Sheena Lovia Boateng

Determinants of E-Learning Adoption in Universities: Evidence From a Developing Country

This study sought to explore the technological, organizational, and environmental determinants of e-learning adoption in University of Ghana using a multistakeholder approach. Another construct (nature of the course) was added to the traditional constructs of the technology-organization-environment framework. Using survey research, e-learning stakeholders in the University of Ghana responded to the questionnaire. The data were analyzed using factor analysis and multiple regression. The findings indicate some disparities in the adoption factors for the three e-learning stakeholders (students, instructors, and administrators). The article concludes with a discussion of future research directions.

The Nature of E-Learning Adoption by Stakeholders of a University in Africa.

Studies looking at the nature of technology adoption from a multi-dimensional perspective have remained below expectation especially in African countries. This study, therefore, sought to explore the nature of e-learning adoption in the University of Ghana using a multi-stakeholder approach. A quantitative survey approach was adopted for this study. The three major categories of stakeholders (students, instructors and e-learning administrators) responded to a questionnaire on the nature of their engagement with the Sakai Learning Management System of the University of Ghana. The data were analysed using the descriptive statistics. The analysis revealed that e-learning was yet to receive a university-wide adoption and again it was discovered that, the prevalent activity on the e-learning platform was “viewing marks and grades.” And some of the activities were less popular with the users of the e-learning system. For instance, “Detecting and fishing out cheating and plagiarism in students’ or researchers’ work” was the least popular activity on the e-learning platform. The originality of the study lies in the multi-faceted (student, lecturers/instructors and e-learning administrators) approach to the study of e-learning adoption in an African country. The study concludes with a discussion of implications and future research directions.

Videos in learning in higher education: assessing perceptions and attitudes of students at the University of Ghana

Video is one of the most diversified and distinct virtual learning mediums that capture and present information and offer a sensory learning environment, which enables learners to understand more and retain information better. This study sought to assess the perceptions and attitudes of students at the University of Ghana towards the use of videos as a medium for teaching and learning. Qualitative data was collected using semi structured interviews. Participation was entirely voluntary and was conditional, based on students’ verbal consent. A convenience sample of 20 students responded to a request to participate, and data was analyzed using content analysis. Students perceived videos in general as being of some benefit to their learning activities. Overall, comments on videos as a medium of teaching and learning were positive. However, students had negative perceptions about the nature of the videos they watched. Almost all the participants indicated that they had issues with the content and the format of all the videos they watched. But, majority of the participants perceived that the videos they watched enhanced their learning outcomes and improved their learning approach. Therefore, learning outcomes of students and instructors should be dependent on the manner in which videos are used, as part of the overall academic process. This study is one of the first articles to explore in detail, students’ perceptions and attitudes towards video based teaching in Ghana, and provides interesting insights with regard to the concept and its application in tertiary institutions.

Sustainability -- Rethinking the Social Responsibility of Banking Businesses

The purpose of this paper is to explore the issue of sustainability, as it is practised by firms operating within developing economy contexts. It defines sustainable strategic corporate social responsibility (CSR) and proposes a framework that outlines the stages involved in the proficient performance and disclosure of sustainable strategic CSR initiatives. This was done by adopting a firm-oriented perspective, combined with insights banking, CSR and sustainability.The proposed framework identifies four main stages involved in sustainable strategic CSR. The author outlines a framework for understanding how the company can manage the different stages of the sustainable strategic CSR process and discusses its implications. The conceptual elaboration creates new research issues that should lead to a deeper understanding of firms’ strategic motivations, choice of initiative, timing and methods of disclosure in implementing sustainable CSR. The firm-based perspective and the focus on the design, performance and disclosure of sustainable CSR, provide a new approach to analysing and understanding sustainable CSR. The paper contributes to CSR research by introducing conceptualisations of sustainable strategic CSR which have an interest for both academic research and practitioners.

Philosophical Debates in Marketing and the Application of Critical Realism to Online Relationship Marketing

Research paradigms form a critical part of research, defining what is to be studied by a researcher and how it is to be studied. Marketing researchers have engaged in philosophical debates on paradigms arguing on which paradigm best fits marketing science. The purpose of this paper is to discuss the ontological, epistemological and methodological debates in the field of marketing, and justify the choice of one of the paradigms to undertake a research on online relationship marketing practices in the Ghanaian banking sector. The paper reviews five paradigms, namely interpretivism, positivism, realism, relativism and critical realism, as they underpin the key debates in marketing. Concerning relationship marketing, though the debates have between positivist and interpretive/phenomenology, a conciliatory view, embracing the strengths of different research methods used in the two paradigms, have been echoed. The paper makes a case for using critical realism for a research seeking to describe how Ghanaian banks develop online relationship marketing practices, and to determine the constituents of these practices. The paper explains the fit of the paradigm with the research topic and discusses how the research could be undertaken. The paper concludes that marketing researchers need to understand the dynamism of marketing concepts and identify appropriate research problems and questions which can be adequately addressed within their research paradigms.

A Multilayered Approach to CSR Practices in a Multinational Bank

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is increasingly becoming a global practice for firms in both developing and developed countries. Its ability to contribute to corporate sustainability and stakeholder welfare has been well-documented and touted. However, it has been arguably noted that CSR is rarely embraced at all levels of organizations. Studies which have attempted to examine CSR from a multilayered perspective, involving institutional, organizational and level predictors are also limited. In response, the objective of this paper is to explore the predictors of CSR, at the three levels, that initiate firm CSR engagement.The paper builds on previous literature to develop a framework of multilayered predictors of CSR. Using a qualitative approach, the framework is used to examine a case study of predictors of CSR in a multinational bank in Ghana. The findings suggest that, first, at the institutional level CSR initiatives are driven by continuous dialogue with stakeholders, along with good corporate citizenship, as well as partnership and mutual collaboration with both internal and external stakeholders. Second, organizational level CSR predictors emphasize the need to invest in communities, support economic development, and create trust between the firm and its stakeholders. Third, individual level CSR predictors are influenced by the CSR manager’s educational background, on-the-job training, unique values, as well as the personal awareness of CSR related issues. In effect, sustainability, as a CSR approach, ensures that firms contribute to making their operational context (market) better, and thereby make it more viable for business. The proposed framework outlines ten predictors of CSR, categorized at the three levels. The findings can be used as propositions to guide the use of the framework in future research and practice.