A Systematic Review of Consumer Behaviour Prediction Studies

Due to the importance of Customer behaviour prediction, it is necessary to have a systematic review of previous studies on this subject. To this effect, this paper therefore provides a systematic review of Customer behaviours prediction studies with a focus on components of customer relationship management, methods and datasets. In order to provide a comprehensive literature review and a classification scheme for articles on this subject 74 customer behaviour prediction papers in over 25 journals and several conference proceedings were considered between the periods of 1999- 2014. Two hundred and thirty articles were identified and reviewed for their direct relevance to predicting customer behaviour out of which 74 were subsequently selected, reviewed and classified appropriately. The findings show that the literature on predicting customer behaviour is ongoing and is of most importance to organisation. It was observed that most studies investigated customer retention prediction and organizational dataset were mostly used for the prediction as compared to other form of dataset. Also, comparing the statistical method to data mining in predicting customer behaviour, it was discovered through this review that data mining is mostly used for prediction. On the other hand, Artificial Neural Network is the most commonly used data mining method for predicting customer behaviour. The review was able to identify the limitations of the current research on the subject matter and identify future research opportunities in customer behaviour prediction

Comparative Analysis of Classical Test Theory and Item Response Theory Based Item Parameter Estimates of Senior School Certificate Mathematics Examination

The study compared Classical Test Theory (CTT) and Item Response Theory (IRT)-estimated item difficulty and item discrimination indices in relation to the ability of examinees in Senior School Certificate Examination (SSCE) in Mathematics with a view to providing empirical basis for informed decisions on the appropriateness of statistical and psychometric tests. The study adopted ex-post-facto design. A sample of 6,000 students was selected from the population of 35,262 students who sat for the NECO SSCE Mathematics Paper 1 in 2008 in Osun State, Nigeria. An instrument consisting of 60-multiple-choice items, May/June 2008 NECO SSCE Mathematics Paper 1 was used. Three sampling plans: random, gender and ability sampling plans were employed to study the behaviours of the examinees scores under the CTT and IRT measurement frameworks. BILOG-MG 3 was used to estimate the indices of item parameters and SPSS 20 was used to compare CTT- and IRT-based item parameters. The results showed that CTT-based item difficulty estimates and oneparameter IRT item difficulty estimates were comparable (the correlations were generally in the -0.702 to -0.988 range in large sample and -0.622 to - 0.989 range in small sample). Results also indicated that CTT-based and two-parameter IRT-based item discrimination estimates were comparable (the correlations were in the 0.430 to 0.880 ranges in large sample and 0.531 to 0.950 range in small sample). The study concluded that CTT and IRT were comparable in estimating item characteristics of statistical and psychometric tests and thus could be used as complementary procedures in the development of national examination

Cognitive Ontology based Framework for Networking Women in Sciences

In order to increase the percentage of women in academics or researchers, there is need for a functioning research networking through which women can exchange ideas; ask questions and more importantly, mentorship, in Nigeria. In order to make for this, several recommendations have been suggested but are not scientific. Therefore, to bridge this gap scientifically, this paper is presenting an overview of a question and answering system framework that hybridize semantic search methodology and cognitive reasoning. The hybridization will enhance the question and answering accuracy especially due to the introduction of domain ontology for the semantic process. This paper also presents the output of the first phase of the implementation which is the development of the domain ontology for the question and answering syste

QUANTITATIVE ANALYSIS OF SOCIO-ECONOMIC DRIVERS OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS IN MEGACITIES

The exponential growth in the world population, coupled with the high ruralurban migration is leading to the graduation of ordinary cities to Megacities. With the status of mega-cities comes their special need in terms of housing and other urban development infrastructures. The study aimed to carry out a quantitative analysis of socio-economic drivers of housing and urban development projects in Megacities. The research design used a cross-sectional survey through a questionnaire instrument.Out of two hundred (200) questionnaires distributed to policy makers and construction professionals employed in government agencies, a total of one hundred and fifty seven (157) questionnaires were retrieved. Using Statistical tools of Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and Categorical Regression the Housing and Urban Development project crucial for the sustenance of Megacities were grouped while the socio-economic drivers that engender investment towards housing and urban development projects were identified. It is important that population growth in megacities are properly controlled as to forestall pressure on available infrastructures. Politics and the supply of necessary housing and urban development projects should not mix, as they are separate entities. In project financing, government should intensify adequate taxation policies to effectively fund different classes of housing and urban development projects in megacities

IT Management of Building Materials’ Planning and Control Processes Using Web-Based Technologies

Mismanagement of building materials has constantly plagued the construction industry resulting in issues of cost overrun, delay, high levels of construction waste, wastefulness, project abandonment, climate change etc. The purpose of the research is to examine an IT management of building materials’ planning and control processes using web-based technologies. The study made use of a desktop review of literature and a case diagram to illustrate the various interactions involved in the use of an IT system. A framework of drivers and barriers that affect the use of web-based technologies in planning and control of building materials in order to be able to achieve IT management by Construction Managers and construction firm’s head office was developed. In conclusion, the study developed a framework of a web-based material planning and control system for construction project delivery that engenders openness, transparency and accountability in the management of building materials on construction sites