ISSN 2360-7998
Abstract
The purpose of the study was to determine the impact of financial accountability and congregants’ commitment in selected churches in Ogun State. A descriptive survey research design was employed. The sample consisted of 224 participants, comprising 24 clergy and 200 congregants, selected from 8 churches in Ondo State, Nigeria. The sample size was determined using Krejcie and Morgan's sample size determination table, considering the estimated population size of 5,000 church members in the selected churches. The instrument used for data collection is a researcher-structured questionnaire titled “Financial Accountability on Congregants’ Commitment Questionnaire (FACCQ). The validity of the instruments was determined by 3 experts from the Department of Religious Studies, Paul University Awka. To test the reliability of the questionnaire instrument, the Cronbach's alpha method of reliability was used to determine the internal consistency of the instrument. A reliability index of 0.80 was obtained. The research questions were answered using simple descriptive statistics such as the mean and standard deviation, while the hypotheses were tested at 0.05 levels of significance with appropriate degrees of freedom using independent t-test analysis. Results revealed that the respondent’s financial accountability encourages and enhances long-term commitment. No significant gender-based differences in perceptions existed among the variables. The findings affirm that financial practices grounded in transparency encourage commitment in church members. inclusive budgeting processes, training for church leaders on ethical financial management, and use of digital tools for real-time reporting. These findings contribute to a growing discourse on stewardship, accountability, and participatory leadership in faith-based organisations..
Keywords: Transparency, Accountability, Commitment, Financial Management, Congregants