Mobile banking : a comparative study of South Africa and Nigeria

Includes bibliographical references (leaves 91-103).Mobile banking (m-banking) is an innovative technology application, which has made available different value-added applications in both commercial and business processes. South Africa and Nigeria are reported to have high mobile applications usage in Africa, one of which is m-banking. This study identifies the factors that influence the user acceptance of m-banking in both countries. The aim of this research is to examine the relative differences/similarities of m-banking in South Africa and Nigeria. Several studies on the acceptance of m-banking have produced various results across different countries. This can be accredited to the dissimilar socio-cultural composition of such countries. The user acceptance of m-banking in a country is determined by distinct characteristic factors which are unique to that country. This research takes on a positivistic epistemology. This is an exploratory and deductive study which explains the factors that influence the acceptance of m-banking in two African countries by the use of a conceptual model.This study employed quantitative and qualitative data gathering and analysis processes. A crosssectional survey was conducted.. A total of 451 valid questionnaires were collected and analysed using Statistica 9 - analytic research software. The interviews were analysed using selective coding techniques. In this study, several factors such as cost, trust, satisfaction, social factors, utility expectancy (usefulness) and effort expectancy (ease of use) were identified from literature, and a conceptual model was formulated to test hypotheses generated from previous related studies. The dimensions of national culture – power, distance, uncertainty avoidance, masculinity and individualism were also integrated into the model. The result showed that SMS alert for account transactions is the most used m-banking service in both countries. The hypothesised relationships were validated by using regression tests, supported with responses from the interviewees. It was found that culture has an indirect effect on the user acceptance of m-banking. Security risk was the major disadvantageous factor while ubiquity and immediacy were the most advantageous factor. Additional factors such as awareness, convenience and literacy level were also revealed to influence the acceptance of m-banking in both countries

Predictors of design and adoption of collaborative elearning environments: a multi-method analysis

Philosophiae Doctor - PhDResearch has shown that collaborative eLearning can provide educational opportunities to groups of learners; both distance learners as well as traditional campus-based learners. It provides innovative educational methods in which learning can be constructed. The way collaborative eLearning is administered, managed, used and adopted can assist in providing information for future design and improvement of collaborative software. The objective of this research is to provide an insight into adoption and use of collaborative eLearning environments and to discover new determinants of usage. To examine the usage of an eLearning environment at the University of the Western Cape, a cross-sectional survey was conducted with Computer Science students. While this study is specific to this university, the underlying principles can be generalised to other organisational types. This study is quantitative and qualitative in nature as well as deductive and inductive. Three hundred and six valid questionnaires were analysed using quantitative methods. Soft Systems Methodology was used to manage the research process and to create conceptual models to explain the research problem and identify solutions. It was a cyclical process. Findings show that although the university’s eLearning platform is utilised, students seem to prefer free and open source platforms. They use social and collaborative applications such as WhatsApp, Telegram, Dropbox, Google Drive, Google Docs as well as email messages. Four types of technology affordances: communicative-affordance, document share-affordance, course resource-affordance, and integrity-affordance were identified as being relevant in their choice of application. Furthermore, culture—masculinity/femininity, individualism/collectivism, Uncertainty Avoidance, and Power Distance—also have an effect on the adoption of collaborative eLearning applications and software the students used for learning. Chi-Square analysis found that individualism/collectivism and Power Distance were both significant and related to the adoption and usage of collaborative eLearning. Gender was found not to be a determinant of how students view the use of collaborative eLearning software applications. Finally, it was also found that understanding use and user behaviour, could provide the theoretical guidance to inform collaborative eLearning design. The analysis and findings show that culture influences the adoption of collaborative eLearning while technology affordance plays a major role in the use of collaborative eLearning

The SEACOM Undersea Fibre Optic Cable Project: A Critical Discourse Analysis

Abstract The construction of the Seacom undersea fibre optic cable linking eastern and southern Africa to Europe and India has generated enormous media interest. It has been reported that the Seacom cable will provide affordable broadband services which will in turn improve South Africa"s economic and social growth. Since the media contributes towards creating reality it is necessary to examine the media discourse on a project with potentially huge public impact. This study involves a critical discourse analysis of the media articles on the Seacom cable over the past two years with focus on South Africa. The theoretical framework of the study is based on Habermas" Theory of Communicative Action (TCA) which was operationalised through the application of critical hermeneutic analysis and content analysis techniques to the corpus. TCA is based on examining the discourse for truth, legitimacy, sincerity, and comprehensibility claims. The analysis of the corpus revealed significant distortions in the media discourse on the Seacom cable. It was noted that the media has mainly focused on the potential benefits of the project and has paid little attention to the challenges the populace may face in order to enjoy the benefits offered by the project. The findings of the study are important to media reporting on huge projects so as to avoid distortions