Autism has no cure, but early and appropriate diagnosis and intervention may increase outcomes for individuals affected. The level of awareness, acceptance, and support for autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in Nigeria is very low. There is a gap in the literature regarding a detailed account of the experiences of parents raising children with ASD within the Nigerian environment and culture. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore the perceptions and lived experiences of mothers raising children with ASD in Nigeria including the impact of Nigerian culture on their experiences. Bronfenbrenner's ecological systems theory was the guiding conceptual framework for this study. Ten mothers of children with autism were recruited through purposeful sampling and interviewed using a semistructured interview format. Moustakas's steps to phenomenological research analysis were used to analyze the data and report emergent themes. The 8 themes that emerged from the data were low societal awareness about ASD, cultural attitudes and acceptance about ASD, neglect and abuse, inadequate services, impact on parents and other family members, refusing to be isolated by society, nature of support, and the way forward. The findings of this study can contribute to ASD awareness in Nigeria through the experiences reported. Positive social change may result from this increased awareness including improved acceptance and treatment, and policy changes or service improvements to support families living with this disorder in Nigeria.

Religion plays a role in acculturating Nigerian immigrants into American society through networking and through belief systems that inculcate in Nigerian social and cultural norms practiced in the United States.

Depuis le début des années 2000, l’un des traits distinctifs de la littérature nigériane tient dans son utilisation du genre littéraire du Bildungsroman , dont cette thèse considère les différentes évolutions chez les romancières et romanciers dits de la troisième génération. En examinant une vingtaine de romans, de Waiting for an Angel (2002) de Helon Habila à Freshwater (2018) d’Akwaeke Emezi, ce travail se propose de brosser un portrait panoramique d’un pan de la littérature nigériane ultra-contemporaine par le prisme du Bildungsroman. Prenant appui sur les études de genre, cette étude considère tout d’abord les différentes variations féminines d’un genre littéraire au penchant androcentrique. Les réécritures féminines du Bildungsroman mettent en lumière le développement (ou son échec) d’un point de vue et d’une voix individuels alors que les héroïnes tentent de (se) construire un moi unifié. La tendance allégorique du Bildungsroman sous sa forme traditionnelle est également centrale, et l’Histoire de la nation nigériane, depuis la guerre civile (ou guerre du Biafra, 1967-1970), jusqu’au début des années 2000, est au cœur des intrigues tissées par les ouvrages du corpus : la Bildung des protagonistes se fait en parallèle de celle de la nation. Enfin, au XXIè siècle, les frontières nationales ne semblent plus être tout à fait pertinentes pour les romancières et romanciers nigérians qui, de par leur propre expérience en tant qu’individus, détaillent les nouvelles conditions de développement dans une société mondialisée, multiculturelle, ou transculturelle, où les frontières (géographiques, identitaires, génériques) tendent à s’estomper voire à disparaître. Nous proposons donc de nous interroger sur l’existence d’une spécificité nigériane du Bildungsroman en ce début de XXIè siècle. / Since the beginning of the 2000s, one of the distinctive features of Nigerian literature has been the use of the literary genre of the Bildungsroman . This thesis considers the different evolutions of this genre among male and female third-generation Nigerian novelists. It examines more than twenty novels, from Waiting for an Angel (2002) by Helon Habila to Freshwater (2018) by Akwaeke Emezi, thereby providing a picture of contemporary Nigerian fiction. This study aims at analysing contemporary Nigerian fiction through the genre of the Bildungsroman. By using gender theory, it considers the feminine variations on an androcentric genre. These feminine rewritings put forth the development (or lack thereof) of the heroines from an individual viewpoint as they try to build a unified self. The allegorical tendency of the traditional Bildungsroman is also central, and the History of the Nigerian nation, from the civil war (or Biafra war, 1967-1970), to the beginning of the 2000s, is at the heart of the plots woven by the novels chosen in the corpus: the Bildung of the protagonist parallels the Bildung of the nation. Finally, in the 21st century, national borders do not seem to hold any longer for the third-generation writers who, because they experience mobility themselves, describe the new conditions of development in a globalized society, which is increasingly multicultural or transcultural; borders (whether they be geographical, linked to identity, or generic) tend to fade away, or disappear. This thesis examines whether or not a Nigerian specificity of the Bildungsroman exists in the 21st century.

This study concerns the difficulties encountered by Nigerian students in pursuing graduate degrees in the North Texas area of the United States. The purposes of this study were: (a) to determine the extent to which the perceived difficulties are a result of financial difficulties, (b) to determine the extent to which language is perceived as an inhibiting factor during their period of study, (c) to determine the extent to which family problems contributed to the difficulties, (d) to determine the extent to which normal pressures in graduate school contributed to the difficulties, (e) to determine the extent to which time management contributed to the difficulties, (f) to determine the extent to which changes of schools/colleges within the United States contributed to the difficulties, (g) to determine the extent to which lack of advisement contributed to the difficulties, (h) to determine the extent to which health problems contributed to the difficulties, and (i) to determine the extent to which employment contributed to the difficulties.

Nigerian Pidgin English is widely spoken in different parts of the country and “has been called the native language of a substantial population of people in the Niger Delta, particularly in the Sapele and Warri areas” (Igboanusi, 2008: 68). According to Balogun (2012: 90), “Nigerian Pidgin English has emerged as the most widely spoken language of inter and intra communication among Nigerians and across diverse ethnic groups that do not share a common language”. The language plays a major role in youth culture and most Nigerians speak the language. There is a general belief by some Nigerians that Nigerian Pidgin English is a colloquial form of English that is mostly spoken by those whose Standard English proficiency has not fully developed (Agheyisi, 1971:30). The government has continued to ignore it “despite the fact that Nigerian Pidgin is in most respects the most logical choice for a national language [and] official attitudes towards Nigerian Pidgin remain negative, perpetuating erroneous notions inherited from the colonial period that Nigerian Pidgin is some form of ‘broken English’” (Faraclas 1996: 18). Also, the general attitudes held by Nigerians regarding the language can be described as ambivalent with majority leaning towards the negative attitude more. This project investigated if the Nigerians who find themselves in a different geographical space like Cape Town still hold negative attitudes towards Pidgin English and whether they abstained from speaking the language or speak it freely. The study also sought to establish if those who may have held negative attitudes towards Nigerian Pidgin English while in Nigeria now hold a different attitude since being in Cape Town. The study employed both quantitative and qualitative methods in form of online questionnaires and semi structured interviews involving 38 participants to investigate the uses of and attitudes towards Nigerian Pidgin English. The findings revealed that the attitudes towards Nigerian Pidgin English do not show significant difference from that held by Nigerians within Nigeria. The participants in this study held negative attitudes towards Nigerian Pidgin English in formal domains and positive attitudes towards the language in informal domains. These same attitudes were obtainable among Nigerians living in Nigeria. The data analysis revealed that the Nigerians in this study use the language in their daily activities for different purposes. The hegemonic perspective on Pidgins being an informal language that can serve only informal purposes was also present among some of the Nigerians that formed part of this study. Although some thought that the language can go beyond informal domains, the majority thought otherwise. All the participants use Nigerian Pidgin English mainly to communicate with their friends, family members and other Nigerians they encounter despite living far away from home where other languages exist. Also, the analysis revealed that all the participants considered the language to be an important aspect of their Nigerian identity and togetherness in the diaspora. This indicates a significant difference between those in the diaspora and those in Nigeria, because those in the diaspora appreciate and think there is a greater need for Nigerian Pidgin English outside the country. The data suggested that the reason for this shift in attitude is because speaking the language bridges the gap between home and abroad.

HIV is a virus that leads to AIDS. Millions of people are living with HIV. Globally, there is an increased incidence of this disease among adolescents. In literature, there is a gap regarding how social determinants of health have jointly or singly contributed to HIV/AIDS transmission. With the application of the AIDS risk reduction model (ARRM) to the secondary analysis of survey data, the purpose of this study was to determine whether any significant relationships existed between adolescents' childhood health care factors, demographic factors, social-level factors, structural-level factors, aspects of disease management factors, and knowledge about HIV transmission/AIDS among Nigerian adolescents. Survey data were used from Measure Demographic and Health Survey (MDHS) in Nigeria for 2008. Multiple linear regression revealed that childhood vaccinations were a weak predictor for HIV transmission risk (R2 - 0.020). Gender, age, place of residence, education, religion and culture, some disease management aspects (e.g., accessibility and affordability of care), and wealth index were all significant but weak predictors of knowledge of HIV/AIDS (R2 = 0.016, R2 = 0.019, R2 = 0.003 & R2 0.015). The potential positive social change effect of the study would be HIV transmission reduction through increasing knowledge of HIV/AIDS among adolescents in Nigeria. The results could be used by both governmental and nongovernmental organizations to influence childhood healthcare improvements and advance education to help reduce or eradicate the causes of HIV/ AIDS transmission among adolescents in Nigeria.

Frequent incidences of bank failures in Nigeria resulting in enormous losses of investments and jobs have raised questions about the level of banks' compliance with the code of corporate governance. This single exploratory case study shifted attention from the banks to the regulators of banks in Nigeria, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), to find out the problems they may be encountering in getting the banks to be fully compliant. Purposeful sampling was used to select 25 senior participants who were directly involved with the monitoring of banks from CBN. The agency theory served as the conceptual framework. The sources of data were semistructured interviews and focus group interviews. The use of member checking and triangulation improved the credibility of the data. Thematic analysis was used in data analysis. Findings showed that the CBN might have identified the shortcomings in their supervision processes and have put measures in place to ensure full compliance. Some of the measures included recruitment of skilled IT personnel to conduct monthly e-examinations of the books of banks, application of steep penalties for noncompliance, the reduction of percentage holding by investors, and continuous training of the staff. Full implementation and continuous evaluation of these measures should make the issue of bank distresses and the attendant loss of depositors' funds and means of livelihood outdated. This will result in positive social change by increasing public confidence in the banks resulting in a growth in the economic activities, more job creation, and greater wealth creation for shareholders.

HIV/AIDS studies mostly lack distinction between the US-born Blacks and non-US-born Blacks while African Americans (AAs) continues to represent the group with the heaviest burden of AIDS deaths and new diagnosis of HIV. A review of studies on HIV infection in the US, Europe, and other Western countries revealed a knowledge gap on HIV infection with non-refugee African immigrants (NRAIs), especially the Nigerian African Immigrants (NAIs) who are non-US-born Blacks. The purpose of this descriptive phenomenological study is to address this gap by exploring the expressed views of NAIs, a sub-group of the NRAIs living in Houston, Texas, on the issue of HIV infection. In a qualitative research design, 13 NAI individuals aged 18 to 49 were purposively selected for a face-to-face interview. The health belief model provided the conceptual framework for the development of study questions and analysis of the gathered data using the phenomenological approach. The study findings showed that 90% of the participants have knowledge of HIV infection. Even though 100% of the participants acknowledged the severity of unprotected sex and multiple sexual relationships in the acquisition of HIV, 27% engaged in multiple sexual relationships and there was inconsistent use of condoms in 64% of the participants. The participants expressed low levels of perception regarding the threat of contracting HIV in their relationships. Evidence of sexual mixing was found in about 61% of the study participants. This study provided an opportunity for future research with NAIs, an upcoming set of immigrants, in the US. The study also highlighted how knowledge of the NAIs' culture and language can be used in promoting preventative interventions like the use of condoms and HIV testing.

This thesis explores the potential of Nigerian popular music as an approach to nation branding. The study employs qualitative content analysis to analyze select Nigerian music genres to examine how Nigeria is portrayed to international audiences and the economic benefits that can be derived from this form of branding. The analysis focuses on narrative themes of “the value of hard work,” “ethnic pride,” “lavish lifestyle,” and the impact of differences which were derived from the data. Findings indicate that Nigeria is globally reckoned for its musical prowess and rich cultural heritage. In highlighting the role of music in Nigeria’s political processes, the research demonstrates a growing sense of national identity and political awareness among the masses, thereby making a case for accountability and transparency in Nigeria’s governance. Additionally, music emerges as one of the major contributors to Nigeria’s economy, serving as a powerful tool for visibility and attracting foreign investments.

This study examines the role of African novelists as major sources of historiography of Africa, and the socio-cultural experience of its people. Although many African novelists have over the years reflected issues of social and political significance in their works, only a few scholarly works seem to have addressed this phenomenon adequately. A major objective of this dissertation then is to help fill this gap by explicating these issues in the fiction of Chinua Achebe, a great iconic figure in African Literature. Utilizing the conceptual and analytical framework suggested in C.T. Keto's, Africa-Centered Perspective on History (1989), the contexts, themes, structures and techniques of the following five novels were examined: Things Fall Apart (1958), No Longer at Ease (1960), Arrow of God (1964), A Man of the People (1966), and Anthills of the Savannah (1987). The novels were shown to be replete with cogent social and political insights which provide an accurate portraiture of African/ Nigerian history of the 19th and 20th Century. The study seeks to make a modest contribution to the steadily mounting body of Africa centered criticism of the African novel/fiction within the context of African social and political history. / African American Studies