Open Journals@UKZN
Not a member yet
870 research outputs found
Sort by
On the hegemony of literature from the global north: a meta-study of literature cited in Indilinga (2008-2017)
No full textIn this article we problematize the hegemony of literature used from the global north in the light of rising debates about decolonisation, the decline of the nation state and forms of cognitive colonisation. Knowledge is foregrounded as the article focuses on academic publishing and curriculum. The paper seeks to explore the extent to which articles published in Indilinga referenced (South) African scholars’ indigenous knowledge in their published works. The article goes on to provide some explanation on why there is still a dominant reliance on the global north for their scholarship. A realist interpretivist meta-study design was employed. A sample of 246 articles published in Indilinga between 2008 and 2017 were selected. The reference lists of these articles were analysed to determine the ratio between South African, African[1] and international[2] authors cited. The institutional affiliation of the authors were also determined. Keywords that predominantly featured and aligned with the title of the journal, were also analysed. It was clear that authors from the global north were most frequently cited in Indilinga.
[1] African in this context refers African countries outside of South Africa.
[2] International in this context refers to geographical locations outside of the continent of Africa
Satisfaction With In-Home Speech Telerehabilitation in Post-Stroke Aphasia: an Exploratory Analysis
Get PDFPatient satisfaction with healthcare has a major impact on clinical outcomes and compliance. Satisfaction with telehealth services for speech and language problems has been documented but not in post-stroke aphasia. The main objective here was to evaluate patient satisfaction with speech tele rehabilitation based on the PACE pragmatic rehabilitation approach in post-stroke aphasia. This study was embedded in a pre-/post-test feasibility and efficacy study in which 20 patients with chronic post-stroke aphasia received 3 weeks of speech therapy (9 sessions) through in-home tele-rehabilitation. A telerehabilitation platform based on a commercial videoconferencing system (Tandberg 550 MXP) with custom software was used to transmit audio, video and data through a high-speed Internet connection between the participant’s home and the clinician. Participants’ satisfaction with in-home telerehabilitation and healthcare received was assessed using French adaptations of the Telemedicine Satisfaction Questionnaire and Health Care Satisfaction Questionnaire. Satisfaction with functional communication, i.e. communication in common situations of daily life, was compared pre- and post-intervention with participants and caregivers. Participants’ satisfaction with in-home telerehabilitation was excellent (94%±4.3%). Satisfaction with healthcare received was good overall (80%±11.4%) and for three factors measured independently, i.e. relationship with healthcare professional (84%±12.5%), services delivered (73%±13.8%), and general healthcare organization (84%±12.0%). Participants’ and caregivers’ satisfaction with communication was higher after the intervention (p=0.001 and p<0.001, respectively) and was correlated with age (r=-0.60; p=0.007). Patients with post-stroke aphasia receiving speech tele-therapy were very satisfied with this service delivery method. Also, technology use was not an issue for seniors post-stroke
Securing the Evidence and Theory-based Design of an Online Intervention Designed to Support Midwives in Work-related Psychological Distress
Get PDFThe psychological wellbeing of midwives can be linked to the safety and quality of maternity care. As such, work-related psychological distress in midwifery populations must be addressed in order to meet the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals for maternal health. Earlier research maps out a global vision, using telemedicine and e/mHealth for the design and development of an online intervention designed to support midwives in work-related psychological distress. This paper outlines how the evidence and theory-based design of such an intervention has been secured via a narrative review, a critical realist review, a 2-round Delphi study and a mixed-methods systematic review of the literature. Findings suggest that this online intervention should be designed to provide anonymity and confidentiality for midwives seeking support online. 24-hour mobile access, effective moderation, an online discussion forum, and additional legal, educational, and therapeutic components are also indicated for collation in a ‘One stop shop’ online. Additionally, a simple user assessment may be used to identify those people deemed to be at risk of causing harm. The comprehensive design for this particular intervention is outlined using a validated checklist and guide. This particular design has been informed by the pathways disclosure model and the revised transactional model of occupational stress and coping. This research has been guided by the Medical Research Council’s framework for developing complex interventions. Future research in this field is also suggested. Should this intervention be developed and tested more widely, both midwives and maternity service users may experience safer, more productive and higher-quality maternity care
Book Review: Peter Kallaway and Rebecca Swartz (Eds) Empire and education in Africa: The shaping of a comparative perspective New York, Peter Lange, 2016
Get PDFPeter Kallaway and Rebecca Swartz (Eds) Empire and education in Africa: The shaping of a comparative perspective New York, Peter Lange, 201
On decolonisation and internationalisation of university curricula: what can we learn from Rosi Braidotti?
Get PDFThis article conceptually explored the (non)constructive contestations between decolonisation and internationalisation and the extent to which it might inform the construction of undergraduate university curricula based. To augment this exploration Rosi Braidotti’s, The Posthuman (2013), was elaborated upon. The main question that steered the study was: What can we learn from Rosi Braidotti when it comes to decolonisation and internationalisation of undergraduate university curricula? A discussion of decolonisation and internationalisation were pursued. Thereafter the (non)constructive contentions between decolonisation and internationalisation were conceptually explored. It was argued that decolonisation and internationalisation are not opposites, but that there are constructive contentions between the two once we think about the transformative potential of university curricula. In conclusion, it was argued that in the light of debates about decolonisation and internationalisation, the ontology, epistemology and the ethics of undergraduate university curricula should be placed under the magnifying glass, as such endeavour have the potential to bring about deep transformation in higher education institutions, especially through its curricul
Rigour versus Relevance in Information Systems Research in South Africa
Get PDFRigour and relevance division is as a result of many reasons. The gap between the two has promoted debate and argument that has lasted for years. Many believed that IS research is effective and others opposed the argument. Others within or outside the discipline are considering whether IS research output is affecting and impacting decision making in the industry. Meanwhile, the debate on rigour and relevance has lasted for decades but in reality, the debate and the gap still persist, in spite of efforts by researchers. Their efforts and hard-work seems ineffective. The study determined whether the needs of practitioners through rigour and relevance of IS/academic research and also to determine whether this lingering debate over these decades has worth from an academic viewpoint. There is also an on-going criticism that IS research lacks rigour, relevance, effective communication and acceptance in the field as noted in the literature
Customer Service Expectations from South African Alcoholic Beverage Suppliers
Get PDFTo be successful in the current highly competitive market a South African alcoholic beverage supplying company (SAABSC) must guarantee customer service and service quality. As a means of differentiation companies have to focus their efforts on quality customer service. The purpose of the study is to measure the service delivery expectations and realisations of customers that receive delivery from SAABSC based on their geographical location. It required the implementation of a descriptive research method. The target population comprised customers of SAABSC situated in the Gauteng, Western Cape and North West Provinces of South Africa. The results from the study indicate that customers expect the SAABSC to deliver on all five service quality dimensions but fail to do so to their satisfaction. Recommendations on how to improve on these dimensions are given in the form of CRM strategies that SAABSC can implement. Ensuring that these recommendations are implemented will ensure a higher level of service quality and customer satisfaction. This should lead to increased customer retention, sales and profit growth, increased loyalty, the addition of new customers and overall better customer relationship
The African Digital Humanities (ADH) and Alternation on OJS (2018 - ): Innovation, Pan-African Collaboration, and Trans-Continental Integration1
Get PDFThis article is a continuation of a condensing of the presentation by Prof J.A. Smit, as the Open Access keynote lecture, of 23 October 2017. Drawing on Michel Foucault’s relational explication of the subjective embodied capacity – subjective embodied communication – subjective embodied knowledge-power production triad (cf. Smit & Chetty 2018: 8 – 30), it first explicates its theoretical framework, in terms of the triad’s ‘external instruments’. This is followed by a systematic exposition of this framework in terms of the opportunities that the African Digital Humanities (ADH) face as at 23 October 2017. From within the institutional framework of the University of KwaZulu-Natal, the article briefly expounds the possibilities that are opened up for the ADH on the Online Journal Management Systems (OJS). This is further done in terms of the conceptualisations of the e-Humanities, or the future of the e-Human in Africa, as we can, at this stage, comparatively, and analogically envision this complex process, as it is happening at the moment, and as it will doubtlessly further expand into a rapidly changing, and high-speed future
‘Because I know God answers prayers’: The Role of Religion in African - Scandinavian Labour Migration
Get PDFDrawing on interviews conducted with highly skilled Nigerian women footballers that have migrated to work in Scandinavian clubs, this article provides an analysis of how religious beliefs and practices function as resources for articulating, producing, and maintaining transnational mobility. Through taking part in transnational Pentecostal communities, Nigerian women migrants access networks and forms of knowledge that supports their status and mobility as labour migrants. Moreover, these women believe that their transnational and daily religious practices, such as prayer, are ways through which a transnationally mobile career can be achieved and sustained. Drawing on material from ethnographic fieldwork and in-depth interviews with migrant Nigerian women football players, I argue that religion provides these labour migrants with access to material, inter-personal and transcendental resources for achieving their career and migratory aspirations
Genocide, Oppression, Ambivalence: Online Narratives of Identity and Religion in Postcolonial Nigeria1
Get PDFDigital media platforms have emerged as important socio-cultural sites that enable the engagement of historical and contemporary contestations around religion and identity against the background of ethnoreligious conflicts and social tensions in Nigeria. The post-election violence of 2011 and subsequent mass killings of mostly Christians in rural Southern Kaduna saw the emergence of several online groups and practices contesting these, and other forms of oppression and violence (real or imagined) in Southern Kaduna. This article details a study that applied a postcolonial perspective to analyse the content of one such online forum. It identified two dominant narratives on the forum. In the first, users represent Southern Kaduna Christians as oppressed and experiencing genocide; and in the second, forum users reveal an ambivalence of admiration and revulsion in the ways they construct the identity, religion and privileges of Hausa-Fulani Muslims, viewed as the oppressor. The study also shows that forum users were more likely to be critical of religion during conversations about preferences regarding political candidates and elections. I argue, among other things, that the self-descriptions of Southern Kaduna people as oppressed and endangered, are more than mere descriptions of experiences but can also be viewed as forms of identity. Thus, to better understand peoples such as Southern Kaduna and their experiences in the context of social conflicts, their identities need to be analyzed beyond the usual limited focus on religion and ethnicity