Teaching Innovation and Entrepreneurship in Sculpture: The Way Forward

Innovation and entrepreneurship is a significant factor of teaching peoples in sculpture fraternity to gain creativity by employing their hands and minds for economic well-being. These two contents have synergising across business and management disciplines but much have not been seen in art fields especially sculpture. Universities are increasingly being criticized for their failure in innovation and entrepreneurship education with their excessive focus on storytelling about entrepreneurs, business planning competitions and lean start up models. Stemming from many cases of leading entrepreneurs who were either university drop-outs or did not go to university at all, there is cynicism in the community about the effectiveness of universities in generating innovators. However, there are in fact successful approaches to developing creativity and innovation skills being used by universities such as work integrated learning (WIL). Research shows that this approach is beneficial to both students in developing their creativity and innovation skills, confidence, self-efficacy and leadership. This paper therefore examines and assesses the approach to teaching innovation and entrepreneurship in sculpture by how this practice can be taught to entrepreneurship sculpture students as it builds on these approaches, and tries to shed some additional light on the careers opportunities where students aspiring to become entrepreneurs can learn the ‘practice of innovation’ in such a way that they become ‘knowledge agents for innovation”. This study was based on descriptive research methodology to provide answers to the research questions. A simple random convenience sampling of art students especially in sculpture field was used. Primary data for analysis was obtained using self-written questionnaires and personal interviews. The findings are discussed and recommendations for future research and practices are also made. Keywords: Teaching, Innovation, Entrepreneurship, Sculpture, Creativit

Towards an Improved Health Service Quality Delivery and Patient Loyalty: Does Satisfaction Really Matter?

The healthcare industry in developing nations has chronicled high development rate in our current dispensation. This study sought to identify the most critical factors in hospitals related service delivery quality that will drive loyalty and hence ensure the survival and success of the hospital in the future; it ideally tested if the satisfaction of a patient had any role to play in such relationship. This study was conducted using data from (562) patients who received services from (4) four major but different private hospitals in Ghana. The five Service Quality dimensions; Tangibility, reliability, responsiveness, assurance and empathy, patient satisfaction and loyalty to the hospital were the variables well-thought-out for this study. A path analysis was done utilizing SmartPLS V3.2.8; a second-generation multivariate data analysis method (PLS-SEM) in order to compute path coefficients, direct and indirect effects of the variables on patient's satisfaction and also loyalty to the hospital. The study prompted that empathy, responsiveness and tangibility (not assurance and reliability) impact patients’ satisfaction and patient's satisfaction is directly related to patients’ loyalty to the hospital/clinic

The Antecedes of Service Quality and Patients’ Satisfaction Equally Drive Patients’ Loyalty in Private Healthcare Delivery: Thinking the future

The healthcare industry in developing nations has recorded high progress rate in recent years, leading an initiative varied studies into the examination of patients’ comparative and varied views with regards to private healthcare providers service delivery. This study objectively focused on the hospital’s service quality, and patients’ satisfaction as a predictor and collective impact or on patient’s loyalty; it attempted to draw a distinctive border amongst quality of service and satisfaction of the patient, one with more effect size and predictive relevance to drive greater loyalty amongst the patients in a private healthcare delivery setting. A total of 562 patients recruited, participated in a cross-sectional survey with a questionnaire as the main and only data collection tool from four major private hospitals in Ghana. A path and linear regression analysis of the data was performed through SPSS 23 and Smart PLS version 3 in order to compute path coefficients, direct and indirect impacts of the factors; service quality and patient's satisfaction on patient’s loyalty to the hospital.  The study suggested that both clientele perceived service quality and patient satisfaction significantly influence patient loyalty. However, patient satisfaction with service delivery had a better predictive relevance and effect size than the quality of the service on patient loyalty in this study

Spotting the Critical Service Quality Determinants in the Ghanaian Retail Banking: Importance and Effects

Critical of the areas in customer-centered marketing paradigms and philosophies, is ensuring that existing customers are satisfied to enable you maintain their loyalty, repurchase and to woo in new clientele. The study examined the critical influences of customer satisfaction in the retail banking of Ghana and its effects on customers’ purchasing behavior. The study included 791 clienteles drawn from the sampling population. A cross-sectional survey was used to examine the experience of benefiting from service quality elements, perceived service quality and customers purchasing behavior based on a customized 18 dimensions of SERVQUAL. By means of frequency and mediation analysis, estimates for the direct and indirect effects of benefiting from the service quality influences on perceived service quality and consumer purchasing behavior was assessed. The impacts of evidence of service quality factors on customers purchasing behavior, was partially-mediated by perceived service quality with statistically-significant indirect effect. The results prompted that the banks’ aesthetics, cleanliness, communication skills, competence, availability, access and security of their clienteles be prioritized areas they can’t afford to fail. Keywords: Service Quality, Determinants, Retail Banking, Customer Satisfaction, Behavioral intentions. DOI: 10.7176/EJBM/11-27-08 Publication date:September 30th 201

Perceived Service Quality, a Key to Improved Patient Satisfaction and Loyalty in Healthcare Delivery: The Servqual Dimension Approach

Hospital’s perceived service quality is a degree of discrepancy between patients’ perceptions and their expectations about hospitals services. The quality of services which is provided by healthcare providers emphasizes the actual hospital service process. In the hospital, patients’ satisfaction and hence loyalty could be widely used to determine hospital service quality. The study adopted a regression and path analysis utilizing SmartPLS V3.2.8; a second-generation multivariate data analysis method (PLS-SEM) approach to analyze the influence of perceived quality of services of hospitals on patient’s satisfaction and loyalty based on the SERVQUAL dimensions. The study used data from (562) out-patients who had received services from (4) four major private hospitals in Ghana using purposive census sampling technique. Based on the analysis results, all five dimensions of the health services quality predictor of patients’ level of satisfaction and loyalty to the hospital’s services, explained that patients’ satisfaction and loyalty was affected by all dimensions of health service quality (RATER) simultaneously. Nonetheless, different impacts will be obtained if all dimensions were measured separately. The study incited that patients’ satisfaction and loyalty are influenced by the quality of medical/hospital services through its five components: reliability, assurance, tangibility, empathy and responsiveness

Traditional Beliefs and Practices in Masquerading: Effutu Context

The study elevates the masquerading culture of Effutu masquerade and examines its functionalism of the traditional beliefs and practices associated with the masquerading culture in Winneba, Central Region of Ghana. The study employed a descriptive research tool under the qualitative research approach through ethnographic inquiry, which aimed at collecting data to unearth these traditional beliefs and practices of the Effutu masquerade. The study used unstructured interviews, photographs, and direct observation as the form of instrumentations to elicit information from the federation, some members, and leaders of the various masquerade groups in Winneba. The data was analyzed using descriptive and interpretative phenomenological (IPA) analysis tools. It was revealed that the Effutu masquerade culture possessed traditional beliefs and practices that were shrouded in religious, socioeconomic and aesthetic contexts. Functionalism in Effutu masquerade culture was seen as a repository for a critical reflection of the visual culture that promotes Ghana’s tradition and cultural values. The study concludes that the Effutu masquerade, irrespective of its distrust, contains elements of cultural richness and important traditional values that demonstrate a degree of philosophical urgency