not conceptualise or analyse humanised interaction and two-way symmetrical communication in computer-mediated communication in public relations related literature. Moreover, it is unclear how humanise interaction to create customer engagement through social media brand pages. This study aims to fill the research gap by providing a clear picture of how humanising interaction (as an antecedent) creates brand engagement and how to maintain a two-way communication strategy (as an antecedent) to maintain effective communication and build relationships. To answer these questions, this study conceptualises and develops a research framework where conversational human voice from relational maintenance theory and two-way symmetrical communication from excellence theory are taken as the antecedents of social media brand engagement

University Lecturers’ Level of Awareness and Proficiency of Internet Services and Resources for Academic Activities in Adamawa State, Nigeria

Abstract Internet services and resources are useful tools that facilitate effective and efficient conduct of academic activities such as teaching, learning, research, publishing, collaboration and communication. This paper determined the level of university lecturers’ awareness and proficiency of Internet services and resources for academic activities in Adamawa State, Nigeria. The study was guided by two objectives and two research questions. Survey research method was adopted. Stratified random sampling technique was used in selecting sample, while, Krejcie and Morgan (2006) was used to obtain sample size of 265 lecturers from Adamawa State University Mubi, American University of Nigeria Yola and Modibbo Adama University of Technology Yola. Self-designed questionnaire was used as the research instrument and data collected were analysed using descriptive statistics of frequency counts and percentages to answer the research questions using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) tool, version 20.0. Findings of the study revealed that the level of university lecturers’ awareness of Internet services and resources for university lecturers’ academic activities in Adamawa State was moderate. The study has also established that the level of university lecturers’ proficiency of Internet services and resources for academic activities was moderate. The study recommended provision of Internet services and resources in the university libraries, sensitizing the lecturers on the importance of using the available Internet services and resources for their academic activities and providing instruction on information literacy programmes by the university libraries

The Impact of New Media Literacy and Supply Chain Knowledge Management on Community Economy in Indonesia

This study aims to examine the impact of new media and supply chain knowledge management on community economy in Indonesia. This quantitative research method is distributed questionnaires to 157 respondents from retail sector in Indonesian. Based on dimensions of new media literacy, the strongest dimension is visualization with the highest average value of 3.40. Visualization enhances entrepreneur innovation in supply chain knowledge management. The results of this study indicate that new media literacy helps consumers on community economy in Indonesia

RAINFALL-RUNOFF SIMULATION OF A SUB-CATCHMENT USING HEC-HMS

Hydrological data in the form of stream flow is very scarce in most developing countries. This affects the planning and management of urban watersheds. Therefore, it is necessary to estimate peak discharge from rainfall using hydrologic models based on some measurable watershed characteristics. This study aims to model the rainfall-runoff process from a typical urban watershed using Hydrologic Engineering Center Hydrological Modeling System (HEC-HMS) software. The catchment basin has a total area of 21.91 km2, and a dendritic stream system. Soil Conservative Services (SCS) Curve number was used for getting excess rainfall from total rainfall, SCS dimensionless unit hydrograph for converting the excess rainfall to direct runoff and Muskingum for the channel routing. The rainfall-runoff simulation was conducted using six (6) rainfall events. Model calibration and validation were done using optimized parameters and the result shows a reasonable fit between the observed and simulated hydrograph. The model result has an RMS error of 1.5 m3/s, and a Nash-Sutcliff of 0.585. It is concluded that the model can be used to predict runoff from rainfall with reasonable accuracy. The result can be used for watershed planning and management

Influence of Academic Qualification on Librarians\u27 Proficiency of New Media Technologies in Selected University Libraries in North-Eastern Nigeria.

The study investigated the influence of academic qualification on librarians\u27 proficiency of new media technologies in selected university libraries in North-Eastern Nigeria. The study was guided by two research questions and a null-hypothesis. Descriptive survey research design was adopted. The population of the study was 144 librarians from seven selected University libraries in North-Eastern Nigeria. Total enumeration was used in the study. Questionnaire was used as research instrument. Descriptive statistics of frequency counts, percentage, mean and standard deviation as well as inferential statistics of Pearson Chi-square (X2) were used in analysing the data. SPSS version 23.0 software was used for the analysis. Findings from the study revealed that librarians were moderately proficient of new media technologies; their academic qualifications had influenced the proficiency of new media technologies; hypothesis tested showed that academic qualification had significant influence on librarians\u27 proficiency of new media technologies. Recommendations were made based on the findings

DEVELOPMENT OF RAINFALL INTENSITY DURATION FREQUENCY (IDF) CURVES FOR DESIGN OF HYDRAULIC STRUCTURES IN KANO STATE, NIGERIA

Rainfall intensity is an essential parameter in the design of any hydraulic structure. The IDF curves are used to design hydraulic structures such as culverts, bridges, roads, urban drainage systems, and many more. Colonial masters developed the first IDF curve for Kano State based on records of 1938 - 1944 (6 years) followed by Oyenbade (1982), and since then, it has not been reviewed or updated. As a result of changes in rainfall patterns that have taken place over time and the climate change, the Oyenbade IDF curves might no longer be suitable for hydraulics design in Kano State. Therefore, this research aims to develop the new IDF curves and establish empirical equations of rainfall intensity that can be used for safe and economic hydraulics design in Kano State. India Meteorological Department (IMD) reduction formula was used to disaggregate maximum daily rainfall of Kano gauge station into the rainfall of shorter durations. Lognormal probability distribution was found to fit best the data set of all the durations using Easyfit 5.0 software and estimate rainfall intensities for 2, 5, 10, 25, 50, and 100 years return periods. It was found out that rainfall intensities increase with the increase in return periods but decreases with an increase in duration. The coefficient of determination ‘R2’ for all return periods indicated a strong relationship in IDF models developed. Hence, the new IDF curves developed should estimate rainfall intensities for hydraulics design in Kano State. The derived IDF models could be used for better results and accuracy