Research Articles
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A research article reports the results of original research, assesses its contribution to the body of knowledge in a given area, and is published in a peer-reviewed scholarly journal. The faculty publications through published and on-going articles/researches are captured in this community
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Item Assessing Project Management Maturity in Africa: A Ghanaian Perspective(International Journal of Business Administration, 2013) Ofori, D.; Deffor, E.W.The level of project management awareness and recognition of the standards and knowledge sharing among professionals is on the rise. Despite this many projects continue to fail. Ameliorating project failure requires project management maturity among practitioners. Project management maturity is the progressive development of an enterprise-wide project management approach, methodology, strategy, and decision-making process. To ascertain the level of maturity among project-oriented organizations in Ghana the following research questions were raised: Is the concept of PM maturity understood in Ghana? What are Project Management Maturity levels in Ghana? What maturity models are in use? Are there differences in project management maturity levels in industries in Ghana? The study was exploratory and utilized a questionnaire survey method to collect data on project management Maturity in Ghanaian organizations. Purposive sampling was used to select a sample of 200 managers from different economic sectors. The findings showed that differences exist in the current project management maturity levels across each phase of the project life cycle for all organizations. The study also showed that most of the practitioners expect their respective organizations to attain higher levels of project management maturity (PMM) albeit at various levels. Organizations operating in the non-profit (NGO) category exhibited relatively higher levels of maturity compared to the other categories of organizations in all five phases of the project management life cycle. Firms in the public sector of Ghana recorded low levels of maturity in most of the phases of the project management life cycle. This may be attributed to the low level of project management expertise in the sector, with possible dire consequence to the country’s development since the public sector accounts for a large percentage of projects executed in Ghana. Overall, the findings seem to indicate that project management maturity occurs in phases; PM maturity does not occur as an event but is an ongoing process that is interlinked. The implication therefore is that organisations cannot claim to be mature in one area and neglect the other; it becomes imperative for project-implementing organizations in Ghana to strive to attain maturity in all five phases of the project management life cycle to attain the full benefits of the projects they implement.Item Digital Platforms in Climate Information Service Delivery for Farming in Ghana(African Handbook of Climate Change Adaptation, 2021) Sarku, R.; Adiku, P.; Appiah, D.O.; et al.Phone-based applications, Internet connectivity, and big data are enabling climate change adaptations. From ICT for development and agriculture perspectives, great interest exists in how digital platforms support climate information provision for smallholder farmers in Africa. The vast majority of these platforms both private and public are for delivering climate information services and for data collection. The sheer number of digital platforms in the climate information sector has created a complex information landscape for potential information users, with platforms differing in information type, technology, geographic coverage, financing structures, and infrastructure. This chapter mapped the existing climate information services and examined their impact on policy and practices in smallholder farming development in Africa, with a focus on Ghana. Specifically, the chapter provides highlights of digital platforms available to smallholder farmers and agricultural extension agents, analyzes the public and/or private governance arrangements that underpin the implementation of digital climate information delivery, and assesses the potential of these platforms in scaling up the use of climate information. The chapter contributes to understanding the dynamics of climate information delivery with digital tools in Africa and suggests a future research agenda.Item The Fight Against Corruption In Africa: The Role Of Women Participation In Governance And In The Labour Market(University of Ghana, 2019) Amofa, EThe controversial debate of associating women with less corruption has been extensively discussed and analyzed with cross-country, micro, and experimental data mostly for the western world. However, this assertion on the impact of women participation in governance and in the labour market on corruption has received less attention in Africa. Using the percentage of women in parliament and in the labour force as proxies for women participation in governance and in the labour market respectively, the study provides evidence on their relationship using a panel data of forty–six (46) countries in Africa for the period, 2012–2016. In accounting for endogeneity issues purported to exist in the corruption literature, the study adopted the two-step system GMM estimation technique to yield consistent and efficient estimates for the effect of women participation on corruption. Like other empirical studies, the study accounts for the regional diversities, time-invariant effects, and unobserved country-specific effects. The study provides robust evidence of a significant negative relationship between women in parliament and corruption. However, the relationship between women in the labour force and corruption was not significant. This findings suggest that women may not necessarily be innately honest but concludes that, the impact of women in fighting corruption is manifested significantly in policy making. Again, the prediction by some scholars that the negative effect of females in parliament on corruption would diminish over time because of their newness in the political space was tested with a long-run analysis. However, women participation in parliament even showed a greater significance and a higher impact on corruption. Meanwhile, other economic and institutional factors like GDP per capita, government effectiveness, press freedom, and urbanization proved to be important factors in the fight against corruption in Africa.Item Pursuing nation building within multi-partisan fragmentation: the case of Ghana(National Identities, 2020) Atuire, C.A.Ghana has earned many accolades for multi-partisan democracy in sub Saharan Africa. This political system has also produced many social and economic benefits for the citizenry. However, political parties are also a vehicle for the promotion of ethnic fragmentation that perils nation building. This article explores how partisan politics in Ghana is undermining nation building. I propose a three-pronged approach to working towards nation building amidst the fragmentation of adversarial multi-partysm.Item Negative life events and maternal mental illness: A study of elite pregnant women in Accra metropolis(International Journal of Africa Nursing Sciences, 2023) Akorli, V.V.; Adjorlolo, S.; Puplampu, G.The vulnerability of maternal mental illness (MMI) such as anxiety and depression among childbearing women is heightened during the periods of pregnancy mainly because of negative life events (NLEs). However, a major caveat in the literature relates to the overwhelming focus on women from disadvantaged socioeconomic back ground. Little is known about NLEs and MMI among women with relatively better socioeconomic background and high educational status, termed in this study as elite pregnant women. The study investigates the prevalence of NLEs and MMI (i.e., depression and anxiety) as well as the relationship between NLEs and MMI among elite pregnant women. A cross sectional survey design was used to collect data from 210 respondents recruited from three purposively selected health facilities in Greater Accra metropolis, namely Nyaho Medical Centre, Pentecost Hospital and Abokobi Health Centre. Self-report measures of NLEs, depression and anxiety were administered to the respondent. Data were analyzed using both descriptive statistics and inferential statistics, namely Pearson correlation and hierarchical linear regression. The study revealed that majority (n = 136, 64.8 %) of the re spondents experienced at least particular NLEs and rated these events as stressful. The prevalence of symptoms of anxiety and depression were 42.4 % and 51.0 %, respectively. NLEs significantly and positively correlated with symptoms of anxiety but not with depression. Elite pregnant women are at risk of NLEs which can significantly influence their mental health. It is recommended that midwives and other health professionals pay attention to the NLEs of elite pregnant women for necessary support and interventionItem Retinal and Choroidal Thickness in an Indigenous Population from Ghana(American Academy of Ophthalmology, 2023) Zouache, M.A.; Faust, C.D.; Carroll, J.; et al.Purpose: To evaluate the thickness of the macular retina and central choroid in an indigenous population from Ghana, Africa and to compare them with those measured among individuals with European or African ancestry. Design: Cross-sectional study, systematic review, and meta-analyses. Participants: Forty-two healthy Ghanaians, 37 healthy individuals with European ancestry, and an additional 1427 healthy subjects with African ancestry from previously published studies. Methods: Macular retinal thickness in the fovea, parafovea, and perifovea and central choroidal thickness were extracted from OCT volume scans. Associations with ethnicity, age, and sex were assessed using mixed effect regression models. Monte Carlo simulations were performed to determine the sensitivity of significant associations to additional potential confounders. Pooled estimates of retinal thickness among other groups with African ancestry were generated through systematic review and meta-analyses. Main Outcome Measures: Macular retinal thickness and central choroidal thickness and their association with ethnicity, age, and sex. Results: When adjusted for age and sex, the macular retina and central choroid of Ghanaians are signifi cantly thinner as compared with subjects with European ancestry (P < 0.001). A reduction in retinal and choroidal thickness is observed with age, although this effect is independent of ethnicity. Meta-analyses indicate that retinal thickness among Ghanaians differs markedly from that of African Americans and other previously reported indigenous African populations. Conclusions: The thickness of the retina among Ghanaians differs not only from those measured among individuals with European ancestry, but also from those obtained from African Americans. Normative retinal and choroidal parameters determined among individuals with African or European ancestry may not be sufficient to describe indigenous African populations.Item Radio Redux: Audience Participation and the Reincarnation of Radio for Development in Africa(Journal of Developing Societies, 2019) Tietaah, G.; Amoakohene, M.; Tuurusong, D.Along with the valorization of “beneficiary” participation in development praxis, contemporary communication scholarship has tended toward internet-enabled technologies and applications. This study breaks ranks with the implicit loss of faith in the capacity of the so-called legacy media, and radio in particular. It argues that precisely those advances in new technologies, together with the peculiar media ecol ogy of Ghana and Africa generally, are the bases for prenotions about the enduring relevance of radio. To verify this claim, focus group discussions were conducted among radio audiences in Ghana. The findings suggest three factors for a renaissance of radio as a development communication medium: its contribution to democratic pluralism; the use of local languages that enables social inclusion; its appropriation of new technologies for audience participatory engagement. Radio has thus evolved from the powerful effects notions of a one-way transmitter of information to an increasingly more interactive, audience-centric medium.Item Psychotic-like experiences and adverse life events in young people. Does gender matter(Child and Adolescent Mental Health, 2023) Adjorlolo, S.; Awortwe, V.; Anum, A.; Huang, K.Y.; Mamah, D.Background: Psychotic-like experiences (PLEs) and adverse life events (ALEs) are highly prevalent in sub Saharan Africa where gendered practices are also common. There is, however, a paucity of data on how the relationship between PLEs and life adversities is influenced by gender. The current study addressed this gap. Method: Data were collected from 1886 school-based young people (1174 females) in Ghana, West Africa using a cross-sectional survey methodology and analyzed using Chi-square, independent t-test, Pearson corre lation, and multivariate regression. Results: The results showed that victimization experiences, school stress and having a family member with mental illness were significantly associated with PLEs in both males and females. In contrast, substance misuse and experiences of head trauma correlated significantly with PLEs in females only. Conclusion: Life adversities constitute major risk factors for PLEs among school-based young people in Ghana, who could benefit from gender neutral and gender-sensitive intervention programming to remediate the effects of life adversities on PLEs.Item Psychotic-like experiences and adverse life events in young people. Does gender matter?(Child and Adolescent Mental Health, 2023) Adjorlolo, S.; Awortwe, V.; Anum, A.; Huang, K.Y.; Mamah, D.Background: Psychotic-like experiences (PLEs) and adverse life events (ALEs) are highly prevalent in sub Saharan Africa where gendered practices are also common. There is, however, a paucity of data on how the relationship between PLEs and life adversities is influenced by gender. The current study addressed this gap. Method: Data were collected from 1886 school-based young people (1174 females) in Ghana, West Africa using a cross-sectional survey methodology and analyzed using Chi-square, independent t-test, Pearson corre lation, and multivariate regression. Results: The results showed that victimization experiences, school stress and having a family member with mental illness were significantly associated with PLEs in both males and females. In contrast, substance misuse and experiences of head trauma correlated significantly with PLEs in females only. Conclusion: Life adversities constitute major risk factors for PLEs among school-based young people in Ghana, who could benefit from gender neutral and gender-sensitive intervention programming to remediate the effects of life adversities on PLEs.Item Psychotic-like experiences and adverse life events in young people. Does gender matter?(Child and Adolescent Mental Health, 2023) Adjorlolo, S.; Awortwe, V.; Anum, A.; Huang, K.Y.; Mamah, D.Background: Psychotic-like experiences (PLEs) and adverse life events (ALEs) are highly prevalent in sub Saharan Africa where gendered practices are also common. There is, however, a paucity of data on how the relationship between PLEs and life adversities is influenced by gender. The current study addressed this gap. Method: Data were collected from 1886 school-based young people (1174 females) in Ghana, West Africa using a cross-sectional survey methodology and analyzed using Chi-square, independent t-test, Pearson corre lation, and multivariate regression. Results: The results showed that victimization experiences, school stress and having a family member with mental illness were significantly associated with PLEs in both males and females. In contrast, substance misuse and experiences of head trauma correlated significantly with PLEs in females only. Conclusion: Life adversities constitute major risk factors for PLEs among school-based young people in Ghana, who could benefit from gender neutral and gender-sensitive intervention programming to remediate the effects of life adversities on PLEs.