EUREKA: Social and Humanities
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Evaluating the prospects and challenges of cooperative organizations in rural community development in South Africa
Full text linkThis research examines cooperative societies' role in developing rural communities in South Africa, focusing on agricultural cooperatives. It explores these cooperatives' historical evolution, organisational structures, and social impact, emphasizing their relevance in contemporary rural development discourse. Through a comprehensive literature review, the study identifies cooperatives' opportunities and challenges in promoting sustainable development. It critically assesses the current policy framework governing cooperatives. It evaluates its effectiveness in addressing persistent socio-economic challenges in rural areas, including poverty, unemployment, and limited access to markets and financial services.
The findings reveal that cooperatives hold significant potential to stimulate inclusive economic growth, foster community participation, and enhance livelihoods in rural South Africa. However, internal governance issues, inadequate financial support, limited market access, and inconsistent government engagement often hinder their success. The research highlights the importance of targeted policy interventions, robust institutional support, and capacity-building initiatives to strengthen cooperative performance and sustainability.
Strategic measures proposed include enhancing cooperative governance, improving access to credit and technical support, facilitating better integration into value chains, and fostering public-private partnerships. The study contributes to the growing body of knowledge on rural development and cooperative economics. It offers valuable insights for policymakers, development practitioners, and researchers, interested in leveraging cooperative models to drive rural transformation in South Africa
Revisiting Maslow’s hierarchy: the recognition and acknowledgment of greatness in others
Full text linkMaslow’s hierarchy of needs is a broadly accepted framework in psychology that offers valuable insights into human motivation. The initial five-tier model has been applied across numerous spheres of influence. Later revisions incorporated self-transcendence and emphasised the importance of contributing beyond individual fulfilment. This study criticises and expands on Maslow’s framework by suggesting an additional dimension, namely the recognition and acknowledgment of greatness in others. This is followed by a conceptual exploration of two distinct perspectives within this anticipated dimension, while drawing from the self-determination theory and social motivation research. The first perspective interprets recognition as a fundamental segment of self-transcendence, which aligns with Maslow’s highest level of need. It suggests that recognising others’ greatness mirrors the individual’s shift from personal fulfilment to a focus on the collective good. The second perspective suggests that recognition constitutes a distinct motivational need and is situated between esteem and self-actualisation. There is therefore a perceived link between self-accomplishments and the broader altruistic motives. This dual perspective stresses the psychological and social gains of recognising others, and similarly links it to intrinsic motivation, interpersonal relationships as well as workplace engagement. By including this dimension, the framework evolves to deliberate contemporary perceptions of human fulfilment and underscoring the significance of social validation and community well-being. This proposed addition enriches both individual and collective experiences and positions the concept of recognition as a fundamental psychological and social need in modern civilisatio
The emerging trends on human trafficking in South Africa
Full text linkHuman trafficking is a wounding problem and a complicated threat that deprives people of their civil liberties and freedom. In recent years, the nation of South Africa has had to contend with rising incidents of human trafficking, both as a source country and a destination country. This study sought to explore the scourge of human trafficking in South Africa, with a focus on Soweto - one of the most densely populated locations in South Africa. The study was guided by two objectives namely, to identify the forms of human trafficking, and to ascertain the contributory factors to human trafficking. The study adopted a quantitative research design and data were collected using a mainly closed-ended questionnaire. A sample of 80 respondents was invited to participate in the study using purposive, stratified and snowball sampling techniques. Data were analysed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) to reveal descriptive statistics. Findings revealed that trafficking of people for organ harvesting was considered as the most prevalent form of human trafficking, followed by trafficking of women and young girls for prostitution, and trafficking of people for use as drug couriers. Unemployment, porous borders and inadequate legislation emerged as the main contributory factors to human trafficking in Soweto. In order to deal with human trafficking, the study recommends a multi-pronged approach that incorporates the government, the legislature, law enforcement and citizens to deal with human trafficking. Employment creation, construction of safe houses for victims, counselling services for victims and addressing illegal immigration are the recommended specific measures to address human traffickin
Contexts, triggers and socio-economic effects of security threats in the Lesotho taxi industry
Full text linkSecurity threats, experienced by taxi drivers in Lesotho, do not just occur randomly, but they are triggered by certain factors, such as the environment. These security threats affect taxi drivers in various ways, including financially and physically. This study used the perspectives of the taxi drivers to assess the socio-economic effects of security threats in Lesotho’s taxi industry. The study is anchored on Lifestyle Theory, which suggests that individual lifestyles can influence their risk of victimization. Using a qualitative approach, facilitated by purposive sampling and snowball sampling techniques, the study successfully captured the lived experiences of taxi drivers in Lesotho, unveiling the various dimensions of security threats the drivers encounter in the country. The study revealed from a seasonal dimension that security threats, besides political riots and political campaigns, are encountered mostly in winter. Equally, they are encountered at taxi ranks and in isolated areas in terms of location and hotspots. The findings reflect that these threats affect taxi drivers physically, mentally, and financially. They further show that taxi drivers use positive coping mechanisms, such as seeking support, and negative coping mechanisms, including substance abuse and route avoidance, to limit the psycho-physical effects of these threats. In the light of the above observations, the study suggests that the responsible government agencies should be innovative in fighting security threats, experienced by long-distance and short-distance taxi drivers
The role of grievance handling styles on employee performance
Full text linkOrganizations cannot avoid receiving complaints from individual employees or groups of employees who are unsatisfied with their existing working conditions or interactions with colleagues. Despite the decentralization of the health sector following the adoption of the new constitution in 2010, the difficulty of settling employee grievances has grown. This study aimed to investigate how grievance processing affects staff performance at Kenyan public hospitals, specifically Longisa referral hospital in Bomet County. The study's specific objectives were to examine the effect of grievance handling procedures on staff performance at Longisa referral hospital. This study employed a case study design. The study's target population included 307 Longisa referral hospital professionals. Performance. This investigation employed the census, since the sample size was small and readily available. A questionnaire was used to gather primary data. The data was evaluated using descriptive statistics for frequency and percentages, Pearson correlation analysis, and Chi-square analysis to summarise and classify data, uncover relationships between variables, and assess the strength of those relationships. The data was presented as frequency tables. The study discovered a positive and statistically significant correlation (r = 0.547, P-value = 0.000) between grievance handling procedures and staff performance at Longisa Referral Hospital. The three null hypotheses that guided the inquiry were tested using Chi-square analysis, and all of them were rejected due to their Chi-square values. Respondents typically believed that grievance processing affected employee performance.
As a result, the study concluded that in order to improve employee performance, businesses should establish wise and sound grievance resolution processes. According to the report, organizations should implement effective grievance-handling approaches to improve employee performance. The study is expected to enhance grievance handlin
Kyiv or Kiev: how Russian propaganda has been shaping geopolitical narratives
Full text linkThis study investigates the strategic manipulation of Ukrainian toponyms in Russian propaganda, focusing on the geopolitical and cultural implications of the transliteration shift from “Kiev” to “Kyiv.” By examining historical narratives, linguistic policies, and media discourses, the research underscores how place names function as instruments of soft power, influencing international perceptions and reinforcing political agendas. The persistence of spelling Ukraine’s capital name “Kiev” in global discourse reflects a legacy of Soviet-era russification policies, while the adoption of “Kyiv” signifies Ukraine’s efforts to assert sovereignty, reclaim cultural identity, and resist disinformation campaigns. Through an interdisciplinary approach combining literature review on historical linguistics, geopolitical analysis, and media studies, this research explored the mechanisms, by which Russian propaganda sustains outdated transliterations to undermine Ukraine’s national identity. It outlines how toponymic manipulation aligns with broader strategies of information warfare, contributing to narratives that diminish Ukrainian independence and reinforce Russian territorial claims. Consequently, findings indicate that the international adoption of “Kyiv” has accelerated following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, reflecting a global shift in recognizing Ukrainian linguistic authenticity and political sovereignty. Nevertheless, challenges persist as Russian-aligned media and political actors continue to use “Kiev” to perpetuate narratives of historical unity between Russia and Ukraine. Ultimately, the research underscores the need for accurate toponymic representation to resist geopolitical manipulation and urges advocacy in media, diplomacy, and academia to counter disinformation and support Ukraine’s sovereignty. Future studies could explore the broader impact of toponymic accuracy on international legal frameworks, diplomatic relations, and the effectiveness of counter-disinformation strategies in geopolitical conflicts
Exploring psychometric properties of mathematics unified promotion examination using item response theory
Full text linkThis study established the unidimensionality of the Ondo State Mathematics Unified Promotion Examination (MUPE). It examined the difficulty and discrimination indices of the mathematics examination items and determined their reliability and validity. The study population was all 2019/2020 public Senior Secondary School two (SS II) students in Ondo State. The study's descriptive survey research design comprised 609 students, selected using a multi-stage sampling procedure. The instrument for data collection was 2019 Ondo State MUPE items, which comprised 34 multiple-choice test items. Stout’s test of essential unidimensional and reliability tests were used to analyse research questions. The findings revealed that Ondo State MUPE items violated the assumption of unidimensionality because p<0.05; hence, it was multidimensional in nature, implying that the items measured more than a single trait. It was observed that, out of 34 items of Ondo MUPE, 28 items, representing 82 %, were moderately difficult, and they discriminated correctly. Six items, representing 18 %, functioned poorly regarding discrimination and difficulty indices. The study recommended that teachers organize more standardized internal examinations, such as mock examinations, so their students can adequately prepare for external examinations. The Ondo state government should invest in conferences where examination experts are updated on areas of improvement in item construction
An overview of factors contributing to rural-urban migration, a case of Mentz village
Full text linkRural urban migration is not a new phenomenon; it has been there for decades. At the dawn of democracy, 1994 South Africa started to experience a high volume of rural urban migration and this was because of opportunities available in the cities. There is a quite a large number of people in the rural communities migrating to cities as a results of lack of development in their communities and this migration process has a serious impact on the rural development. This qualitative study was conducted in the rural village of Mentz in Limpopo Province. Linguistic data was collected through one-on-one interviews with the selected members of the community of Mentz, ward councillors as well as the municipal officials in the Polokwane municipality. The study reveals that there are quite a number of factors that contributes to rural urban migration like better education, access to health facilities and job opportunities. It was also revealed in this study that when there is lack of development in the rural areas, this would lead to rural urban migration. This study recommends that the Polokwane local municipality should undertake a comprehensive approach to infrastructure development. This includes upgrading and expanding road networks to better connect remote areas with urban centers, ensuring smoother transportation of goods and people. The municipality can employ community health workers and mobile clinics to reach even the most isolated areas, ensuring that healthcare services are accessible to all. The Polokwane local municipality can create a more appealing and sustainable environment in rural areas, ultimately reducing the pressure for residents to migrate to urban centers in search of better healthcare opportunities
Evaluation of employee turnover among public secondary teachers in Kisii Central District, Kisii County, Kenya
Full text linkKnowledge and expertise have become essential components of wealth growth and development that organizations continue to foster employee retention. Statistics show that over 800 teachers quit to pursue other opportunities, making delivering services in Kenyan schools hard. The study aimed to identify factors that influenced turnover among secondary school teachers. The Study's survey research design was cross-sectional. Three hundred seventy-six teachers from 47 public secondary schools attended. A sample of 188 teachers was recruited using a planned stratified random sample of 47 principals and 141 teachers. A self-administered questionnaire was used. The Chi-square test determined the impact the characteristics had on the turnover of trained teachers. The findings established that coming up with a professional path, developing attractive compensation, inspiring teachers to stick to their positions at work, boosting teacher evaluations, and finding ways to communicate, have a significant positive effect, for they helped reduce labour turnover. The study recommends that managers strengthen professional development programs, salary and benefits packages, a positive work environment, performance evaluations that work, communication channels, and leadership possibilities. The study is novel in identifying specific geographical dynamics important in turnover mitigation. It also analyzes interconnected elements contributing to labour turnover and suggests complicated mitigation approaches to assist policy development and resource
An investigation into employee and organisational dynamics in a flexible work framework
Full text linkThe object of this research is to provide a detailed perspective of employee and organisational dynamics in a flexible work practices framework, intra- and post-pandemic. This paper aims to explore the influence of flexible work practices on the employee and the organisation.
The most challenging issues during the intra-Covid-19 pandemic period were individual and organisational adaption to new work practices with the aim of sustaining optimum levels of worker morale and productivity, which became meaningful in the context of the continuation of flexible work in transformed and alternative work settings post-pandemic.
During this research, non-empirical research was conducted in the arrangement of a review utilising existing empirical evidence, which provides for literature of varied methodologies. This resulted in a detailed non-structured analysis of the remote work concept and its diverse employee and organisational inferences.
As a result of the research, it is shown that although improved productivity was regarded as a remote work gain, the merit of employee motivation and job satisfaction is deemed forecasters of prime organisational performance with the consideration that maintaining and supporting an operationally efficient and strengthened organisational work culture should be an organisational aim. In future, a proposed approach of synthesising remote work expertise in policies and syllabi will endorse and sustain the progression of the post-pandemic workplace.
It is therefore suggested that a comprehensive PESTLE analysis be performed by utilising the proposed flexible work five-factor model towards crafting a comprehensive list of influences on employee and organisational remote work dynamics for the success of continued remote work practices