An Empirical Evaluation of the Effects of Gender Differences and Self-efficacy in the Adoption of E-banking in Nigeria

The issues of gender disparity in the usage of information technology (IT), as well as self-efficacy, have received considerable interest and attention among researchers in recent times. Prior research has identified that gender differences and self-efficiency affect the attitude towards adoption and use of technology. In general, females are believed to be disadvantaged compared to their male counterparts with respect to IT usage and acceptance. The reasoning is that males are mostly more exposed to technology and tend to have more proficiency with such tools. Very little information exists in the extant literature regarding perceptions in developing parts of the world, including Africa. In this chapter, an empirical evaluation of the issues in the context of e-banking will be made in Lagos (Nigeria) and its environs. An extended Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) will be used as a conceptual framework to guide the discourse. Data analysis was done on SPSS 15.0. The study’s results showed that gender differences moderated the acceptance of e-banking of users in the research context. Namely, computer self efficacy and perceived ease of use were of concerns to females, but less so for their male counterparts. Also, perceived usefulness of e-banking is discovered to be the most influencing factor for male users. The study’s implications for research and practice are discussed in the chapter.

E-commerce Adoption in Nigerian Businesses

Business organizations around the world engage in e-commerce (EC) and e-business to support business operations and enhance revenue generation from non-traditional sources. Studies focusing on EC adoption in Sub Saharan Africa (SSA) are just beginning to emerge in the extant information systems (IS) literature. The objective of this current study is to investigate factors impacting the acceptance of EC in small businesses in SSA with Nigeria as an example. A research model based on the Diffusion of Innovation (DIT) and the Technology–Organization–Environment (TOE) frameworks were used to guide this discourse. Such factors as relative advantage, compatibility, complexity, management support, organizational readiness, external pressure, and IS vendor support were used to develop relevant hypotheses. Questionnaires were administered to respondents in Nigeria and data analysis was performed using the Partial Least Squares (PLS) technique. Predictions related to relative advantage, management support, and IS vendor support were confirmed; the other hypotheses were unsupported by the data. The study’s implications for research and practice are discussed in the chapter.

The Influence of National IT Policies, Socio-economic Factors, and National Culture on Network Readiness in Africa

This study examines the influence of national IT policies, socio-economic and cultural factors on the network readiness of African countries. The capability and level of preparation of a nation to participate in and benefit from information and communication technologies (ICT) for socio-development is assessed by the network readiness index. Prior studies have shown that such factors have a significant influence on how a country benefits from its use of ICT products for development. Research on this topic with data from the African continent is rare. This study serves to fill this gap. It is based on data from a cross-section of twenty diverse African countries. The data suggested variability in the use of ICT for developmental purposes among the sampled countries. To that end, Africa should not be viewed as monolithic in such respects. The study showed that all the measures used to operationalize national IT policies, socio-economic and some cultural factors are positively related to the network readiness of the sampled African countries. Importantly, the quality of each country’s educational systems, its transparency (corruption) levels, its ICT regulatory framework, and its cross-cultural dimension of power distance (PDI) were found to have significant relevance to its network readiness. The implications of the study’s findings for research and policy making are discussed.

Building a Conceptual Model of Factors affecting Personal Credit and Insolvency in China based on the Methodologies used in Western Economies

Chinese economy is developing at an unprecedented pace. This expansion is prominent not only in the external aspect (increased export), but also internally in the increase in the demand for goods and services by common Chinese families. This demand cannot always be met by the monthly salary and therefore the need for personal credit. Because of the substantial risk involved in lending, there is need for robust and reliable credit evaluation procedures, strategies, policies, and systems. Lessons learned from the subprime mortgage crisis in U.S. are that lending can be a very risky activity that can lead to recession for a whole economy. Banks and other financial institutions in China are in need of appropriate procedures and systems should a barrier to further economic development be avoided. Besides, existing models and systems that are prevalent in the West may not fully match Chinese banking environment or the society itself. An appropriate personal credit rating methodology should take into account the differences between the Western and Chinese society and culture. There apparently does not exist such a methodology in literature that takes into consideration the unique Chinese situation. The aim of this chapter is to begin to fill this gap in knowledge by building a conceptual model of factors influencing demand for consumer credit and insolvency (bad debts) in China, based on the available methodologies used in the Western societies.

Enhancing Trust in E-Commerce in Developing IT Environments

Most research in e-commerce and trust have assumed advanced information technology (IT) infrastructural environments, so results from these studies have little impact on Developing IT environments, where internet infrastructure is still at the developmental stage, and the people are used to traditional commercial methods. This situation affects the level of trust and participation of end-users in e-commerce. This paper presents a unique approach for enhancing trust in e-commerce in less-advanced IT environments, with a perspective on feedback mechanisms in e-commerce websites. Survey results support the importance of feedback in promoting and sustaining end-user trust in online market environments.

Web Service Composition, Optimization and the Implications for Developing Economies

The emergence of the Service Oriented computing paradigm with its implicit inclusion of web services has caused a precipitous revolution in software engineering, e-service compositions, and optimization of e-services. Web service composition requests are usually combined with end-to-end Quality of Service (QoS) requirements, which are specified in terms of non-functional properties e.g. response time, throughput, and price. This chapter describes what web services are; not just to the web but to the end users. The state of the art approaches for composing web services are briefly described and a novel game theoretic approach using genetic programming for composing web services in order to optimize service performance, bearing in mind the Quality of Service (QoS) of these web services, is presented. The implication of this approach to cloud computing and economic development of developing economies is discussed.

Digital Divide and Disadvantaged Populations in E-Tourism

The tourism sector has changed rapidly since the dawn of the internet revolution in the late 1990s. At the same time, the digital divide has disadvantaged many in developing economies as well as the disabled population. It is interesting to observe, however, that the emerging computer technologies, especially mobile computing, are offering significant opportunities to this disadvantaged population. This chapter discusses these opportunities that increase the participation in and reaping of benefits from tourism.

E-Learning in Higher Education

Technological innovations have enhanced performance in all sectors of economic and social activities including education. The purpose of the educational system is to achieve efficient communication, which involves transmission of information, knowledge, skills, values, and attitudes to the learner. This study therefore seeks to survey the extent to which e-learning is applied in Nigerian Universities for effective teaching and learning processes. The sample comprised four government universities in the north central geopolitical zone of Nigeria. Twenty five lecturers and 25 students (from second year level and above) totaling 100 in each case were randomly selected. Six research questions guided the study. The findings of the work showed that lecturers are better exposed to Information and Communication Technology (ICT) than students, most e-learning facilities though available in the universities are not entirely functional and adequate. Also lecturers and students do not employ most ICT facilities for teaching and learning respectively.

An Empirical Study of Career Orientations and Turnover Intentions of Information Systems Personnel in Botswana

A number of studies on career orientations of information systems (IS) personnel have focused on developed countries. This study attempts to examine career anchors of IS personnel from the perspective of a developing country, Botswana. The results of the study show that IS personnel in Botswana exhibit career orientations similar to those identified in literature. However, there are some variations, which are attributed to cultural and socio-economic peculiarities. The study indicates that life style does not feature as a significant career anchor in Botswana. The dominant career anchors include organizational stability (security) and sense of service (service). Gender, age, and educational qualifications tend to moderate the career anchors significantly; thus creating a partition of the anchors across demographic groups. The major contributors to the turnover intentions of IS personnel in developing economies are job satisfaction and growth opportunities. Career satisfaction, supervisor support, organization commitment, length of service, and age did not contribute significantly to turnover intention.

A Conceptual View of Knowledge Management Adoption in Hospitality Industry of Developing Economies

Existing research addresses and recognises the importance and benefits of knowledge management in the hospitality industry but especially in big hotels and in developed economies. Little or nothing has been researched in developing economies, yet the hospitality industry there is recognised in literature as a means of income redistribution and foreign currency earning. This chapter attempts to fill this gap by developing a theoretical model of KM adoption in the hospitality businesses of developing economies. The major constructs considered relevant are developmental factors, information technology, culture, and intention to adopt KM. Though at the moment a conceptual paper, the implications of the study are presented and they include the need for managers to collaboratively provide infrastructure, information technology, and training. They also have to use culture to their advantage in order to encourage KM use in their businesses.