Empirical Study of the Use of Automated Teller Machine (ATM) Among Bank Customers in Ibadan Metropolis, South Western Nigeria

Automated Teller Machine (ATM) is perceived to offer considerable benefits and challenges both to the banks and their customers, yet these are rarely empirically investigated. The study was conducted in purposively selected eight ATM location points of four banks in Ibadan metropolis, Nigeria. The sample size was made up purposively selected one hundred and eight-two (182) and another twelve (12) respondents for survey and in-depth interviews respectively. Data were collected and analyzed through quantitative and qualitative methods. Results showed that most respondents were utilizing the machine for various purposes. Also, respondents mentioned convenience, quick funds transfer, and time saving as the real benefits of the machine. Some respondents mentioned fear of armed robbery attack, technical hitches, invalid debit and perennial network failure as the challenges of utilizing the machine. On the whole, most respondents (67.0%) evaluated the machine as having benefited them more than it had cost them. The bivariate analysis showed that more female bank customers (?2=6.469; p<0.05); more relatively younger customers (?2=66.846; p<0.05); more customers with relatively higher level of education (?2=26.892; p<0.05) and more student customers (?2=61.196; p<0.05) agreed the machine had benefited them more than other groups. Qualitative data also confirmed the various benefits and challenges of the machine to the customers. Using the modernisation and rational choice theories, the study argued that ATM is a modern technology which some bank customers were selectively adopting based their real subjective and objective experiences. The study concludes that for the benefits of ATM to be consolidated and to gain wider acceptance among bank customers, the challenges inherent in the machine should be addressed. Keywords: ATM, bank customers, benefits & challenges, modernisation, rational choic

Christian Final Year College Student: Preparedness and Consciousness in Adopting Biblical Principles to Survive and Thrive in Exile During the One-Year NYSC Program

This research aims to investigate the level of awareness and readiness of final year Christian students in adopting a biblical-based exile lifestyle model. Two research questions and two hypotheses were proposed to guide this study. A descriptive survey research design was employed. The sampling technique used proportional multistage stratified random sampling method to obtain a sample size of 340 final year Christian students in State-owned colleges in Imo Province. The researcher-developed assessment scale titled "Christian Students' Awareness and Readiness Scale for Facing Life Challenges in Exile (CAPLCERS)" was utilized for data collection. This assessment scale comprises two clusters, A and B, with internal consistency reliabilities measured using Cronbach's Alpha of 0.78 and 0.82 respectively. Mean and standard deviation were used to answer research questions, while z-test was employed to test hypotheses at a significance level of 0.05. The research findings indicate that the level of awareness among final year Christian students regarding life challenges in exile during the one-year mandatory National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) program is significantly below the expected average. Meanwhile, their readiness level to adopt biblical models for survival and growth in exile is significantly above the expected average. Based on these findings, the research recommends several actions: college authorities need to equip final year students with awareness of potential life challenges they may face during the one-year NYSC program; campus Christian fellowships also need to help prepare their members with biblical models and principles that can assist Christians in surviving and thriving in exile situations; and Christian fellowships or organizations in NYSC training camps need to assist Christian Corps members in integrating and striving for welfare in their placement areas while learning to love and contribute to the growth of communities that may differ in beliefs and cultures

The octogenarian cultural festival (Ito-ogbo at 80) and the COVID-19 pandemic in Obosi, Anambra State

The octogenarian (Ito-ogbo at 80) festival in Obosi is a festival that is celebrated with a huge fanfare of pumps and pageantries. It is celebrated every three years in March to rejoice with fathers and mothers on the attainment of the age of 80. The worry of the researchers now is how this festival will be handled amid the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic in the absence of curative drugs. This article examines the octogenarian cultural festival during the COVID-19 pandemic in Obosi, Anambra State, Nigeria. The article aims at narrating the history of octogenarians in Obosi, discussing the functions of age grades, and discussing its relevance and a discourse on this celebration amid the coronavirus. Historical and phenomenological methods were adopted for analytical purposes. The article found that the longevity of life among Obosi people has been strongly threatened by the delta variant and also that celebrants do not feel safe in sustaining the festival for fear of contracting the delta variant. CONTRIBUTION: The Obosi's Ito-ogbo celebration is a good one and it has become a homecoming for all. It has sparked a desire to provide more care to elderly parents, resulting in increased life expectancy. African traditional religion was implicated in this study.http://www.hts.org.zaNew Testament Studie

Emerging Trends in Cybercrime Awareness in Nigeria

The study examined the current trend in cybercrime awareness and the relationship such trend has with cybercrime vulnerability or victimization. Selecting a sample of 1104 Internet users from Umuahia, Abia State, Nigeria, We found that: 1) awareness of information security was high in that about 2 in every 3 (68%) participants demonstrated a favorable awareness of information security and cybercrime. It was, however, revealed that such a high level of awareness could be partial and weak. 2) most Internet users demonstrated the awareness of fraud-related cybercrime categories (39%), e-theft (15%), hacking (12%), and ATM theft (10%). However, they were rarely aware of sexually related offenses, cyber-terrorism, malware attacks, spam emails, and identity theft as their proportion hovered around 8% and below. 3) Internet users significantly demonstrated more awareness of computer-assisted (M = 2.5; SD = 1.7) than that of computer-focused cybercrime categories (M = 2.2, SD = 1.3), t(1103) = 2.9, p=.000, r =.2. 4) Internet users significantly demonstrated more awareness of property cybercrime (M = 2.54; SD = 1.6) than that of violent cybercrime categories (M = 1.82, SD = 1.2), t(1103) = 5.94, p=.000, r =.3. 5) cybercrime awareness is positively correlated to cybercrime victimization experiences in that participants who demonstrated more awareness of cybercrime experienced significantly more cybercrime victimization (M = 1.66; SD = 1.7) than those who did not demonstrate awareness of cybercrime (M = .73, SD = 1.4), t(1103) = 7.55, p=.000, r =.52

General studies, information and communication technology and contemporary mission in Africa

This study examines the relationship between general studies, information and communication technology (ICT), and contemporary evangelism in Nigeria. Information and communication technology (is defined as a diverse set of technological tools and resources used to transmit, store, create, share or exchange information. These technological tools and resources include computers, the Internet (websites, blogs and emails), live broadcasting technologies (radio, television and webcasting), recorded broadcasting technologies (podcasting, audio and video players, and storage devices) and telephony (fixed or mobile, satellite, visio/video conferencing, etc.). Contemporary evangelism and mission in Africa is a radical approach embarked upon by agents of modern religious thoughts and practices to expand the horizons of the mission of religion to mankind in the present dispensation through general studies (GS) and ICT programmes. Through the medium of ICT, Christian evangelism has received a boost in television, radio broadcasts, computers, and the Internet across cities and nations. This work is an attempt to examine the methods adopted by early missionaries in evangelising Africa vis-à-vis the modern techniques of GS and ICT, the challenges of mission, the concept of ICT and its various forms such as phones, television, radio, computers, and the Internet, and their relevance to mission. This work therefore adopted historical, missiological, and phenomenological approaches in the analysis of data. Contribution: This work discovers that radical development in communication across the globe has influenced and affected Christian methods and practices of carrying out ‘the mission of religion’ and its evangelical perspective, among others

General studies, information and communication technology and contemporary mission in Africa

DATA AVAILABITY STATEMENT: Data sharing is not applicable to this article as no new data were created or analysed in this study.This study examines the relationship between general studies, information and communication technology (ICT), and contemporary evangelism in Nigeria. Information and communication technology (is defined as a diverse set of technological tools and resources used to transmit, store, create, share or exchange information. These technological tools and resources include computers, the Internet (websites, blogs and emails), live broadcasting technologies (radio, television and webcasting), recorded broadcasting technologies (podcasting, audio and video players, and storage devices) and telephony (fixed or mobile, satellite, visio/video conferencing, etc.). Contemporary evangelism and mission in Africa is a radical approach embarked upon by agents of modern religious thoughts and practices to expand the horizons of the mission of religion to mankind in the present dispensation through general studies (GS) and ICT programmes. Through the medium of ICT, Christian evangelism has received a boost in television, radio broadcasts, computers, and the Internet across cities and nations. This work is an attempt to examine the methods adopted by early missionaries in evangelising Africa vis-à-vis the modern techniques of GS and ICT, the challenges of mission, the concept of ICT and its various forms such as phones, television, radio, computers, and the Internet, and their relevance to mission. This work therefore adopted historical, missiological, and phenomenological approaches in the analysis of data. CONTRIBUTION: This work discovers that radical development in communication across the globe has influenced and affected Christian methods and practices of carrying out ‘the mission of religion’ and its evangelical perspective, among others.https://hts.org.za/index.php/htsNew Testament StudiesSDG-09: Industry, innovation and infrastructur

The church and poverty alleviation in Nigeria

The apparent disconnection between Nigeria’s endowment in natural resources and the level of poverty has become a cause for concern, with a serious impact on the development of the nation. To address the poverty issue, the Nigerian government has designed various programmes. Drawing data from official documents and other relevant materials, this article examines such poverty eradication programmes. The article argues that as laudable as they appear, these policies and programmes have failed because of corruption and poor design and implementation, among others. This calls for other stakeholders to be involved in eradicating poverty in Nigeria. This article thus looks at what the Catholic Church is doing to reduce poverty for peace and sustainable development in Nigeria. It suggests that collaborative governance is the key to poverty eradication, peace and sustainable development in Nigeria. The descriptive phenomenological method was employed in the study

Serum Levels of Prostate Specific Antigen and Specific Reproductive Hormones Among Male Subjects with Benign Prostate Hyperplasia in Port Harcourt, Nigeria

Benign prostate hyperplasia (BPH) is a medical condition in elderly men in which there is proliferation and enlargement of the prostate gland. This study evaluated the levels of male reproductive hormones among subjects with BPH. The study involved 150 subjects aged 40 years and above, comprising 80 BPH subjects attending the urology clinic and 70 control subjects. Five millilitres (5ml) of venous blood were collected from each subject into plain bottles for the determination of prostate-specific antigen (PSA), testosterone, prolactin, and estradiol, using the ELISA technique. The mean values of PSA (16.68±10.96 ng/ml), estradiol (71.03±18.56 pg/ml) and for the BPH subjects and prolactin (9.38±4.51 ng/ml) were significantly higher compared to the mean values of PSA (0.48±0.25ng/ml), estradiol (51.33±7.13npg/ml) and prolactin (6.92±1.93ng/ml) of the control subjects. However, the mean testosterone value of the BPH subjects (5.02±1.93 ng/ml) was significantly lower than the mean value for the control (6.57±3.48ng/ml). The BPH who used to consume alcohol had higher PSA (24.26±8.33ng/ml) and testosterone (7.68±3.41ng/ml) compared to the PSA (16.34±3.22ng/ml) and testosterone (4.95±3.62ng/ml) of those who never consumed alcohol. The BPH had significantly altered hormone parameters as well as raised PSA levels. Including hormonal parameters in diagnosing and managing BPH could be an important consideration in our population