Books & Books chapter
http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/827
2024-03-06T06:23:21ZPixels Hurt More Than Sticks and Stones: Confronting Cyberbullying on Facebook
http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/1892
Pixels Hurt More Than Sticks and Stones: Confronting Cyberbullying on Facebook
Kwanya, Tom; Kogos, Angella; Kibe, Lucy; Ogolla, Erick; Onsare, Claudior
Executive Summary
This report documents the process and findings of a research project titled “Pixels hurt more than sticks and stones: confronting cyberbullying on Facebook”. The project which was conducted with a generous financial support from Facebook Inc. was carried out by researchers based in the School of Information and Social Studies, The Technical University of Kenya. The study was initiated in 2020 but, due to COVID-19 pandemic, was completed in 2022.
This report comprises six chapters. The first chapter explains the research concept. It specifically elucidates the context of the study, research problem, significance and justification of the study, scope and delimitations of the study, limitations of the study, as well as the dissemination strategy of the research findings. The second chapter presents the review of literature on the subject, analyses research gaps, and explains the conceptual and theoretical underpinnings of the study. The third chapter clarifies the research approach, design, population, sampling approaches, data collection techniques and tools, data collection procedure, data analysis as well as research reliability and validity. The fourth chapter presents the analysed research data while the fifth chapter discusses the findings and positions them in the existing body of knowledge on cyberbullying in universities. The sixth chapter summarises the findings and presents the recommendations of the study.
This study was conducted in conformance with best practices in scholarly research. The researchers obtained ethical clearance as well as a research permit from research regulators in Kenya. Similarly, the project was cleared by institutional gatekeepers of all the universities which participated in the research. The findings have been analysed and presented in a way which does not identify the respondents of the study. Therefore, their contributions, views and identities remain anonymous and confidential.
All efforts have been made to ensure that this report is as accurate as possible.
Nonetheless, we apologise for any errors that may have slipped through the rigorous editing and review process.
Book
2022-01-01T00:00:00ZREGULATION OF DIGITAL PLATFORMS FOR A SOCIALLY-JUST GIG ECONOMY IN KENYA
http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/1891
REGULATION OF DIGITAL PLATFORMS FOR A SOCIALLY-JUST GIG ECONOMY IN KENYA
Kwanya, Tom; Kutoma, J. Wakunuma
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The rise of digital platforms has changed the way people live, work and seek employment, giving way to a new economic model referred to as the ‘gig economy’ in which services such as food delivery, ride-haling but also translation, design work or admin work are available online at the click of a button. In Kenya, this gig economy is growing fast. In 2020, it was estimated that the gig economy in Kenya was employing thousands and valued at 109 million dollars. The 2021 report by the Federation of Kenya Employers notes that the informal sector occupations have been steadily increasing from 10% in 1974 to 83% in 2019 while employment in the formal sector reduced from 90% in 1974 to 18% in the same period. These statistics reflect the reality that the future of work in Africa is one in which workers will be engaged in multiple gigs with somewhat varied levels of formality and high levels of flexibility rather than the rigidity of formal employment. It is clear, therefore, that the gig economy is crucial as it is quickly becoming the main source of livelihood for a majority of the citizens. Despite its great promise, many gig workers experience challenges such as unstable income, high costs of doing business since gig workers often have to buy their
own equipment, lack of job security since their platform accounts can be suspended or deactivated without notice, and a poor access to social services such as health care benefits and pensions. The majority of these challenges could be addressed through regulations to protect gig workers. Unfortunately, while Kenya has laws protecting workers, these laws are tailored for the formal
employment sector, leaving the gig economy poorly regulated.
The study "Regulation of digital platforms for a socially-just gig economy in Kenya" examines, summarises, and synthesises the academic and policy-related literature that assesses digital platform regulation in terms of, inter alia, market power concentration, workers’ rights, and copyright protection in Kenya. The work identifies policy initiatives on digital platform regulation and investigates the role of stakeholders such as civil society, industry, academia and policymakers in academic studies and policy initiatives on platform regulation and the extent to which these efforts have been driven by local researchers and policymakers. Furthermore, the study explores the challenges, concerns and factors affecting effective platform regulation and recommends platform regulation approaches, regimes and frameworks appropriate to nurture, mainstream and sustain
a gig economy in Kenya and other sub-Saharan countries.
The study was conducted in the Republic of Kenya, specifically in the Nairobi Metropolitan Service. This is because most gig workers live and work in the metropolis. An explanatory mixed methods research approach was used to conduct the study. The researchers first conducted a quantitative study through which quantitative data was collected using structured questionnaires. The results of the first phase were used to inform the second phase which involved the collection of qualitative data using interviews. The general population of the study included platform developers, platform users, policymakers and implementers, and civil society groups involved directly or indirectly with the gig economy in Kenya. The estimated population of the study was approximately 37,000 gig workers and stakeholders.
The key findings of the study are that: 1) Platform owners wield a lot of power over gig workers. Because of this power concentration, gig workers in Kenya are vulnerable to exploitation by platform owners. 2) Some laws and policies which could be used to regulate gig work in Kenya exist but they are not being applied to gig work because they were tailor-made for the traditional work environment.
3) Most of the gig workers felt that the stakeholders did not support the gig economy adequately.
4) Several challenges stand in the way of the effective implementation of platform regulations in Kenya. These challenges largely revolve around the non-conducive implementation environment resulting from the ineffective contribution of stakeholders to platform regulation.
The study recommends that: 1) The Government of Kenya should recognise gig work as employment and gig workers as employees whose rights need to be protected legally. 2) The Government of Kenya, in collaboration with the other stakeholders, should review, revise or update legal and policy frameworks governing terms of employment, workers’ rights and welfare to include the interests of the burgeoning number of gig workers. 3) Gig workers in Kenya should be sensitised to their rights as employees and should be encouraged to unionise to effectively lobby and advocate for their rights. 4) The State Department of ICT and Digital Economy should be facilitated fully to prioritise
the realisation of a lucrative but just gig economy in Kenya. 5) Civil society organisations as well as unions should provide affordable or free legal advice or representation to gig workers whose rights are violated but have no means of seeking legal redress. 6) The Judiciary of Kenya should create a section for gig workers under its Labour and Employment Division to handle disputes from
the gig economy. 7) Gig work should be integrated into the Competency Based Curriculum as a critical component of digital literacy and citizenship. 8) The Government of Kenya should make its regulatory intentions clear and work more with the stakeholders to build confidence in its efforts.
Book
2023-04-01T00:00:00ZRE-ENGINEERING ACADEMIC AND RESEARCH LIBRARY SERVICES IN KENYA THROUGH SEMANTIC WEB
http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/1885
RE-ENGINEERING ACADEMIC AND RESEARCH LIBRARY SERVICES IN KENYA THROUGH SEMANTIC WEB
Kwanya, Tom
Abstract
Semantic web is the third generation of the Internet services that collectively comprise the intelligent web and is the foundation of Web 3.0. The emergence of the semantic web was aware, moment-relevant and intelligent web which is about describing and interconnecting standardised languages and descriptions. Its power lies in the linking of data rendering 3.0 is envisioned to resolve the problem caused by the disorganisation of information and usable information. Semantic web addresses this challenge by creating a web of of the web. The information environment in which academic and research libraries in Kenya currently operate has changed drastically as a result of the impact of the emerging information and communication technologies on how library users seek, access, use This scenario has brought the relevance of libraries to focus. To survive, academic and research libraries need to reengineer their services to meet the needs of the users more closely than they are doing now. This study investigated the potential of the semantic web in facilitating the reengineering of services of academic and research libraries in Kenya. Primary data for this study was collected through key informant interviews with academic and research librarians selected through information-oriented purposive sampling. Additional secondary data was collected through documentary analysis. The research library services through enhanced library intelligence, organisation, federation,
research libraries to design and deploy services on semantic web platforms.
Book Chapter
2020-01-01T00:00:00ZMixed Methods and Quality of Postgraduate Research: A Kenyan Perspective
http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/1884
Mixed Methods and Quality of Postgraduate Research: A Kenyan Perspective
Kwanya, Tom
ABSTRACT
This chapter analysed the extent, nature, and suitability of use of mixed methods research by postgraduate students in Kenya as well as its influence on the quality of their research output. Data anchoring the chapter was collected through qualitative content analysis of 229 theses and dissertations of library and
information science postgraduate students in Kenya retrieved from the respective institutional repositories. Of these, 193 were Master’s dissertations while 36 were doctoral theses. One hundred twenty-two (53.3%) of the theses and dissertations were developed using mixed methods research while 74 (32.3%) were based on qualitative studies. Most of the students collected both qualitative and quantitative data concurrently and merged the same during analysis and interpretation. It also emerged that the bulk of data collected by the students was qualitative; quantitative data was largely used to supplement or validate qualitative data. Using citations, it emerged that theses and dissertations developed through mixed methods research attracted more citations thereby indicating a superior quality.
Book Chapter
2022-01-01T00:00:00Z