Elite perceptions of poverty and Nigeria’s poverty reduction research: a theoretical orientation

The way the elite perceive poverty and the poor in any society constitutes a very important dimension of poverty research. This is because normally there are several areas of interrelationship and interdependence between the poor and the elite, and these form part of the basis for social life in all societies. Perceptions of the elite about such situations would therefore largely inform their behaviour in relation to poverty and the poor. In reality while the poor depend on the elite for improvements in their status, the elite are also affected (sometimes negatively) by the poor in several ways. Individual members of the elite do not usually ward off threats to their security, or realize the opportunities presented by poverty situations on their own; as such situations often require collective action on their part. Adequate information about the level of awareness among the elite about these interdependencies, together with the extent of the sense of responsibility among them, is therefore deemed to constitute a missing but necessary input into Nigerian poverty research aimed at bringing about substantial change in the current poverty scenario. This paper is therefore aimed at theoretically contributing to the creation of adequate focus on the importance of this aspect of poverty research. Such an insight is particularly crucial in a developing country like Nigeria, where poverty afflicts a large section of the population, and where poverty reduction and eradication programmes usually championed by the elite, have usually not witnessed the measure of success set out in the goals and objectives of these intervention measures Keywords: Poverty, Consciousness, Elite, Alleviation, Research

A socio-technical analysis of widespread electric vehicle adoption

A combination of high fuel costs, concerns about petroleum availability, and environmental issues associated with conventional vehicles powered by fossil fuels are driving interests in electric vehicles (EVs). Large-scale deployment of EVs can play a significant role in addressing some of these problems. In spite of the benefits of EVs, several obstacles need to be overcome before EVs will be widely adopted. This research focuses on two socio-technical issues that affect widespread adoption and sustainability of EVs, consumer attitudes and perceptions, and supply chain risks of raw materials for EV battery technology. A major barrier is that consumers tend to resist new technologies that are considered unproved, thus, engineering and policy decisions that consider their critical concerns will have a higher level of success. This research identifies potential socio-technical barriers to consumer adoption of EVs and determines if sustainability issues influence consumer decision to purchase an EV. In addition, this study employs statistical analysis to provide valuable insights into preferences and perceptions of technology enthusiasts. The second part of this research focuses on a supply chain analysis of lithium, which is a major raw material for lithium-ion batteries used in EVs. This research identifies potential issues with the security and supply of lithium for production of lithium-ion batteries. Furthermore, this study develops a supply chain model with which to investigate the technical, geopolitical, and economic factors that influence the supply of lithium through different life cycle stages. Finally, this research conducts a bibliometric analysis of the EV research and proposes some policy and research actions to advance the technology

INSECURITY AND RIGHT TO HEALTH OF NIGERIANS: CHALLENGES AND SOLUTIONS

The worsening state of insecurity of lives and property in Nigeria is a major source of concern to both Nigerians and the international community. The effects of insecurity on socio-economic activities, psyche and overall functioning of Nigerians are tremendous. This review paper critically examines how insecurity affects right to health of Nigerians. Right to health is defined in terms of ease of access to acceptable and affordable health service, at fully equipped, well staffed, and functional public health institutions sited close to the doorsteps of individuals. Anchored on functionalism and structural strain theories, the paper argues that insecurity negatively undermines pursuit of right to health of Nigerians. It recommended the use of dialogue to check rising threats to lives and property across Nigeria. Strengthening of economic empowerment and social re-orientation programmes by the government was also canvassed to calm aggrieved unemployed youths. The paper concluded that it is only in an atmosphere of peace and security that right to health of Nigerians will be fully realized

Evaluating User Vulnerabilities Vs Phisher Skills In Spear Phishing

Spear phishing emails pose great danger to employees of organizations due to the inherent weakness of the employees in identifying the threat from spear phishing cues, as well as the spear phisher\u27s skill in crafting contextually convincing emails. This raises the main question of which construct (user vulnerabilities or phisher skills) has a greater influence on the vulnerable user. Researchers have provided enough evidence of user vulnerabilities, namely the desire for monetary gain, curiosity of the computer user, carelessness on the part of the user, the trust placed in the purported sender by the user, and a lack of awareness on the part of the computer user. However, there is a lack of research on the magnitude of each of these factors in influencing an unsuspecting user to fall for a phishing or spear phishing attack which we explored in this paper. While user vulnerabilities pose major risk, the effect of the spear phisher\u27s ability in skillfully crafting convincing emails (using fear appeals, urgency of action, and email contextualization) to trap even skillful IT security personnel is an area that needs to be explored. Therefore, we explored the relationships between the two major constructs namely \u27user vulnerabilities\u27 and \u27email contextualization\u27, through the theory of planned behavior with the objective to find out the major factors that lead to computer users biting the phishers\u27 bait. In this theoretical version of the paper, we provided the resulting two constructs that needed to be tested

Push Them Forward: Challenges in Intergovernmental Organizations\u27 Influence on Rural Broadband Infrastructure Expansion

Many rural US communities lack access to adequate broadband services. This paper draws on semi-structured interviews conducted in 2019 with 16 Regional Planning Commissions to uncover dynamics of how these intergovernmental organizations contribute to the deployment of broadband infrastructure in rural Missouri. The proposed framework integrates the decomposed Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB), the Theory of Reasoned Goal Pursuit, and Stakeholder Theory. Many participants reported a low level of involvement in broadband infrastructure initiatives even though supporting infrastructure development to promote economic growth is one of the Regional Planning Commissions\u27 primary goals. Regional Planning Commissions are highly influenced by four primary stakeholder groups, (1) residents and businesses, (2) local governments, (3) internet service providers, and (4) state and federal government, which vary in terms of priorities and power. While defining the region\u27s priorities with elected officials, Regional Planning Commissions often push them forward to recognize the necessity of broadband infrastructure. However, Regional Planning Commissions also struggle with low self-efficacy and inadequate expertise to support broadband planning efforts. The proposed framework could be generalized to understand actions and decisions by other intergovernmental organizations that have convening power and face similar power dynamics with their stakeholders

Rural Access to Industry 4.0: Barriers from the Infrastructure Planning Front Lines

Many rural communities lack adequate broadband infrastructure, which limits the economic development potential in these regions. They are not able to attract new businesses, and established businesses are unable to use tools and services that require high-speed internet. Broadband access is a requirement for the Internet of Things, robotics, and big data, which are part of Industry 4.0 and the future economy. Such technological advances are not only transforming the manufacturing environments and the service industry, but also finding applications in the food supply chain, such as precision agriculture. In this study, we conducted 17 semi-structured interviews (11 reported here) with Missouri Regional Planning Commission (RPC) directors and experienced infrastructure planners to identify barriers for the deployment of broadband infrastructure in rural Missouri. Systematic qualitative analysis was conducted to identify key themes based on barriers previously identified in the literature. Participants reported that the top barriers are the return on investment and financing of rural broadband projects. The literature tends to be dominated by technology solutions, which received the least number of mentions as a barrier in the interviews

Opportunities and Challenges for Rural Broadband Infrastructure Investment

Insufficient internet access is holding back local economies, reducing educational outcomes, and creating health disparities in rural areas of the U.S. At present, federal and state funding is available for rural broadband infrastructure deployment, but existing efforts have not invested in analytical work to maximize efficiency and minimize cost. In this study, we use a state-of-the-art matrix (SAM) to identify key challenges and opportunities facing rural broadband infrastructure from previous research and government reports. We focus on six themes: (1) technology, (2) hardware costs, (3) financing, (4) adoption, (5) regulatory/legal, and (6) management. We highlight key issues to be addressed by both private and public decision-makers to effectively manage broadband investment as well as engage stakeholders to improve access and adoption. Much of the challenge for rural broadband infrastructure is related to a low return on investment due to high capital costs and low population densities. However, there are many innovative approaches to overcoming this barrier from technical, policy, and social perspectives. Unfortunately, adoption and management are understudied and would benefit from additional research to design effective decision-making tools and programs. From a systems perspective, solutions that leverage tools from a diverse set of perspectives, rather than purely focusing on technology deployment, are more likely to be sustainable in the long-term. We outline an agenda for future work based on the needs of rural communities as well as local and state governments

From flying rockets to Tesla: examining the sustainable mobility preferences of primary school children in Denmark and the Netherlands

The relationship between children and cars is not directly obvious, but they are a core group of passengers moving daily from and to school and they are future potential buyers. Moreover, many of the values, worldviews, and patterns of energy (and mobility) consumption enshrined in adults become formed and perhaps cemented in childhood. Lastly, children are not directly concerned with many of the choices and information that adults handle, so measuring what they know could proxy for popular knowledge in society. This paper offers a first international comparison between 587 surveyed schoolchildren between 9-13 years of age in Denmark and the Netherlands on EV knowledge and current and future car transport. Results indicate that national and regional context matter, as do gender, age, and to a certain extent the level experience with low-carbon innovations such as electric vehicles. In general, however, children rank the environmental impact of cars just below personal safety and we can conclude that they are aware of EVs and their main benefits. Simultaneously, they also know that EVs are costlier to purchase. Most important, the children overwhelmingly agree on the future direction of car-based transport with cars that are safer, more energy efficient and alternatively fueled

Impact of Public Charging Infrastructure on the Adoption of Electric Vehicles in London

The discussion on the importance of public charging infrastructure is usually framed around the ‘chicken-egg’ challenge of consumers feeling reluctant to purchase without the necessary infrastructure and policy makers reluctant to invest in the infrastructure without the demand. However, public charging infrastructure may be more crucial to EV adoption than previously thought. Historically, access to residential charging was thought to be a major factor in potential for growth in the EV market as it offered a guaranteed place for a vehicle to be charged. However, these conclusions were reached through studies conducted in regions with a high percentage of homes that have access to residential parking. The purpose of this study is to understand how the built environment may encourage uptake of EVs by seeking a correlation between EV ownership and public charging points in an urban and densely populated city such as London. Using a statistical approach with data from the Department for Transport and Zap Map, a statistically significant correlation was found between the total (slow, fast and rapid) number of public charging points and number of EV registrations per borough—with the strongest correlation found between EV registrations and rapid chargers. This research does not explicitly prove that there is a cause-and-effect relationship between public charging points EVs but challenges some of the previous literature which indicates that public charging infrastructure is not as important as home charging. The study also supports the notion that the built environment can influence human behaviour

Dismissive and deceptive car dealerships create barriers to electric vehicle adoption at the point of sale

This study investigates the role of car dealerships in the electrification of passenger transport, namely their sales advice about the purchase and use of electric vehicles (EVs). Because most consumers do not have pre-existing knowledge of EVs, and current market conditions favour petrol and diesel vehicles, car dealership experiences may strongly influence EV purchasing decisions. Here we show that car dealerships pose a significant barrier at the point of sale due to a perceived lack of business case viability in relation to petrol and diesel vehicles. In 126 shopping experiences at 82 car dealerships across Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden, we find dealers were dismissive of EVs, misinformed shoppers on vehicle specifications, omitted EVs from the sales conversation and strongly oriented customers towards petrol and diesel vehicle options. Dealer’s technological orientation, willingness to sell, and displayed knowledge of EVs were the main contributors to likely purchase intentions. These findings combined with expert interviews suggest that government and industry signalling affect sales strategies and purchasing trends. Policy and business strategies that address barriers at the point of sale are needed to accelerate EV adoption