Rural Information and Communication Technology Centers (ICT Centers) play an important role in rural development through improving e-governance in rural areas. The main purpose of this survey research was to investigate the effectiveness of rural ICT Centers for developing e-governance in the rural communities of the Kermanshah Township, located in the west of Iran. The data were collected in two phases. The first stage utilized a Delphi technique, carried out by the participation of ICT experts to determine the effectiveness indicators. The second phase employed a structured interview using a questionnaire. The majority of people did not use internet services despite its availability in the ICT Centers. The ICT Centers also had low effectiveness in improving rural households' income, employment rate, diffusion of agricultural information among farmers, and e-commerce. They are to some extent effective in decreasing the migration of rural people to urban areas, their daily trips to near cities, and postal requirements as well as improving e-governance in rural areas.
This study probed into the migration intentions of rural youths in West Iran and sought to identify the variables influencing these intentions. The study found that about one-third of the youths had a high to very high intention of migrating to urban areas. The stepwise multiple regression revealed four factors to be statistically significant determinants of migration intentions, namely, attitudes to agriculture, family structure, parental relations, and number of friends and family members in the urban areas. Findings suggest that supporting inter-generational relationships and agricultural activities, and enhancing the economic and socio-cultural aspects of rural areas can encourage young people to remain in the rural areas.
The overall job satisfaction of 128 faculty of Razi University in Iran was investigated using a modified version of the Minnesota Satisfaction Questionnaire to elicit information in this stratified random sample. Faculty members were most satisfied with intrinsic aspects of the work such as "social service," "activity," and "ability utilization" and less satisfied with extrinsic aspects of work such as "security," "university policies," and "compensation." Publication counts and years of teaching experience contributed significantly to the prediction of overall job satisfaction among these faculty members. Intervention efforts must involve socializing faculty in the early stages of their careers, encouraging them to engage in research activities and write for reputable journals, while providing compensation and job security.
Given the increasing desire for sustainable practices in our world today, graduates of agricultural higher education systems all around the world would be facing new challenges after their arrival into marketplace and dealing with their prospectus clientele. The purpose of this study was to identify and prioritize the educational needs of agricultural senior students towards sustainability. Population of the study was senior bachelor degree students of agricultural faculties, western part of Iran. The sample size was calculated using the Krejcie and Morgan (1970) sampling table (n=285). A factor analysis approach was implemented to categorize educational needs of respondents; and eventually five groups were ranked and finalized as the following: (1) participatory planning, (2) participatory techniques in rural development, (3) biodiversity protection methods, (4) sustainable soil protection methods, and (5) utilization of indigenous knowledge. Stepwise multiple regression revealed that four of agricultural learners' characteristics that is, previous experience in agriculture, commitment to sustainable rural development, gender, and finally teamwork interest explained 75% of the variance (R square = 0.75) which was statistically significant. A t-test that followed indicated that students living in rural settings as compared to those living in urban areas demonstrated different educational needs (t = 5.99, p = 0.02). It seems to us that a high priority should be given to planning and implementing complementary courses regarding sustainability issues.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
customersupport@researchsolutions.com
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.