A theoretical and practical approach to a persuasive agent model for change behaviour in oral care and hygiene

There is an increased use of the persuasive agent in behaviour change interventions due to the agent‘s features of sociable, reactive, autonomy, and proactive. However, many interventions have been unsuccessful, particularly in the domain of oral care. The psychological reactance has been identified as one of the major reasons for these unsuccessful behaviour change interventions. This study proposes a formal persuasive agent model that leads to psychological reactance reduction in order to achieve an improved behaviour change intervention in oral care and hygiene. Agent-based simulation methodology is adopted for the development of the proposed model. Evaluation of the model was conducted in two phases that include verification and validation. The verification process involves simulation trace and stability analysis. On the other hand, the validation was carried out using user-centred approach by developing an agent-based application based on belief-desire-intention architecture. This study contributes an agent model which is made up of interrelated cognitive and behavioural factors. Furthermore, the simulation traces provide some insights on the interactions among the identified factors in order to comprehend their roles in behaviour change intervention. The simulation result showed that as time increases, the psychological reactance decreases towards zero. Similarly, the model validation result showed that the percentage of respondents‘ who experienced psychological reactance towards behaviour change in oral care and hygiene was reduced from 100 percent to 3 percent. The contribution made in this thesis would enable agent application and behaviour change intervention designers to make scientific reasoning and predictions. Likewise, it provides a guideline for software designers on the development of agent-based applications that may not have psychological reactance

The proficient I.T. consultant: A study of the professional

Information Technology Consulting is an exciting and faced paced field where teams of professionals combine their expertise to help businesses reach their goals by improving their information systems. An information system is a combination of hardware, software, infrastructure and trained personnel organized to facilitate planning, control, coordination, and decision making in an organization. Consultants in this field employ a composite skillset consisting of business and technology proficiency in order to solve complex business problems. Many students are interested in entering the I.T. consulting field but do not know where to begin or what they need to focus on in order to succeed. Students find themselves asking: “What do I need to be able to do?” This question is a difficult one as the answer typically has not been a simple or concise one. While there is no definitive “list” of these skills, the goal of this thesis is to provide a transferable, general skillset that is required in order to distinguish oneself as an excellent I.T. consultant. This research will focus mainly on the breadth of the subject while highlighting a few key areas of depth

SATISFACTION OF LIBRARY SERVICES BY CATHOLIC RELIGIOUS IN SS. PETER AND PAUL SEMINARY, IBADAN, NIGERIA

Libraries not only acquire, organize, retrieve and disseminate information but also provide some services such as references services, current awareness, selective dissemination of information, document delivery services and inter-library loan services. Others include internet, audiovisual, reprographic, customer relation and user education services. The sole aim of these services is to satisfy the information needs of the users and clienteles of the library. The catholic religious who are studying to become priests have information needs not only for their academics but also for their pastoral training, which is given a greater priority towards their eligibility as priests. Therefore, they need to have different library services provided to meet their needs. This has necessitated the library to provide more services to them such as internet, inter-library loan, reprographic and current awareness. How satisfied are the catholic religious with the services being provided by the library? This is the focus of this paper

SOIL PHYSICAL AND CHEMICAL PROPERTIES AND COCOYAM YIELD UNDER DIFFERENT TILLAGE SYSTEMS IN A TROPICAL ALFISOL

Experimental data on tillage requirement of cocoyam (Xanthosoma sagittifolium) are needed to identify the most suitable tillage methods for managing the fragile Alfisols of the humid tropics to ensure sustained productivity. Hence, five tillage methods were compared as to their effects on soil physical and chemical properties, and growth and yield of cocoyam on an Alfisol at Owo in the forest-savanna transition zone of southwest Nigeria. The experiment consisted of five tillage methods: manual clearing (MC), manual ridging (MR), manual mounding (MM), ploughing + harrowing (P + H) and ploughing + harrowing twice (P + 2 H) were used for three years at two sites in a randomized complete block design with three replications. In the first two years (2007 and 2008), P + H produced the least soil bulk density and highest growth and yield, whereas in the third year (2009), MC produced the lowest soil bulk density and best performance of cocoyam. Manual clearing produced the best values of soil chemical properties in 2008 and 2009. Averaged over the three years, P + H, MR and MM had lower soil bulk density hence better growth and yield compared with P + 2 H and MC. Over the three years MC, MM, MR and P + H increased cocoyam cormel yield by 10, 21, 23 and 32%, respectively, over P + 2 H.The corresponding increases in corm yield were 7, 15, 13 and 21%, respectively. The multiple regressions revealed that bulk density and moisture content significantly influenced the yield of cocoyam. Soil chemical properties were not significant. Bulk density rather than soil chemical properties dictated the performance of cocoyam in an Alfisol of southwest Nigeria. Soil quality was degraded by P + 2H. For small farms, either MR or MM is recommended while P + H is recommended for large-scale farming of cocoyam. INTRODUCTION The majority of Alfisols available for crop production in the tropics are strongly weathered and of inherently low organic matter and nutrient status (Lal, 1987). In addition, Alfisols have a weak structure and are highly susceptible to crusting, compaction and accelerated erosion (Lal, 1987) leading to low crop yields. Cocoyam like any other root and tuber crops is a heavy feeder, exploiting a large volume of soil for nutrient and water (Osundare, 2004). Tillage is an important cultural practice that can be used to increase the yield of cocoyam. In the humid tropics where most farmers are poor and fertilizer is expensive, soil working and tillage methods can temporarily serve as an alternative to fertilizer application (Adekiya and Ojeniyi, 2002). §Correspondin

Effects of Organic, Organomineral and NPK Fertilizer Treatments on The Nutrient Uptake of Amaranthus Cruentus (L) on Two Soil Types in Lagos, Nigeria

The macronutrient uptake of A. cruentus under two soil types: Ikorodu (orthic Luvisol) and Lagos state university LASU) Ojo campus, (Dystric Fluvisol) were investigated under field conditions. Eight fertilizer treatments (1) control (no fertilizer), (2) pacesetter’s Grade B (PGB) 100%, (3) PGB + NPK (75:25), (4) PGB + NPK (50:50), (5) Kola Pod Husk (KPH) 100%, (6) KPH + NPK(75:25), (7) KPH + NPK(50:50) and (8) NPK(100%) were tested at first planting. Residual effects of the fertilizers were assessed in the second and third planting periods. The experiment was arranged in a randomized complete block design in four replications. Data were analyzed using ANOVA Test. Due to the high N status of the soil in Ikorodu (sandy clay loam) its uptake was significantly (p<0.05) higher (87.1%) than that of LASU. The KPH and PGB had the highest potential in A. cruentus production. At Ikorodu site, KPH + NPK (75:25) had the nutrient uptake while at LASU, PGB + NPK (75:25) was optimum. KPH + NPK (75:25) gave highest N, P, K, Ca and Mg uptake in A. cruentu

ICT Literacy Skills And Electronic Information Resources Use By Lecturers In Two Private Universities In Oyo State, Nigeria

The purpose of this study was to investigate the influence of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) literacy skills on electronic information resources (EIR) use among lecturers of two private universities in Oyo State, Nigeria. Descriptive survey design was adopted for the study and using total enumeration sampling technique, the study population and study sample consisted of 234 (Two hundred and thirty four) academic staff from both Ajayi Crowther University (ACU) and Lead City University (LCU). Questionnaire was the data collection instrument used. Data was analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. The findings revealed that E-mail and Websites were the most available resources to lecturers of both universities. Lecturers in ACU had high ICT literacy skills in General Computer Operation while those in LCU had high ICT literacy skills in General Computer Operation, Internet Browsing, Internet Searching and Computer Appreciation. E-Mail and website were the most often used e-resources among lecturers of both universities, erratic power supply and poor internet connection were the major challenges encountered in the use of e-resources. There was a positive significant relationship between ICT literacy skills and e-resources use of lecturers

ICT Literacy Skills And Electronic Information Resources Use By Lecturers In Two Private Universities In Oyo State, Nigeria

The purpose of this study was to investigate the influence of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) literacy skills on electronic information resources (EIR) use among lecturers of two private universities in Oyo State, Nigeria. Descriptive survey design was adopted for the study and using total enumeration sampling technique, the study population and study sample consisted of 234 (Two hundred and thirty four) academic staff from both Ajayi Crowther University (ACU) and Lead City University (LCU). Questionnaire was the data collection instrument used. Data was analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. The findings revealed that E-mail and Websites were the most available resources to lecturers of both universities. Lecturers in ACU had high ICT literacy skills in General Computer Operation while those in LCU had high ICT literacy skills in General Computer Operation, Internet Browsing, Internet Searching and Computer Appreciation. E-Mail and website were the most often used e-resources among lecturers of both universities, erratic power supply and poor internet connection were the major challenges encountered in the use of e-resources. There was a positive significant relationship between ICT literacy skills and e-resources use of lecturers

SOIL PHYSICAL AND CHEMICAL PROPERTIES AND COCOYAM YIELD UNDER DIFFERENT TILLAGE SYSTEMS IN A TROPICAL ALFISOL

Experimental data on tillage requirement of cocoyam (Xanthosoma sagittifolium) are needed to identify the most suitable tillage methods for managing the fragile Alfisols of the humid tropics to ensure sustained productivity. Hence, five tillage methods were compared as to their effects on soil physical and chemical properties, and growth and yield of cocoyam on an Alfisol at Owo in the forest-savanna transition zone of southwest Nigeria. The experiment consisted of five tillage methods: manual clearing (MC), manual ridging (MR), manual mounding (MM), ploughing + harrowing (P + H) and ploughing + harrowing twice (P + 2 H) were used for three years at two sites in a randomized complete block design with three replications. In the first two years (2007 and 2008), P + H produced the least soil bulk density and highest growth and yield, whereas in the third year (2009), MC produced the lowest soil bulk density and best performance of cocoyam. Manual clearing produced the best values of soil chemical properties in 2008 and 2009. Averaged over the three years, P + H, MR and MM had lower soil bulk density hence better growth and yield compared with P + 2 H and MC. Over the three years MC, MM, MR and P + H increased cocoyam cormel yield by 10, 21, 23 and 32%, respectively, over P + 2 H.The corresponding increases in corm yield were 7, 15, 13 and 21%, respectively. The multiple regressions revealed that bulk density and moisture content significantly influenced the yield of cocoyam. Soil chemical properties were not significant. Bulk density rather than soil chemical properties dictated the performance of cocoyam in an Alfisol of southwest Nigeria. Soil quality was degraded by P + 2H. For small farms, either MR or MM is recommended while P + H is recommended for large-scale farming of cocoyam. INTRODUCTION The majority of Alfisols available for crop production in the tropics are strongly weathered and of inherently low organic matter and nutrient status (Lal, 1987). In addition, Alfisols have a weak structure and are highly susceptible to crusting, compaction and accelerated erosion (Lal, 1987) leading to low crop yields. Cocoyam like any other root and tuber crops is a heavy feeder, exploiting a large volume of soil for nutrient and water (Osundare, 2004). Tillage is an important cultural practice that can be used to increase the yield of cocoyam. In the humid tropics where most farmers are poor and fertilizer is expensive, soil working and tillage methods can temporarily serve as an alternative to fertilizer application (Adekiya and Ojeniyi, 2002). §Correspondin

Designing a BDI agent reactant model of behavioural change intervention

Belief-Desire-Intention (BDI) model is well suited for describing agent’s mental state. The BDI of an agent represents its motivational stance and are the main determinant of agent’s actions.Therefore, explicit understanding of the representation and modelling of such motivational stance plays a central role in designing BDI agent with successful behavioral change interventions. Nevertheless, existing BDI agent models do not represent agent’s behavioral factors explicitly. This leads to a gap between design and implementation where psychological reactance has being identified as the cause of BDI agent behavioral change interventions failure. Hence, this paper presents a generic representation of BDI agent model based on behavioral change and psychological theories.Also, using mathematical analysis the model was evaluated. The objective of the proposed BDI agent model is to bridge the gap between agent design and implementation for successful agent-based interventions.The model will be realized in an agent based application that motivates children towards oral hygiene. The study explicitly depicts how agent’s behavioral factors interact to enhance behavior change which will assist agent-based intervention designers to be able to design intervention that will be void of reactance