Vol 21 (2022)

Table of Contents

Research Articles

Analyzing the Causes of the First World War PDF
Pushpalata Kumari, Nishikant Tiwari

The world has recently celebrated November 11 as the Remembrance Day to recall the end of First World War.   In the year 2021, 103rd anniversary of the formal end of the First World War provides an occasion to analyze the reasons which lead to this Great War.

The First World War was fought from 28 July 1914 to 11 November 1918.  This is considered as the Great War which was combated between the Allied Powers and the Central Powers.  The Allied Powers were Russia, France, Britain and Italy. The United States also fought on the side of the Allies after 1917.  The Central Powers were Germany, Austria-Hungary, the Ottoman Empire and Bulgaria.  It engulfed almost whole of Europe but the battle field was over-stretched upto Asia, Africa and American continents as well.

This war is also considered as First Total War in which not only the soldiers but even civilians participated. It left with an estimated death of nine million combatants and 13 million civilian as a direct result of the conflict. It created machinery for mass slaughter in the form of chemical and biological weapons as well.

 

Is Multiculturalism Antiquated? A Dialogic Debate on Negotiating Liberalism, Finding Symmetry and Sustenance PDF
Sushma Trivedi

Multiculturalism might simply be understood as managing relations of different communities residing within national boundaries on one hand and relations between the states and the community on the other hand. But the rapidly changing socio-economic world has given it multivalent political meanings and expressions. Multicultural societies are faced with challenges posed on identity, religious beliefs, and cultural equations. In recent times in wake of some unfortunate happenings, multiculturalism as a political ideology has come under the scanner and some scholars even pronounced its death. Nevertheless, multicultural societies are as much a reality of the modern globalized world as are the interlinked economies. Today world stands at crossroads, ideologies like 'difference blind position', 'hands-off neutrality', and models like 'melting pot' and 'salad bowl' have, if not failed then definitely proved insufficient to tackle the needs and aspirations of multicultural societies.

Multiculturalism is based on and nourished by the political philosophy of liberalism and liberal democracies are believed to be the fertile ground for its propagation. Therefore, this study destructures and deconstructs the principles of liberalism to present an insight into the efficacy and suitability of the classical form of liberalism for multicultural societies. It is emphasized that culture, the most crucial component of multiculturalism is pushed to the periphery in course of the practice of the fairness of justice and equal distribution of goods. Culture plays an important role in the formation of the identity of an individual and a group. Ignoring cultural differences also means undermining identity which manifests itself as somewhat liberal oppression and sometimes as denial of social justice.

It is concluded that in changed circumstances radical liberalism can become a source of conflict within the society rather than harmonizing differences. An alternative can be derived from within the liberal theories as thinkers like Rawls and Dworkin; not only acknowledge differences but also make slight provision for differential rights. A moderate broadening of the ideas can create a perfectly balanced model of liberalism for multicultural societies.

Political Violence and Democratic Sustenance in Nigeria: An Assessment of the 2015 and 2019 General Elections in Nasarawa State PDF
Erunke Canice Esidene, Joseph Shekwo, Bara'atu Abdullahi, Rabo Maikeffi
The main thrust of this study is to examine the relationship between political violence and the sustenance of democratic values in Nigeria, with particular reference to Nasarawa State. The tragedy of violence that has permeated electoral processes in Nigeria ever since inception of democratic project in 1999, and particularly those of 2015 and 2019 general elections, remain a cause for concern. The said elections have been essentially characterized by massive violence, rigging, snatching of ballot boxes, intimidation and suppression by political opponents, among others. The scenario in Nasarawa state has witnessed some form of irregularities ranging from vote buying, arson and several other irregularities, which have congealed to mar the process of democratic sustenance. This work is a survey research and, hence, adopts the use of primary and secondary sources of data collection as method of investigation. The major tool applied in the survey was questionnaire and interview method, while data was collected and analyzed using simple percentage analysis. The data generated was to be able to demonstrate possible linkages between political violence and the sustenance of Nigeria’s democratic system, using Nasarawa State as a point of departure. The results from the findings reveal that though conscious efforts have been made by government and other stakeholders to mitigate violence during elections, not much has been achieved in sustaining the peace either before, during or after elections. The study recommends, among other things, that more efforts are needed to adequately enforce the desired rules required to tame the tides of increasing violence in Nigeria generally, and specifically in Nasarawa state, as panacea for democratic sustenance in the 21st century and beyond.

Law, Culture and Society of Bangladesh: An Appraisal on Gender Issue PDF
Dr. A. S. M. Tariq Iqbal
The discussion of gender in today's legal discourse is becoming more and more significant. In human communities and cultural creation, gender serves as a key organizing factor. Like class, race, and ethnicity, gender is commonly acknowledged as a cause of inequality. The society is dominated by patriarchy. The dominance is a result of attitude and stereotypical values. This is a social sickness that has to be controlled. Only gender sensitivity may modify this unfavorable attitude. In developing nations, there are clear gender inequalities in all areas, according to empirical data. Bangladesh, a typical developing nation with significant gender inequality, particularly in rural regions, is impeding that process of progress. The patriarchal character of the social order in Bangladesh has historically affected the lives of women. The purpose of this article is to examine and ascertain the status, types, and degree of gender inequality that exists in Bangladeshi law, culture, and society. Additionally, it offers practical suggestions for addressing gender inequality in Bangladesh.

Knowledge, Perceptions and Practices of Caregivers of Under-Five Children on Pneumonia Management in Tribal Areas of Nandurbar, India PDF
Prashant Kulkarni, Anjali Kurane

Introduction

Pneumonia is the main cause of under-five children worldwide with the burden in developing countries such as India. Caregivers are the primary care providers for their children. So, their knowledge becomes important in preventive efforts.

Methods

The study was conducted in Akkalkuwa block of Nandurbar district of Maharashtra State of India. The study was cross-sectional, mixed methods assessing knowledge, perceptions and practices of caregivers on pneumonia among children aged below five years using a vignette. Systematic and convenience sampling was used to select the participants. The participants were selected from 29 villages under TWO Primary Health Centre areas located in plain and hilly area respectively.

Results

Total 107 caregivers of under-five children were interviewed from the Akkalkuwa block. More than half of the respondents were from 18-25 years age category. Less than one-fourth of the respondents were illiterate and one-fourth had completed higher secondary or junior college. Cough, flu, fever and stomach upset/distention were the commonly reported symptoms of pneumonia. Food ingestion, climate and heat-cold humoral been reported as perceived causes whereas private doctors, traditional healers and herbalists were the highest source of help seeking for pneumonia. More than 90% believe pneumonia can be cured and more than one-third consider it as a serious illness. Sadness/anxiety of reducing income or work was the highest reported concern after getting pneumonia. More than half of them consider pneumonia as strain for family finances. Little less than one-fifth received any information on pneumonia and half of them reported friend/family as source of information about pneumonia.

Conclusion

Health education need to be imparted among community members. Traditional healers, herbalists and private practitioners to sensitize about appropriate treatment of pneumonia. Messages need to be prepared in the local languages (Bhili, Pawri dialect) using the local terminologies to be used in formation of IEC material.

Analysis of Domestic Water Services in Yenagoa, Nigeria PDF
O. Ohwo, O. E. Ndakara
The level of domestic water services largely influences household’s health and socioeconomic development. Hence, the study analyzed domestic water services in Yenagoa. Data for the study were obtained from responses to a structured questionnaire that was administered systematically to 400 household heads. The level of households’ domestic water services was determined using four domestic water service indicators (major domestic water source, time spent fetching water, quantity of water supply and household’s expenditure on water). The data was analyzed using percentages and a Domestic Water Service (DWS) model that integrates the responses to the categorized service indicators and produce a single value that indicates the level of households’ domestic water services. The value of the calculated DWS was 60.8%, which indicated that the average level of households’ water services in Yenagoa was moderate. The quantity of household water supply exerted the highest negative drag on the service level. With the current levels of domestic water services, Yenagoa might miss the SDG target 6.1 unless the poorly rated service indicators are adequately addressed.

Influence of Socio-Cultural Factors on Smoking while Pregnant PDF
Chika Ejike

The inequalities in health and healthcare exist worldwide. The health of any individual is strongly affected by social factors at personal, family, community, and national levels. Smoking has been identified as the single biggest cause of inequality in morbidity and mortality between rich and poor people in many countries.

Smoking cessation has been a major public health focus in recent years. While smoking was formerly perceived as glamorous and popular, modern medicine has linked it to a variety of diseases and issues. Unfortunately, the habit is highly addictive and there are a lot of challenges.

This study is a descriptive assessment of the influence of socio-cultural factors on smoking during pregnancy, also, while focusing on the current surge of second-hand smoking and its health effects during pregnancy.

Network Resources: A Competitive Tool for Organizational Performance with the Mediating Effect of Organizational Culture and Market Knowledge Absorbing Capacity PDF
Daniyal Khan, Mishal Jafar

The purpose this paper is to identify the prospects of network resources for increasing the firm performance. This research used the survey data collected from 440 employees of private sectors in Pakistan to study the role of network resources as competitive tool for organization performance and hypothesis testing. The methodology that is used is SEM (structural equation modeling) technique. Hence there is partial mediation effect among network resources and organization performance. The results of the paper show that network resources and marketing knowledge absorbing capacity are critical factors to determine the organization performance. Additionally, the mediation analysis demonstrates network resources and organization performance as being partially mediated by a marketing knowledge absorbing capacity. The result of study gives applied confirmations that private sectors should achieve the collaborative advantage with other firms by combing effect of network resources and market knowledge absorbing capacity and compete efficiently with the competitors. This paper interlinks the external network resources with internal market knowledge absorbing capacity and organization culture facilitating a practical strategy to gain competitive edge and create value in a private sector. It aids for further development in bringing the change in workplace.