1,720,957 research outputs found
Divination among the Etche of Niger Delta
No full textThe unusual occurrences such as a tree or a branch falling down especially when there is no wind or rain, a sheep growing a horn, the appearing and disappearing of millipede and by extension frequent death, in explicable diseases, resulting in fear. However, form the basis of divination among Etche as a means to proffer solutions to the above circumstances. the paper posits that divination has helped to ascertain the underlying causes of these occurrences. The paper also argues that these occurrences not only portend messages from the supersensible realm but are also manifestations of the anger of the supersensible entities. The study adopted phenomenological approach to interpret and describe the causes of these usual signs. The study also adopts primary and secondary sources (primary sources-oral interviews; report of the custodians of Etche custom and tradition and handed down tradition and secondary sources (published materials). Findings reveal that divination among Etche is so significant not only in the religious life of the people, but also as a means to offer explanations to inexplicable circumstances.
Keywords: Etche, Diviner and Divination
The Influence of Traditional Religious Beliefs on Public Attitudes Toward Environmental Conservation in Rivers State, Nigeria
No full textThis study investigates how traditional religious beliefs shape public attitudes toward environmental conservation in Rivers State, Nigeria. Grounded in environmental sociology and cultural ecology theories, the research explores the association between indigenous belief systems and community engagement in environmental practices. Using a structured questionnaire administered to 400 respondents across three senatorial zones, data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and inferential tests (mean scores and independent t-tests). Findings revealed that traditional beliefs significantly influence environmental perceptions and behaviors, with variations across religious adherence and demographic categories. The study concludes that integrating cultural values into conservation strategies can enhance public engagement and sustainability efforts.
Keywords: Traditional Beliefs, Environmental Conservation, Public Attitudes, Indigenous Knowledge, Rivers State, Nigeri
Comparative Analysis of Ritual in World Religions
No full textThis essay examines the comparative analysis of ritual in world religions such as Christianity, Islam, Judaism and African traditional religion. Ritual is one essential element that cut across religions. Ritual like symbol, vary from one religion to another. In Christianity. Eucharist or Sacrament believed to be prominent is the re-enactment of the last supper Jesus had with His disciples before His arrest and crucifixion. In Islam, it is the Hajj, believed to be one of the most important rites Moslem pilgrims undertake in Mecca. In Judaism, it is the feast of Passover, also known as the feast of freedom; which symbolically reminds the Jewish people of how God delivered them from slavery in Egypt. Remarkable things about ritual in all these religions is that it is believed not only to be real but also make sense to the adherents of these religions. But of paramount importance of it all is that it creates an avenue for communion and communication between the adherents and the object of worship on one hand and among the worshippers on the other hand. The study relied more on secondary sources (published-materials). The study adopts phenomenological approach to describe and interpret the rituals relating to these religions. Findings reveal that ritual has helped to promote religious and social solidarity; enhance the integration of Christianity, Islam and Judaism respectively.
Keywords: Religion, Ritual, Christianity, Islam and Judais
The Impact of Religious Tolerance on Professional Interactions in Nigeria’s Multifaith Work Environments
No full textReligious tolerance plays a critical role in shaping professional interactions in multifaith work environments, particularly within culturally and religiously diverse nations like Nigeria. This paper adopts a historical and descriptive method to examine the evolution of religious coexistence in Nigeria and how it informs present-day interpersonal and intergroup dynamics in professional settings. It discusses the mechanisms through which religious tolerance enhances communication, collaboration, and mutual respect among employees from diverse faith backgrounds. The study concludes by offering evidence-based strategies for promoting religious tolerance to enhance workplace harmony and productivity
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
No full textThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Variations on the Author
No full text“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis
No full textWe provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis
Dispelling the Myths Behind First-author Citation Counts
No full textWe conducted a full-scale evaluative citation analysis study of scholars in the XML research field to explore just how different from each other author rankings resulting from different citation counting methods actually are, and to demonstrate the capability of emerging data and tools on the Web in supporting more realistic citation counting methods. Our results contest some common arguments for the continued
use of first-author citation counts in the evaluation of scholars, such as high correlations between author rankings by first-author citation counts and other citation
counting methods, and high costs of using more realistic citation counting methods that are not well-supported by the ISI databases. It is argued that increasingly available digital full text research papers make it possible for citation analysis studies to go beyond what the ISI databases have directly supported and to employ more
sophisticated methods
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