Qatar Foundation Annual Research Conference Proceedings Volume 2014 Issue 1
- تاريخ المؤتمر: 18-19 Nov 2014
- الموقع: Qatar National Convention Center (QNCC), Doha, Qatar
- رقم المجلد: 2014
- المنشور: ١٨ نوفمبر ٢٠١٤
401 - 450 of 480 نتائج
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Expanding The Humanitarian Computing Library Using Automatic Tools
المؤلفون: Ali Khalil El Dous and Carlos CastilloHumanitarian computing has become a critical field to support the response to natural and man-made disasters all over the world. The Humanitarian Computing Library (http://humanitariancomp.referata.com/) is a collaboratively edited ("wiki") site that includes a compilation of publications related to humanitarian computing. Each publication is represented by its meta-data including type (e.g. conference presentation or journal article), authors, date, abstract, published location as well as its URL. Currently, 770 publications exist in the library and are categorized into a few dozen categories to provide easy access for researchers. The aim of the project is to augment the contents of the library to include up-to-date publications, by automating the search for related publications instead of using the previous, manual search method. In addition, we extend the publications' meta-data by adding information about their citation count, in order to highlight the most important ones. The derived solution is a publicly-available web service, that allows any editor to use it to expand the library. The web services work by performing a programmatic query to Google Scholar and analyzing the result. The query contains a sample obtained from the list of papers on a given category of the library (e.g. "Social Media and Crises"). For each of the papers currently in the library, we obtain new papers citing it. We then remove duplicate titles and sort by decreasing frequency, removing papers that are already present in the library. As the Humanitarian Computing research field is quite new, new publications are highly dependent on previous ones, and thus related publications can be identified by three indicators: they cite an existing publication from the library, have common phrases/keywords with existing previous publications, and are highly cited. The developed web service made it easy to add recent publications to the library with much less effort than before. In conclusion, the deployed solution acts as a tool for collecting research papers on humanitarian computing, and helps expanding this knowledge base. Such a publicly-available web service can help advance the state of the art of Humanitarian Computing, leading to an improved understanding of this field, and potentially help minimize the loss of lives and property during disasters by the application of new technologies.
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Credibility Models For Arabic Content On Twitter
المؤلفون: Reem El-ballouli, Wassim El Hajj, Shady Elbassuoni, Hazem Hajj, Nizar Habash and Khaled Bashir ShabanMicroblogging websites such as Twitter have gained popularity as an effective and quick means of expressing opinions, sharing news and promoting information and updates. As a result, data generated on Twitter has become a vital and rich source for tasks such as sentiment mining or newsgathering. However, a significant portion of such data is either biased, untruthful, spam or non-credible in general. Consequently, filtering out non-credible tweets when performing data analyses tasks on Twitter becomes a crucial task. In this work, we present a credibility model for content on Twitter. Unlike previous work that focused on English content or factual tweets, our work analyses the credibility of any tweet type and targets Arabic tweets, a challenging language for NLP in general. We focus on Arabic tweets due to the recent popularity of Twitter in the Arab world and due to the presence of a large portion of non-credible tweets in Arabic. We build a binary credibility classifier that classifies a tweet that belongs to a given topic as either credible or non-credible. Our classifier relies on an exhaustive set of features extracted from both the author of the tweet (user-based) and the tweet itself (content-based). To achieve our objective, we collected 36,155,670 tweets through Twitter streaming API over a period of two weeks and created an index to search our tweet collection. Three topics about the Syrian revolution were retrieved from the collection and given to annotators to annotate. Unlike previous work, we provided annotators with a unique interface that provided a real context for each tweet, such as the author profile and a Web search about the content of the tweet, which we deemed useful for annotators to judge the credibility of a tweet. Overall, 3,393 tweets were annotated for credibility using this interface. Next, we extracted 22 user-based features; such as the expertise of the author on the topic of the tweet, time spacing between her previous tweets, count of followers, etc. In addition, 22 content-based features were extracted including sentiment, count of retweets, count of URLs, etc. Finally, we trained a set of classifiers based on all the features we extracted and using our annotated corpus of tweets as training data. We evaluated our credibility classifiers using a series of carefully designed experiments. Using cross validation on our three different topics and on a combined dataset that contains all the tweets from all the topics, our classifiers surpassed the accuracy of a number of baseline approaches by significant margins. We then applied feature reduction and normalization, which resulted in an additional marginal improvement in accuracy. Finally, to test the robustness of our chosen set of features, we evaluated our model using different training and testing sets. Our classifiers continued to consistently surpass the accuracy of the baseline approaches. Furthermore, we analyzed our feature set by comparing the accuracy of the classifier when trained on user-based features only versus content-based features only. Overall, content-based features only generated better accuracies than user-based features only when tested on multiple topics.
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Translation And Transcription Of Educational Videos
المؤلفون: Elsherif Mahmoud, Arushi Vashist, Irina Temnikova, Ahmed Abdelali and Francisco GuzmánManual translation (also known as Human Translation or HT) is a service demanded worldwide on a large scale, but can be quite expensive. As a result, Machine Translation (MT) has boomed in the last decade, trying to provide an automatic, and faster solution. However, MT does not always generate a good quality output, and human intervention is necessary to correct it. This intervention is called Post-Editing (PE) , which consists in improving a machine-translated text grammatically and semantically by a human. In this abstract, we present the development of a PE environment and the incorporation of MT into an existing on-line video translation platform named Amara, which allows to translate subtitles for online videos. The integration of MT in Amara will allow faster translation of educational videos, and will thus contribute to education. Human Translation Experiments To measure the impact of PE for the translation of video subtitles, preliminary experiments were conducted. Users were asked to translate into English the subtitles of two videos, first manually, and then via PE. The translation times, including access to external resources such as online dictionaries, were recorded. Figure 1 shows the experimental setup. Figure 2 shows the differences in HT speed (blue) vs. PE speed (red) of the two users. The speeds are measured in function of the length of the translated video. For instance, a speed of 6x means that if a video lasts 1min, the translation process lasts 6 minutes. As can be seen, in the case of the first user, the time to PE is almost half of the time to HT. The difference in the case of the second user is lower (~37%) but still significant. Feasibility Survey We conducted a user study where we asked users to rank different features for their usefulness, research value and ease of implementation. Details about the selected&implemented features (user log feedback, time tracking, and external resources search), as well as the way they improve the current system, will be provided in the final article. Conclusion Manual translation of educational videos can be time consuming. In this abstract we presented experiments that show the usefulness of assisting the translation process with post-editing and other time-saving features. In the future, we plan to make such features available to the public through a collaboration with the Amara platform.
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Cross Cultural Adaptation Of A Developmental Assessment For Children Who Are Blind And /or Visually Impaired And Speak Arabic
المؤلفون: Sheila Macrine, Hayat Heiji and Amal SabryThe objective of this research project was to adapt, translate and validate a developmental assessment instrument for use with young children who are visually impaired and who speak Arabic in the Middle-East. Developmental screening has become an established component of child health programs in many developed countries (WHO, 2012, NAECY, 2014, CEC, 2013). Yet according to Bishop (1991) "there are no developmental norms for blind children because of the low prevalence and because there is a lack of any regional or national database from which to draw inferences" (p.1). This project has the potential to make significant contributions to the field since its aim is to create a culturally and linguistically sensitive developmental assessment tool for all Arabic speaking children who are visually impaired or blind worldwide. There is a great need for culturally valid and reliable developmental assessment tools that can assess children who are visually impaired and speak Arabic in the Middle East (Bornman et al, 2010). One approach is to translate already well-established measures from their source language into the target language(s), as the construction of a new instrument into a new language is difficult and time consuming and not recommended if adequate instruments already exist (McCartney, Burchinal, & Bub, 2006). This study was motivated by one of the authors who is blind and is the head of a new school for young children who are blind or visually impaired in Qatar. The conundrum for educational professions was that there were no tools to determine whether the young children who speak Arabic with visual impairments were meeting childhood developmental milestones within normal limits or rates. Increased globalization has revealed the importance of cross-cultural adaptations of a various psychological, educational and health related instruments for use in countries and with languages other than the source language, typically English (Guillemin, 1993; Wiesinger, 1999). Thus there is a great need for Early Childhood Development (ECD) assessments particularly that are valid and reliable for culturally and linguistically diverse students. These developmental assessment tools can accommodate and measure the various domains of children with visual impairments and help to screen and identify those with intellectual and developmental disabilities (Bornman, et al., 2010). Early identification of developmental delays or differences is critical and can lead to improved child and family outcomes through early intervention (Heo et al., 2010). Unfortunately there is a dearth of research and tools to accurately and efficiently screen young children for early identification of developmental problems in children with vision problems and this is further exacerbated with reliable and valid tests in Arabic as well as other countries outside the USA (Heo, KH., Squires J, Yovanoff P., 2008). Our methods consisted of a review of highly recommended methodological approaches to translation, adaptation and cross-cultural validation of research instruments (WHO, 2012). We developed a flow chart and a coding-schemes for the inter-raters. Further analyses included validity and reliability, establishing threshold levels and item discrimination analyses. These analyses resulted in a high internal consistency in each age range for each category
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Social And Behavioral Risk Factors Influencing Driver's Involvement In Road Traffic Accidents In Qatar
المؤلفون: Mohanad Alkhasawneh, Moh'd Alodat, Hussain Mohamed and Mariam Al-tamimiOn average, traffic accidents kill around 137 people around the world every hour. In 2004, road injuries were the first leading cause of death and predicted to be the fifth leading cause of death by 2030. Although the world's high-income countries occupy around 52% of the world's registered vehicles, only 10% of the world's traffic fatalities occur on the roads of these countries. In Qatar, traffic accidents kill between 3 to 4 people, on average, every week. In 2010, traffic injuries were around 4500 people. In the same year, speeding, which is one of human-related factors, causes 72.3% of the total number of accidents and crossing the red light causes 7.6% of the accidents. Human risk factors, in general, play the main role in traffic accidents. This study focuses on exploring and analyzing social and behavioral factors contributing to traffic accident involvement in Qatar society. It also attempts to define and evaluate the psychological motivations behind adaptation of reckless driving behaviors by youth and matches them to early socialization process within family. Several statistical data collection methods were used, such as, surveys, case studies and interviews. The study investigates different groups such as school students, parents, and young drivers in local sociality. The questionnaire was designed to gather as much as information as possible regarding to possible social factors of road accident, details of accident survey participants may have for last three years and their recommendations for reducing traffic accidents in Qatar. Media awareness for preventing road accident should be enhanced in both prints media and broadcast one. The awareness should be focused for youth drivers and workshops were conducted by the project team regularly in schools and universities. The results of this study have given a clear picture of social aspects of traffic accident involvement phenomena and may help in reducing the injuries and deaths caused by road accidents in the country.
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Motherhood Lost: Women, Miscarriage, And Birds In Heaven In Qatar
المؤلفون: Susie Kilshaw, Mona Mohsen, Nadia Omar, Stella Major, Halima Khalil Al Tamimi and Faten El TaherThis paper explores emerging themes from our ongoing cross-cultural research (UK and Qatar) into the experience of miscarriage. The approach is grounded in medical anthropology theory and methods, but the project is particularly exciting because of its commitment to interdisciplinarity: the research is informed and led by collaboration between anthropologists (medical and material culture) and medical doctors. Globally, one in four pregnancies end in miscarriage; thus, pregnancy loss is a common women's health issue. Despite its frequency, few researchers have been there to record and interpret the suffering that accompanies reproduction disruption. This is "particularly noteworthy, given the human drama engendered by reproductive failure and its rising worldwide incidence" (Inhorn 1994:459). Reproductive "awry-ness," is produced within particular historical moment and cultural settings: the project aims to better understand the experience of miscarriage in the specific context of Qatar. The research incorporates 12 months of ethnographic fieldwork in Qatar: our main method is semi-structured interviews, but we combine this with other forms of data collection. We observe clinical encounters (doctors appointments, sonography sessions) and conduct participant observation. Themes explored include: the theories of miscarriage causation, cultural significance of reproduction, development of fetal personhood, cultural practices (ie burial) around the fetus, and the impact of religion. All of these forces impact the way a Qatari woman might experience the loss of a baby. Our focus on pregnancy and loss provides a lens through which we can better understand broader themes in Qatari culture; providing valuable ethnographic material on Qatari social life. The paper focuses on the way in which a miscarriage impacts the social role of women in Qatar. Islam is a "pronatalist" religion and procreation is considered to be one of the most important pillars of society. The social status of the Muslim woman, her dignity and her self-esteem are closely related to her procreation potential in the family and in society as a whole (Serour 1993). The fertility rate in Qatar remains high, with it reaching 4 live births per each Qatari woman in 2007 and the average number of children is 5. Men and women experience pressure to produce children and the inability to do so can cause anxiety and lead to marital strife. This paper explores the role of motherhood in Qatar and reflects on how not fulfilling this role may impact a woman. Such a focus is particularly timely given the changing nature of women's participation in Qatari society (i.e. education, work). In our interviews, women suggested they are largely blamed for reproductive problems and failures. Participants also felt that their emotional and psychological state was central to the health and temperament of their baby. Evil eye is often cited as a cause of miscarriage as is linked to envy. By using ethnographic material we explore the way a miscarriage (Tasqeet) may mean lost motherhood and lost potential for the woman. However, a miscarriage also produces a particular kind of being, a "bird in heaven" who protects its mother and speaks for her on judgment day.
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Arabiiyatii
المؤلفون: Zeinab Ibrahim, Andreas Karatsolis and Pantelis PapadopoulosThis is presentation of the results of a research which was granted an NPRP on enhancing teaching the Arabic Language in Qatar. This research combines many approaches to learning the Arabic language by 5-6 year old (kindergarteners) Arabic native speakers. Its focus on learning Modern Standard Arabic allows it to be used by kindergarteners in all 22 Arab countries. This research builds upon the Microsoft Surface Table technology to develop a framework for language instruction which is based on combining three innovations: (a) student-centered curriculum based on a storytelling approach, (b) physical classroom reconfiguration and (c) interactive software centered around multi-player, collaborative games. The research, in essence, introduces a new pedagogy into the elementary school language-learning curriculum which requires both curricular and technological innovations to work together. The curriculum developed contained the Arabic alphabet, short and long vowels, words and short sentences. Audio narrative of the story was shown on a classroom screen accompanied by pictures done by the graphic designer so the children would have a visual storybook. Learning activities and educational games were carried on the smart tables provided. The research carried involved choosing an Arabic traditional story, Aladdin. The main purpose was to enhance culture. Several modification were carried on the story in order to provide ethical principles necessary for children (.e.g. the jinni refused to help Aladdin the second time except after he works). Based on our pilot classroom research, this approach shows significant improvements both in student engagement and in learning gains. Students who were presented with this framework were not only excited to be in the classroom, but, by the end of the research period (9 weeks), they showed significant learning gains. In addition, the transformation of the physical configuration of the classroom space into a collaborative one and the nature and extent participant interactions is its own innovation. We hope that in the future, especially for classrooms with younger students, such classroom set-ups, focusing on interactive play through storytelling, will be the norm, rather than the experimental exception. Comparison of end of year results between the experimental and control groups shall be presented.
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Shar'iah, Law, And Science: Definition Of The Nuclear Family In The Wake Of Genetic And Reproductive Technologies
المؤلفون: Ayman ShabanaBackground: New genetic and reproductive technologies pose several challenges to the established structure of Islamic regulations concerning the nuclear family, which covers the marital connection and lineage regulations. More particularly, they raise questions about traditional definitions of both paternity and maternity and the extent to which these two concepts should be tied to marriage. For example, while DNA technology questions the traditional primacy of legal factors over biological factors in the determination of paternity, assisted reproduction with donor gametes and surrogacy arrangements challenge the classical definition of both paternity and maternity. These new developments have stirred heated debates on the future of the nuclear family worldwide with increasing demands for clearer criteria for the definition of both paternity and maternity. In Most Muslim-majority countries, where personal status issues are regulated according to sharia, legislation does not always keep up with these developments. In the absence of binding laws, disputes are settled according to the general principles of Islamic law, mostly in the form of non-binding fatwas and recommendations. The absence of formal or unified decision-making mechanisms gives rise to a wide range of views on these issues. Important open questions include: to what extent are the new forms of the nuclear family compatible with shari'ah? And, to what extent does the Islamic ethico-legal assessment depend on established scientific facts? The working thesis of this presentation is that modern Muslim discourses often seek to accommodate scientific explanations in the construction of Islamic ethico-legal assessments concerning the structure of the nuclear family in the wake of new genetic and reproductive technologies. Objectives: This project aims to identify gaps in current scholarship on this important topic and suggest ways to fill these gaps. This project illustrates the result of several years of original research. It benefited from the research infrastructure that was established and funded by two three-year NPRP grants. This infrastructure includes a sizeable physical and digital collection of resources (stored in an electronic database), a vibrant research program currently developing a first-rate reference work scheduled to be published by a reputable academic publisher, and a large network of subject experts developed through presentations at local, regional, and international conferences including the organization of two international conferences in Doha. Methods: The presentation will explain the different components of the project, which include: - Conceptualization, planning, and research design - Available resources and previous studies - Interdisciplinarity of the subject, which requires thorough understanding of o The Islamic ethico-legal tradition o The current (positive) legal landscape in most Muslim- majority countries o Relationship between religion and law on the one hand and science on the other as well as the nature of legal development o Role of the social sciences (mainly sociology and anthropology) in capturing, documenting, and accounting for social change - Dissemination and outreach activities Results and Conclusion: The presentation will share the results achieved as well as challenges encountered. It will also discuss suggested policy and legal reforms relevant to Qatar (and the Arab region) and plans for future development.
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Governance Of Natural Resources, Security And Investment In Africa: A Qatari Perspective
المؤلفون: Evren Tok, Hany Besada, Tim Shaw and Jason McsparrenThis research project has three general objectives which are: (1) To evaluate Qatar's potential for economic diversification; (2) To analyze how soft power influence can be used to promote economic diversification; (3) To inform diagnostic options for Qatari investment authorities to build up capacities of stakeholders in extractive industry-rich economies. These three objectives include analyzing domestic institutions in Qatar as well as those in and around the extractive industries in Africa. Country studies are ongoing for more than a dozen states in Africa in an attempt to identify potential economic linkages between Qatar and Africa. Cross-cutting elements of this project is the evaluation of governance mechanisms for the purpose of promoting 'good' governance in the extractive industries along the lines of those promoted by the African Mining Vision (AMV) and the Extractive Industry Transparency Initiative. This paper explores the political economy of Qatar though an analysis of the state's system of governance and the governance of the national extractive industry to better understand this variety of governance and whether it is suitable to be considered 'good' governance. There must be an understanding of the baseline reality in the context being studied so that progress or the lack there of may be measured going forward. The second objective of this paper is to analyze the foreign policy strategy across major events within the past decade that has garnered the state the positive descriptions of 'maverick' and 'resilient' as well as prompting the negative consequences. We also highlight the connection between governance and security to evaluate the means by which Qatar secures its state and its citizens. There are two frames of reference from which we will analyze Qatar in this case study, that of good governance and security, state and human security.
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Contemporary Qatari Marriage Practices: Education And Marriageability For Modern Qatari Women
المؤلفون: Mohanalakshmi RajakumarThe past three generations of Qataris have witnessed unprecedented economic, social and cultural changes. The juxtaposition of economic growth and social conservatism causes many conflicts or gaps between traditional values and the opportunities offered by modernity; perhaps one of the most startling examples of this is the current generation of Qatari females who are attending university, preparing for professional fields, and still expected to fulfill traditional gender roles as wives and mothers, within the same time frame as their own mothers or grandmothers. Within a kinship or tribal society, where relationships are determined by exchanges between families, marriage is a symbolic institution as much as a social one; the exchange of partners is a private act that has public significance with socio-economic ramifications. Marriage is a way of maintaining and enforcing social order, particularly the behavior of women by patriarchal societies; therefore it is at the very heart of traditional society. This study examines whether the tertiary education of Qatari women in co-educational settings is impacting the institution of marriage within a patriarchal Arab society. Does the level of a woman's education hamper or enhance her marriage prospects? This question is particularly relevant given the goals of the Qatar National Vision 2030 (QNV 2030) which outlines human capacity building as central to the development of the nation and another example of the explicitly stated intentions of the State of Qatar in investing in a knowledge based economy. The research team has studied marriage practices from 2000-2012 through surveys, focus groups, interviews, and the analysis of marital documents to analyze the way attitudes towards educated women as prospective brides. Over 350 Qatari women from a variety of academic institutions in Qatar, including Hamad Bin Khalifa University branch campuses, Qatar University, College of the North Atlantic Qatar, and the Community College of Qatar were surveyed. 150 women from these institutions also participated in focus group interviews. The findings interpret the broader social ramification of balancing the education of women within the expectations of traditional gender roles during state-building.
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Asymmetric Information About Migrant Earnings And Remittance Flows
المؤلفون: Ganesh Seshan and Robertas ZubrickasTransnational families where one or more members are employed abroad while others remain back home are likely be characterized by a higher degree of private information relative to households where members are co-resident. Consequently, international migrants, who can only imperfectly monitor and control uses of remittances by family members left behind, may remit less money home if intra-household preferences differ. On the other hand, a sending household's inability to monitor the migrant's financial choices may enable him to privately spend more, thereby remitting less. Using a novel dataset of married male Indian migrants working in Qatar and their wives back home that were interviewed simultaneously but separately, the extent of information asymmetry with respect to overseas earnings is measured by the discrepancy between migrant's report of his earnings and his wife's account. We find that the greater the under-reporting of overseas income by the wife, expressed as a ratio of her account to his own, the lower the annual remittances sent home. The finding demonstrates how remittance flows can be affected by the presence of information gaps arising from imperfect monitoring of intra-household allocations. It also shows the mechanism by which remitters may vary the amount transferred home by exploiting the incomplete information recipients have of foreign earnings. Interventions that improve monitoring of intra-household allocations could potentially enhance the amount of remittances sent.
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Media Freedom In Qatar Conceptual And Methodological Challenges Of Studying Qatari Journalism
المؤلفون: Ashraf Galal Hassan Mohamed Mohamed*Qatari Media Overview *Qatar General Broadcasting and Television Corporation was established in 1970 and is Government owned. It airs in Arabic language and has two domestic, and one satellite channel.Al-Jazeera was established in 1996 . It airs in Arabic language via satellite.Al-Jazeera International was established in 2006 and is privately owned by Al-Jazeera Network. It airs in English and is satellite. *Despite the abolishment of media censorship in 1995, direct and indirect media censorship (e.g. self-regulation) still exists within Qatar. Social media: 1.Qatar is very engaged in video viewing and sharing. YouTube is Qatar's top social media site. Over 200,000 Qataris are active Facebook users while over 500,000 Qataris are active Twitter users. 2.Google.com.qa is the most popular search engine in Qatar. 3.Qatar News Agency: News agency transmitting mainly in English and Arabic with a daily service in other languages. *According to ictQATAR (2011)Qatar ranks among the top three in the Arab world in terms of combined performance in basic ICT indicators, such as the numbers of computer users, Internet users, mobile telephone, fixed telephone lines, and broadband Internet subscribers. In terms of internet and broadband penetration, Qatar is already near the European level and also growing steadily.However, this doesn't include expatriate workers who constitute a large part of the Qatari population. *TV and computer penetration levels are high - mobile penetration is top-of-the-world as there are 1.2 - 1.3 mobile subscriptions per citizen *The usage of internet focuses mostly on simple applications, such as email. Online banking and government e-services are still underdeveloped *Methodological issues Studying journalism in Qatar is a complicated issue as we can observe some important signs. For example, we have Qatari journalism but very few Qatari journalists and this may affect the general attitude of journalists towards journalism freedom and whether this attitude represents the journalist's opinions about journalism freedom in their home country or in the country where they work. *Major Issues to be discussed: *There is a huge gap among Qatari media freedom as we can classify al Jazeera network in one category and other media (Print- Radio - Television and online journalism) in another one. *The Qatari media, especially Al Jazeera was one of the main supporters of the Arab Spring revolutions and this situation affected on its editorial policy. *There is no independent newspapers . *There is no syndication or any form of journalism association. *Journalists are working as expats according to renewed annually contract and sponsorship law ( we have about 75 nationalities are working in journalism industry and 28 nationalities relevant to editorial process. *Journalists have to be committed to advertising pressures, societal regulations, media editorial policy and self-censorship *All these controversial issues affect the journalist's insights and feedback about journalism freedom in Qatar.
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السلوكيات المنحرفة والتفكك الأسري دراسة ميدانية في قطر
المؤلفون: Layachi Anser, Abelkarim Alamir Hasan and Hakima Mohamed Mounabbihتعتبر الانحرافات السلوكية لدى المراهقين من أهم وأخطر المشكلات التي تواجه المجتمعات العربية بشكل عام، والمجتمع القطري باعتباره واحدا منها ليس بمنأى عنها. وتنتج هذه المشكلات عن التغيرات الاجتماعية والاقتصادية السريعة التي تمر بها هذه المجتمعات. وقد تفاقمت في الآونة الأخيرة نتيجة ضعف الرقابة الأسرية، وانشغال الآباء والأمهات بأمور الحياة، وزيادة تعامل الجيل الصاعد مع لوسائط التكنولوجية الحديثة. ومن أمثلة تلك السلوكيات؛ التهريج داخل الفصل وعدم احترام المدرسين، تخريب ممتلكات المدرسة، مخالفة الأنظمة والقوانين المدرسية، التلفظ بالألفاظ البذيئة، الاعتداء على زملاء الدراسة وممتلكاتهم، التدخين، التأخر والغياب، إلخ. الأمر الذي دفع الباحثين إلى دراسة أسباب تلك المشكلات، بهدف التوصل للحلول التي تسهم في تقويم السلوك المنحرف وتقديم طرق الوقاية والعلاج. وهدفت الدراسة التي أجريت إلى الكشف عن أنواع السلوكيات المنحرفة المنتشرة بين طلاب المدارس في المجتمع القطري. ومدى وجود علاقة بين السلوكيات المنحرفة والتفكك الأسري في أسر الأطفال والمراهقين. كما هدفت إلى تقديم مقترحات لإعداد برامج تثقيفية تهدف لوقاية الأسرة من مخاطر التفكك الأسري، وكذلك برامج تأهيلية بهدف تعديل سلوك المراهقين المستهدفين. اعتمدت الدراسة على المنهج الوصفي المعتمد على المسح بالعينة. بالنظر إلى تعدد المشكلات السلوكية لدى المراهقين وتنوعها، اعتمد فريق البحث على المزاوجة بين المقاربتين الكمية والكيفية. يتكون مجتمع البحث من طلبة المدارس المستقلة (الذكور والإناث) في المرحلتين الإعدادية والثانوية. كانت العينة طبقية عشوائية، اختيرت بطريقة مرحلية وبلغ حجمها 1500 من طلبة المدارس من الجنسين، من مجتمع البحث البالغ حجمه في تلك الفترة 45151 طالبا وطالبة. أما الجانب الكيفي فاعتمد على المقابلات الفردية مع مجموعة من الأخصائيين الاجتماعيين والنفسيين في المدارس لاطلاعهم على أوضاع الطلبة وبيئتهم الأسرية. وشملت المقابلات 21 من الأخصائيين العاملين بالمدارس التي شملها البحث ( 11 من الذكور و 10 من الإناث). توصلت الدراسة بعد تحليل البيانات إلى العديد من النتائج وأهمها أن المشكلات السلوكية هي نتاج تضافر مجموعة من العوامل الاجتماعية والاقتصادية والنفسية. بالإضافة إلى عوامل أخرى متفاوتة في درجة تأثيرها، ومن أهم تلك العوامل، إهمال الأبناء نتيجة انشغال أحد الوالدين أو كليهما، تأثير رعاية الخدم على الأبناء، الاختلاف والتعارض في أساليب التربية من قبل الأولياء، وتميز أساليب التربية الوالدية بالقسوة والشدة أحيانا، والتساهل والتدليل أحيانا أخرى، إضافة إلى ضعف التماسك الأسري واضطراب العلاقات الزوجية وصولا لحالات الهجر والطلاق.
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Iron Age Copper Smelting At Bayt Bin 'Ātī In The Qattārah Oasis (al-'ain, Uae): A Preliminary Study
المؤلفون: Thilo Rehren, Martina Renzi, Timothy Power and Peter SheehanThe archaeological site, situated at the southwest edge of the Qattārah oasis, has been excavated recently by the Abu Dhabi Authority for Culture and Heritage (ADACH) as part of a redevelopment project of the area to create the Qattārah Community Art Centre on the rebuilt structures of the Bayt Bin 'Ātī al-Darmakī complex. These excavations revealed that Bayt Bin 'Ātī had a long occupational sequence, with a deep stratigraphy that covers from the Iron Age until the Late Islamic period. No monumental structures have been unearthed at the site so far. The main archaeological evidence found is constituted by pits, postholes and irrigation ditches associated to agricultural and industrial installations. Since the first occupation phase of the site, agriculture seemed to be the main economic activity at the site but, during the Iron Age II (aprox. 1100-600 BC), copper smelting also played an important role, as suggested by the find of more than 50 kg of metallurgical residues, such as slags, furnace walls, fragments of metallurgical vessels and some metal lumps. This debris was spread on a 10 cm-thick layer in the southeast corner of the Southern Baulk, which is located between the arts workshop area and the semi-subterranean energy centre of the complex. No metallurgical structures or furnaces had been identified in the area. In this paper, we present the preliminary results of the analytical study of a small selection of this copper production debris, namely two fragments of tap slags, a fragment of a ceramic crucible and a large tongue-shaped metal lump. These samples have been examined by optical microscopy and scanning electron microscopy, and the results obtained indicate that sulphidic ores were exploited to produce copper. This kind of mineral deposits is commonly found in ophiolite rock, mined on a vast scale in the al-Hajar Mountains since the Bronze Age. Bayt Bin 'Ātī finds point at the continuation of those copper mining activities during the Iron Age, but only a more in-depth study of the metallurgical debris will allow us to obtain a better understanding of the patterns of ore exploitation and metal production on the territory during the Iron Age. In fact, it is worth mentioning that there are no mines known so far in the area of the Qattārah oasis. The closest mine is Wādī Jizzī in Oman, situated at approximately 60 km from Bayt Bin 'Ātī. The reason why they were transporting minerals instead of producing metals closer to the mining area is still unknown. The need for fuel and water could have been important factors but a broader study of the region is needed to shed light on this topic.
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Engagement And Productivity: What Are The Key Drivers For Gcc Nationals And Expatriates? Findings & Implications The Largest Gcc Workplace Study Ever Conducted - A Longitudinal Study 2010 - 2012
المؤلفون: David Barrie JonesKey words: GCC national, expatriate, nationalisation, Qatarisation, employability, employee engagement, workplace productivity, diversity and inclusion, early mid-career crisis Background The advancement of national talent is the single biggest human capital priority, if not the single biggest business impressive in the region. "Qudurat" was a longitudinal research study dedicated to understanding what drives and motivates national and expatriate talent in the region. This research was conducted in two waves, in 2010 and again in 2012, across 7 countries (Oman, Kuwait, Bahrain, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Egypt). Methodology To date, this is the largest workplace study ever conducted in the region. The total n size for the study was approximately 20,500 respondents, representing over 150 organisations across a wide variety of industries and including both the public and private sector, as well as educational institutions. In 2012, the study had over 2300 respondents from Qatar. The study design focused on fully 22 research variables, or drivers, including factors such as employee engagement, self - identity, workplace relationships and psychological strengths such as self-efficacy, resilience and preparedness. This paper will describe the research approach, share its major results and main findings, especially on the perspectives of nationalisation, youth inclusion and gender diversity in Qatar and the broader GCC. There will be particular emphasis and reference to the region's changing educational, demographic and talent landscape, along with their impact on employability, job creation, engagement and productivity and other aspects of labour market outcomes. All of these factors are of increasing interest and priority for policy-makers, organisational leaders, educational professionals and individuals across the broader MENA region and the GCC in particular. This paper offers analytical insights into the current state of the talent landscape from this ground-breaking study. Summary of Findings - Whilst Qatari nationals were the most engaged, GCC nationals are consistency and significantly less engaged than their expatriate counter-parts in their home countries. - The younger generation of nationals is significantly less engaged with their work than the older generation. - There has been a statistically significant decline in youth engagement (Under 25's) from 2010 to 2012. - Surprisingly, amongst all age groups, those under the age of 25 and especially those in the 25 - 34 year age groups report the lowest level of acceptance with diversity in the workplace. - Those workers under the age of 34 are experiencing an "early mid-career crisis" compared with their peers elsewhere in the world. - Average levels of employee engagement are higher in the private sector, rather than in the public sector. - GCC nationals report better relationships with their managers in the private sector, greater development opportunities and a more dynamic workplace. - GCC national women are significantly more comfortable than their male counterparts in a diverse working environment. The paper will conclude with practical recommendations and priority actions for each of these key constituent stakeholders within the region's dynamic talent landscape.
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Borrowed Words In Qatari Dialect: A Case Study
المؤلفون: Haifa Al-buainain and Haifa Al-buainainAccording to Graddol (2004) "The world's language system is undergoing rapid change because of demographic trends, new technology, and international communication. These changes will affect both written and spoken communication." The previous quotation reflects a linguistic reality. It is impossible to deny the influence of technology and international communication, not only on language, but also on our daily lives. The process of borrowing is one of the many ways in which technology and international communication affect language. Some of the borrowed words have Arabic equivalents, while others do not. Nevertheless, most of these borrowed words are subject to phonological and morphological changes. The main cause of the borrowing phenomenon may be that, as Baker stated, "translation activity in the Arab World is still too slow when compared to the speed with which new terms are coined for new concepts in the West and the frequency of their usage once coined" (1987, 88). Many of the loanwords, some of which are Arabized, are widely used today in Qatari Arabic. Arabization involves the rendering of foreign terms into Arabic in its original linguistic form, after introducing minor phonetic and/or morphological changes where necessary. This method has received much opposition from language purists, who fear that the assimilation of foreign terms may change the identity of Arabic and, if applied to excess, would even result in some form of a hybrid language. However, faced with the massive influx of new terms which need to be rendered into Arabic, even the purists have had to accept Arabized terms which have found their way into the language and increasingly gained acceptance, with or without academies' approval. (Ibrahim, 2006). Although linguistic borrowing is a universal phenomenon that has been noted historically and studied a lot , it is of interest to investigate this practice and its patterns in Qatari Arabic and to know to what extent the Qatari informants are able to know the meaning and the origin of some of the borrowed words in Qatari Arabic. Thus, the researcher collected one hundred of exotic foreign words which are Arabized and used in Qatari dialect and will ask Qataris to identify the meaning and the origin of the borrowed words. The focus in this study will be on the ability of the Qatari informants to identify the meaning and the origin of the borrowed words in question. Objectives: Identify some borrowed words used in the Qatari dialect. Identify the origin of the borrowed words. Identify the types of borrowed words. measure the knowledge of the sample to know the meaning of the borrowed words. measure the ability of the sample to determine the origin of the borrowed words.
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Technology Transfer Process In A Global Cross-cultural Context National Culture Impact On Knowledge Acquisition And Creation And The Effect On Qatar's Transition To A Post-hydrocarbons Knowledge Economy.
المؤلفون: Ashraf Ali IsmaelTechnology transfer is the process of transferring skills, knowledge and technologies to other parties enabling them to further develop and exploit the technology into new products, processes, or services. Based on Sahal's (1981) concept, Bozeman (2000) argues that technology and knowledge are inseparable simply because when a technological product is transferred or diffused, the knowledge upon which its composition is based is also diffused. An important pillar of knowledge-based economies is the knowledge transfer, which is guiding the establishment of knowledge distribution networks as a supporting structure for the links between the progress and utilization of knowledge. David, P. and Foray, D. (1995) Accessing and Expanding the Science and Technology Knowledge Base. Qatar's efforts in creating knowledge-based economy through knowledge acquisition and dissemination, hinges on the adaption of effective and efficient Technology transfer process. Qatar has a successful history in technology development in the oil and gas sector by tapping into foreign technology and knowledge "Know how" through collaboration with foreign companies. However, similar external transfer of technology has not taken place at the same scale in other sectors. "Turning Qatar into a Competitive Knowledge- Based Economy" Knowledge Economy Assessment of Qatar May 21, 2007 Government of Qatar Planning Council) The most relevant form of innovation for Qatar at this stage is local improvements based on adoption of technologies that are available worldwide or locally "Know-how and know-who". The national innovation strategy is mainly focused on external human capital and technology where the future success of the national innovation system is dependent on the development of internal innovation and research abilities with the associated knowledge transfer (Government of Qatar Planning Council, 2007). Focusing on Socialization and Internalization roles in knowledge transfer as the most exposed parts to cognitive impact, Tacit knowledge has a personal quality and the process of acquisition and dissemination are deeply impacted and affected by cognitive elements of which Johnson-Laired (1983) called "Mental Models". Such Mental Models are formed and constructed based on cumulative individual experiences. The research will attempt to verify and justify the evident cognitive impact on the internalization and socialization parts of Nonaka & Takeuchi (1995) "Spiral" Model of knowledge creation. As the impact will be shaped by the local social and cultural attitudes .The research will profile Qatar's local culture based on Hofstede five cultural dimensions using modified Values Survey Module VSM 2013 developed by Geert Hofstede and Michael Minkov. Qatar's cultural profile will impact the technology transfer process and cycle of knowledge acquisition and dissemination. The impact will be identified, validated and investigated based on Qatar's performance in World Bank Knowledge economy index and knowledge index The research contributes to the understanding of the relationships between cultural characteristics and behaviors shaping knowledge acquisition and creation process in a developing country transition to knowledge economy with emphasis on technology transfer. Conclusions will suggest a framework associating Culture and Knowledge to facilitate knowledge transfer within the state of Qatar.
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Effect Of Learner-centered Professional Development On Teaching Behaviors In Qatari Elementary Math And Science Classrooms
المؤلفون: Atmane IkhlefIn late 2002, Qatar established key elements of educational reform, known as "Education for a New Era", including curriculum standards, emphasis on problem-solving through student-centered teaching; standards-based assessment; and extensive professional development for teachers. Qatari education reform emphasizes student-centered teaching and learning where teachers are facilitators and students actively engage in learning through systematic inquiry and problem solving. Classrooms characterized by these elements should emerge as more successful on Qatari standards-based assessments, but little research has been done to determine whether these elements can be promoted though specifically designed professional development programs. The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of learner-centered professional development on teaching behaviors in math/science classrooms in Qatari independent elementary schools. The present study is a part of a three year QNRF funded research project which involved two major phases. The first phase of the research project was primarily descriptive and involved a sample of 67 teachers and approximately 1150 students randomly selected from 17 independent schools. The research in this baseline phase depicted the classroom instructional strategies implemented in response to Qatari educational reform goals, and described the extent to which students in Qatari Independent elementary schools engaged in self-regulated learning. The second phase of the research which is the focus of the present study used a quasi-experimental design to investigate the effect of specifically designed learner-centered professional development modules, which were developed based on the initial baseline data, targeting improvement of student-centered teaching behaviors (including perceived teaching efficacy). The study sample consisted of 47 math and science elementary teachers whose classroom teaching practices were assessed, pre and post intervention, using the teacher Attributes Observation Protocol (TAOP), teachers were also administered the Teacher Efficacy Scale (TES) pre and post professional development training. Overall, the results in this study show that student-centered teaching behaviors increased significantly post intervention for both intervention and control groups. The implications of the study findings for the implementation of reform and provision professional development training for teachers in Qatar were discussed.
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Net Trade Cycle And Operating Cash Flow
المؤلفون: Haitham NobaneeThis paper examines the relation between the net trade cycle as a measure of the efficiency of working capital management and operating cash flow of firms listed in the main US stock markets. The relationship is examined using dynamic panel data analysis. The analysis based on a sample of 5802 U.S. non-financial firms. The analysis is applied at the levels of the full sample and divisions of the sample by size. The results show negative and significant relation between the length of the net trade cycle and operating cash flow for the full sample and for all size levels. These results suggest that managers of the US non-financial firms can increase operating cash flow of their firms by shortening the net trade cycle.
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A Multi-echelon Network Distribution Model For Emergency Resource Planning
المؤلفون: Rojee Pradhananga, Shaligram Pokharel, Fatih Mutlu and Jose Holguin-verasResource planning in emergency management is a challenging task as it involves disaster situations where the demands are rapidly increasing and the resources are scarce. Conventional planning involves a centralized network structure where resources are distributed through a few prepositioning facilities located near to the disaster regions. In this research, we develop a novel multi-echelon network distribution structure for emergency resource planning. The structure at its highest echelon consists of a set of potential Supply Points (SPs), where resources are purchased and consolidated which is more practical in comparison to the conventional centralized structure. SPs are considered as typically large facilities in metropolitan cities in and around the potential disaster region from where the resources are distributed to the prepositioning facilities in order to be able to supply the materials immediately after the disaster in the area. The proposed structure also allows direct shipment of resources from SPs to the disaster regions in the response stage which is more close to the reality. Under the network structure, we formulate a new two-stage stochastic mixed integer programming model for an integrated emergency preparedness and response planning. The objective is to obtain the optimal allocations of the resources along with locations of the SPs and prepositioning facilities to satisfy the demand of disaster victims in a timely and cost-effective manner. We assume demand for supplies in the disaster hit areas are aggregated at locations called Aggregated Demand Points (ADPs). For the current study, the demands at the ADPs are obtained with a set of disaster scenarios each with a probability of occurrence. To develop the resource allocation model, we consider two distribution stages that are decided simultaneously: pre-disaster and post-disaster stages. In the pre-disaster stage, the analysis provides the location of SPs and the pre-disaster purchasing amounts to be acquired at the SPs. All or part of the purchased resources are positioned in prepositioning facilities located at selected ADPs. In the post-disaster stage, detail distribution of the resources to satisfy demands following the disaster event is considered. The demands in the post-disaster stage are met through pre-positioned resources at the prepositioning facilities and additionally, if required, through the direct shipments of resources from the SPs. We consider limited post-disaster purchasing opportunities at SPs as the quantities are to be purchased during a short and chaotic period. The optimization model proposed in this research consists of logistics and deprivation costs. The logistics costs include cost of provisioning, prepositioning, and delivering the resources. The deprivation costs represent the cost of not providing or delays in providing the supplies at the point of demand. The model is tested in a network for numerical analysis. The result shows that multiple SPs in the proposed network distribution structure helps to overcome the possible resource disruption that occurs with single sourcing in the centralized structure, resulting decrease of the demand shortage. Sensitivity of the model with different pre-disaster and post-disaster purchasing conditions at SPs are also discussed in order to represent realistic disaster scenarios. (Acknowledgement: Qatar/QNRF/NPRP Project: 5-200-5-027)
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Technology Tools For Enhancing English Literacy Skills
المؤلفون: Nada Soudy, M. Bernardine Dias, Silvia Pessoa, Swapnil Joshi, Ermine Teves and Haya ThowfeekThe goal of this project is to explore the role of computing technology in enhancing the teaching and learning processes for English as a Foreign Language (EFL). Past studies have demonstrated the potential of technology in enhancing literacy skills and motivating students. We have been building on this work to create a suite of computer and mobile based tools to improve English literacy skills. The distinguishing features of our tools are scalability and applicability to diverse user groups ranging from children to adults in different cultures. Our poster will provide an overview of the project's progress and development over the past year, and will focus on three major areas: needs assessment, content development, and technology development and testing. First, we introduce the project and discuss the results obtained from the project's preliminary needs assessment stage, which demonstrate the variety of needs and preferences of our diverse user groups. Needs assessment was conducted with five partners in Qatar and the U.S. These user groups fall into three categories of English learners: children with special needs, post-secondary EFL students, and adult learners. We relied on observations, semi-structured interviews, focus groups, and surveys with students and their teachers to learn more about these user groups. The second section of the poster focuses on content creation and summarizes the curriculum we developed for a community literacy program in Qatar. Active since 2010, Language Bridges runs as a student-led organization at Carnegie Mellon University in Qatar with the support of faculty, staff, and Reach Out to Asia, Qatar's major non-profit organization. Additionally, the curriculum incorporates our "Brain Race" mobile phone game. The game was developed after a thorough needs assessment of the Language Bridge's adult learner population that showed the learners' interest in playing car racing games and willingness to play a mobile phone-based game to practice their English. This section of our poster will cover the teaching and learning approach adopted by curriculum developers, present examples of curriculum exercises and techniques, include screenshots of "Brain Race", and provide evidence for the program's effectiveness as a whole. Finally, we describe our technology development starting with an introduction to our solution framework, followed by introductions to six new computer/mobile games that were designed by student game developers from Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh. These game concepts were developed based on user needs and preferences, and tested with our partners. We also summarize feedback from user testing of the new game concepts. The purpose of this initial user testing phase was to gather users' reactions to the game concepts, and to obtain their feedback on how to improve the games.
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Family Audience Research For Qatari Museums
المؤلفون: Nahil Salah Al AskariIntroduction This paper is based on ongoing audience research that conducted on behalf of Qatar Museums. The study, which started in September 2010, focuses on families across Qatar and aims to discover their needs, motivations and interests towards visiting museums. This ongoing project, which mainly targets Qatari and Arab families, has approached its audiences' needs and wants through quantitative and qualitative methods. A quantitative methodology was employed through a broad reaching family survey which has been the base for all the following research. This bilingual survey was distributed via schools in Qatar and in return received around 1,700 responses from families representing over 4,500 children. On the other hand, qualitative methods were applied through focus groups and in-depth interviews with individual family members or family groups. These two methods were used in order to develop our understanding of the family behavior, customs and values, as well as explore their interests and needs when deciding to visit a museum. In addition, families' behaviors, attitudes and interactions were also observed in museums and fun centers in Qatar and the UAE to pay close attention to the roles played by adults and their children throughout their visits. Findings Through various methods employed with different family members and groups, several findings have been shown: oMost families and children consider museums as places for displaying precious and valuable collections that engage them with their heritage or their grandparents' era. oFamilies in Qatar are socially motivated (72% of families interviewed or surveyed are primarily motivated by social factors). Qatari and Arab Qatar-based families identify visiting museums as an opportunity to spend time together and have an entertaining time as a family. oFamilies seek appropriate facilities in the museums to meet their social and practical needs such as a family lounge or café, as well as breastfeeding and baby changing rooms. oFamilies prefer to ignore using maps or asking information desks. However, they prefer to be engaged with exhibits through guidance or even conversation with each other or the exhibits' facilitators. oWord of mouth is key to attracting about 60% of families to museums and fun centers, especially those with young children. oThe research informs us of the greatest and least interesting topics that families would like to learn about. Implications of the Study The research has indicated very remarkable findings about families in Qatar and the Gulf, which help offer some significant implications: oEngaging and interactive environment should be offered in our museums' exhibits and facilities to allow social interaction among all family members with different ages. oVarious amenities should be provided to meet the families' practical needs such as special spaces for breastfeeding and baby changing. oThere is a need for more energetic and educated facilitators to effectively deal and engage with different ages in the museums' exhibits as well as extend their communication means to reach as much families as possible .
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Water Scarcity And Water Trade: An Analysis Of The Determinants Of Virtual Water Flows To The Gcc Countries
المؤلفون: Assem AbouhatabWith projected populations of about 633 million in the Arab region in 2050, water resources per capita are expected to drop to a level of about 470 cubic meters in region, compared with a world average of about 4,700 m3 for the same year (Sadik, 2013). Especially, the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries face the most severe water shortages in the region which represents a serious threat to the region's human security (Al-Zubari, 2008; Dziuban, 2011). With such diminishing per capita water resources, GCC countries rely on imports to meet the increasing food demand for the growing population, while they import more than 80 percent of their total food consumption (FAO, 2013). A look at the existing literature shows that virtual water, termed by (Allan, 1997), has always been suggested as a means of overcoming water shortage in water scared countries (Hoekstra and Hung 2002; El-Sadek 2010; Aldaya et al, 2010; Dalin et al. 2012). Few studies however have so far examined the determinants of virtual water flows into the GCC countries. Moreover, previous analyses used high aggregated level of data (developing countries, and the Middle-East region) and in most of cases the GCC countries were neither fully covered nor properly analyzed. The present paper is original and novel in that it provides a fresh perspective to the debate on the virtual water by focusing on the six GCC countries. To this end, the paper uses a cross-sectional dataset within a gravity model framework to examine the determinants of food imports by the GCC countries from their traditional trading partners while placing special focus on the importance of water scarcity related variables in explaining their food import pattern. Results show that coefficients on the traditional determinants of trade including per capita GDP, population and distance are in line with the gravity model hypotheses. Most importantly, water-scarcity related variables have the expected signs and plausible. Specially, a negative and statistically significant relationship exists between the percentage of water allocated to agricultural purposes and food imports by GCC countries. Moreover, the results indicate that the high the pressure on the renewable water resources, the more the food imports of the GCC countries expand. While water shortage is expected to increase during the coming decades, food imports in the GCC countries, therefore, would also continue to increase. The study concludes that GCC countries should respond proactively by negotiating food and agricultural trade agreements with potential food suppliers of food and to utilize overseas agro-food investments in order to ensure privileged access to food production and to cope with the likely negative impacts addressed by the increased water scarcity.
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Wage-led Growth: The Dynamics And Rigidity Of Gross Mean Wage In Lithuania
المؤلفون: Gediminas MacysWage-led growth: the dynamics and rigidity of gross mean wage in Lithuania Gediminas Mačys Professor of Economics, Dr. Institute of Economics and Business, Mykolas Romeris University, Lithuania Ateities str. 20, LT-08303 Vilnius, Lithuania www.mruni.eu; [email protected] tel. No. +3705 2714547 & Member of American Association of International Researchers (AAIR, New York, USA) Member of Global science and technology forum (GSTF, Singapore), Member of Regional Studies association (RSA, London, UK) Objectives 1) to analyse econometrically the relation between different contributors and the gross average wage. 2) Using the simple polynomial model, to analyse the dynamics of real wage rigidity 3) to propose the long-term, pro-labour policy means that would soften the real wages rigidity and the increase the wage share. Method. The paper presents the regressive analysis of real wage driving factors. The analysis confirmed an existence of strong, linear relationship between the GMW and three driving factors. The multinomial logit model of GMW rigidity has been applied in current research. Data. Both the wages and economic growth driving factors in Lithuania are based on panel data from 2002-2013 and were withdrawn from the Lithuanian national statistic surveys and individual surveys have been subjected to the Lithuanian business and household entities. The measures of downward nominal and real wage rigidity are derived on the basis of individual wage change distributions observed in household survey. Results. A strong linear relation of the real average wage and three driving factors was found. It circumstantiates that the economy of country is export-sided. The analysis found a strong rigidity of the real wage and the stiffening of rigidity over past few years in Lithuania. A shift in the bargaining power of the employers to the employees was found too. The application of wage-led growth model to Qatar economy is on the subject of paper discussion. The points of reference to pro-labour policy means that would soften the real wages rigidity and the increase the wage share in Qatar are discussed too. Conclusions. The regressive analysis of real average wage has revealed the strong linear dependence from three factors. Such permutation of the real average wage driving factors is normally appropriate for the small country that economy draws the strong export sector, i.e. the economy of Lithuania is mostly export-sided. The wage rigidity is a binding constraint on wage setting for large segments of the work force in a low inflation environment like a Lithuania period. In the Lithuania a shift in the bargaining power of the employers to the employees was found. The upward pressure on wages was caused by the decline in unemployment and is a result of strongly improved job market position of employees in Lithuania. Keywords: econometric analysis, dynamics of real average wage, rigidity of real average wage, wage-led growth, means of pro-labour policy.
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Preserving And Improving Traditional Built Environments In Doha: The Case Of Old-mushaireb Area
المؤلفون: Yasser MahgoubDue to rapid urbanization during the past few decades, Doha has witnessed the disappearance of significant areas of its traditional built environment that were replaced by modern mega real-estate developments, public buildings and projects. More traditional built environments are threatened to be demolished and disappear to pave the way for new projects and developments. Due to their increased land value and strategic locations, the most threatened areas are the ones located in the old city center. There is a need to preserve these environments because they represent an important stage in the development of the country and the history of its people. This paper presents strategies and proposals to preserve and improve one of Doha's unique traditional built environments. A group of graduate students from the Master of Urban Planning and Design program at Qatar University carried out an in-depth study of one of the threatened traditional built environments in Doha as part of Urban Planning Legislation course requirements. The area, known as Old-Mushaireb, located near the under construction Msheireb Downtown Doha and the renovated touristic attraction Souq Waqif, was the residence of many old Qatari families. It has a strategic location in the heart of Doha surrounded by main roads, namely; the A-Ring Road, Wadi Musheireb Street and Abdul Aziz Bin Ahmed Street. It contains large number of traditional houses, historical and modern buildings. The perimeter of the area is occupied by mixed-use buildings constructed after the discovery of oil. The heart of the area contains large number of traditional houses occupied by low income migrant workers. Each house is occupied by a large number of individuals with no adequate hygienic nor living conditions. The narrow streets and old fareejs are in a deteriorated condition lacking proper pavement and sewerage system. Many buildings are either abandoned, deteriorated or neglected with no proper maintenance. The condition is not acceptable neither for the poor workers nor for the unique traditional built environment and houses that are deteriorating rapidly and are on the verge of collapse. The aim of this project was to study the area and introduce legislation to preserve and enhance the quality of the built environment that would consequently enhance the human experience and use of space. The goal was to make the area a national and tourist attraction representing a stage in the physical evolution of the built environment in Doha. Another objective was to ensure a quality experience in an attractive heritage place that would respect all age groups using a sustainable approach. The area was surveyed and documented applying urban planning and design methods and practices. The team members analyzed the area and a proposed a preservation and improvement strategy that addresses the following components: 1) historical preservation, 2) safety and security, 3) children, 4) territoriality, 5) senior citizens, 6) walkability and 7) streets and parking. The study provides a model for a comprehensive strategy to improve and preserve traditional built environments that represent important stages of Doha's urban development.
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Orientality: An Open Door To The World
المؤلفون: Kholood Al-fahadOrientality: an Open Door to the World For the success that the Orientalist Museum has achieved in the conference entitled 'Orientality', I would like to represent one of our leading projects in research which was referred in the press "provides a forum for the continued investigation, facilitation,, and promotion of the study of Cultural Orientalism, including visual art, literature, music and dance'. I.The Orientalist Museum The Orientalist Museum has one of the most significant collections of Orientalist art ever assembled in the world. Indeed we are the only museum solely dedicated to Orientalist art, a movement which discusses the topic of the 'other'; Middle East and North Africa (MENA) in the eyes of the Western artists. This movement attracted a huge number of international talented artists who depicted this 'other' either by a first-hand or a second-hand experience. Their works reveal their impressions and give us a global understanding of the world. The Orientalist Museum is reassessing our past and present in order to bring back our forgotten and unknown memories. In this way, the museum is reclaiming the term 'Orientalist' by allowing local and greater MENA audiences to look at themselves through the eyes of outsiders. By doing so, we preserve a part of our heritage and take ownership of it. Though our museum is not yet open to the public, we hold exhibitions and conferences in order to reach our audience and to build a better mutual understanding between people. The artworks of this movement are a fascinating record of our past. II.The Orientalist Museum and Research Through exhibitions, conferences and research the Orientalist Museum opens the door for a conversation of cross-cultural experiences by discussing different related issues such as: social values, politics, ethnography, etc. The Orientalist art movement which emerged in the Renaissance period and reached its peak in the nineteenth century, had a great impact on art and culture today. Therefore through these conferences and exhibitions and by conducting and publishing research, the museum strives to increase knowledge and awareness about this very important art movement. III.The Orientality Conference For the purpose of raising the public awareness and developing their knowledge about the Orientalist art movement, the Orientalist Museum is hosting a biennial conference series entitled 'Orientality'. This conference aims to bring together leading academics to discuss the Orientalist art movement and its surrounding culture, in order to exchange ideas and thoughts based on original research. The represented papers will in turn be published in an associated journal. Our first conference was hosted in association with Pembroke College, Cambridge University in the UK on May 17 and 18, 2013. The conference was titled "Orientality: Cultural Orientalism and Mentality". Our next conference, subtitled 'Beyond the Foreign Affairs', will be held at the National Portrait Gallery in London in 2015, and the follow up will take place in Istanbul in 2017. We hope to spread the word by partnering with prestigious museums, academic institutions and media to convey our message.
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The Perception Of Nanotechnology: A Social Media Worldwide Study
Introduction Today the public perception of any scientific field and in particular of nanotechnology and nanomedicine is fundamental for their convincing grow in everyday life. In this study we provide a worldwide view of nanotechnology and nanomedicine possible future trends and opinions on ethics, funding and economics through the most widely used on line international social media platform: Facebook. At this purpose, we performed an analysis of nanotechnology/nanomedicine interest based on nanotechnology-focused Facebook page sand groups. We developed a method of investigation able to reach a worldwide sample through a nanomedicine poll. Our research technique were able to arrive at people that joined nanotechnology, nanomedicine, nanobiotechnology and nanomaterials (nine different types) Facebook groups; we called this "the Facebook nanotechnology world" (FNanoW). Results We report 539 pages, more than 68000 "likes" and 18000 members of nanotech groups. The majority of participants were young adults between 21 to 30 years old, representing 60.6 % of total survey participants. We found that graphene and carbon nanotubes are the most followed nanomaterials (Fig 1). We than performed a worldwide poll showing that the continents with the most interest are Asia (Including the Arab world) in terms of residence (50.1%) and origin (56.4%), and Africa with 20.1 % of participants from African origins and a 18.4% residing in this continent (Fig 2). A 43% would like to have a world commission regulating on nanomedicine. We found that the FNanoW would prefer to concentrate funding on research focused on "a combination of imaging, therapy and diagnosis" (42.7%) followed by "Nanodevices" (25.7%) and "tissue engineering" (10.4%). Over 90% believe that nanomedicine has an economic impact. Finally, we observed that continents of living and origin strongly correlate with ethic and funding opinions. Discussion and conclusion Social scientists know that the public's perception and awareness of nanotechnology is vital to innovation, development and commercialization of nanoproducts in any field including nanomedicine. The difficulties found in democratizing nanotechnology, also called public engagement, can be challenged by the use of online social media. We took advantage of Facebook, the most used online social network worldwide, as a tool to study nanotechnology awareness. With our research, at a global scale, no continent was excluded. We believe that this feature represents important piece knowledge for any government to plan future funding of research in the nanotechnology particularly for medical applications. We believe that the results reported in this work will allow, in the near future, to reach a more global interaction between scientists and the public, making the dream of democratizing nanotechnology a reality. Our study gives an example of useful approach to select very specific samples, at world level, to conduct social and commercial surveys. Moreover our study can be a ground-breaking new social media model to spread the awareness of nanotechnology and nanomedicine in emerging countries in Science: Qatar and the Arab world.
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Developing The Qatari Workforce Using Emerging And Flexible Training Technology
المؤلفون: Mohamed Ally, Mohammed Samaka, Loay Ismail, John Impagliazzo, Martha Robinson and Abdulahi MohamedThis research project addresses "Human Capacity Development" which is one of Qatar's Cross-cutting Research Grand Challenges. This grand challenge, which is a priority for Qatar, aims to develop sustainable talent for Qatar's knowledge economy in order to meet the needs for a high-quality workforce. As Qatar moves into the 21st century, it is important that Qatar develops its workforce to become more competitive and a model country for others to follow. At the same time, the quality of life of Qataris will be advanced. This presentation will describe a leading edge research project using emerging mobile training technologies to train workers in the oil and gas industry in Qatar. This project is funded by the Qatar National Research Fund. Subjects for this research project were employees at Qatar Petroleum. A total of 70 employees participated in this research project. The training was delivered on a variety of mobile devices which allowed employees to access the training materials from anywhere and at anytime. The research used a pre-post test design where a pre-test was administered before the employees took the training and a post-test was administered after the employees completed the training. The average percent score on the pre-test was 71 percent while the average score on the post-test was 79 percent indicating that employees' performance improved after completing the training using the flexible delivery method. In terms of the amount of time the employees spent on completing the training lesson, the time ranged from less than 30 minutes to more than three hours indicating the flexibility that mobile learning provided in training workers. In terms of where employees completed their training, 44 percent said that they completed some of the training at work and some at their home/residence; 22 percent completed the training at their home/residence; 19 percent completed the training either at work, home, or while travelling; and 15 percent completed the training at work. Again, these results show the flexibility that mobile learning provides in training. The results from this research project conducted at Qatar Petroleum show that the use of mobile technology for training workers improved performance and provides flexibility when and where workers completed their training. Delivering training using emerging mobile technology is important for the young generation of Qatari who are comfortable using mobile technology. Also, because of the flexibility of using mobile technology in training, workers can use the technology for just-in-time training so that they can apply when they learn right away which will facilitate high level learning. This research projects developed best practices for using mobile technology in training which will result in a paradigm shift in training to develop Qataris for the 21st century workforce. A well-trained Qatari workforce is important to achieve Qatar National Vision which aims at "transforming Qatar into an advanced country by 2030, capable of sustaining its own development and providing for a high standard of living for all of its people for generations to come"
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Developing The Teaching Performance Of Al Furgan Primary School Teachers
المؤلفون: Hamedelniel Elfadel AlallamABSTRACT This paper consists of two parts. It is argued in Part One that, the crisis in our educational systems, reflected in their poor outcomes (SEC) Supreme Education Council (2001, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2006); Rand Organization (2007, 2009); Hoyt, (2002); The Office of the Undersecretary, (2002), is not so much a result of a crisis in classroom assessment per se, as Black and William ( 1998); and R. Stiggins (2001) would like us to believe, as it is a crisis in instructional design and practice. The most serious aspects of this crisis are a) many educators and teachers seem to have undermined the significance of the internal conditions for learning, i.e. the affective and cognitive variables, which are vital for the success of any type of learning, b) teachers have either neglected the role of verbal classroom discourse between them and their students, or used it in such an ineffective way that made most teachers test rather than instruct their students, and c), most educators seem to have misconceived the nature and role of formative assessment, or assessment for learning, as it is now popularly, called (Stiggins, 2001, 2005). Evidence for all of this is provided by the Practice of our local teachers, as well as by the practice of highly renowned educators from both sides of the Atlantic (Black, et al (2003); Bloom ( 1984); R. Gagne and Briggs (1979); Gagne et al (2005); and R. E. Slavin (1994). Part Two does not only elucidate how this crisis was resolved by developing and using "The Model of Effective Teaching Leading to Mastery" (Hamed el Neil el Fadil, 1995, 2011), but it also presents strong empirical evidence as to the effectiveness of this Model. Perhaps, this was mainly achieved by marrying classroom assessment to the instructional process. This was conceived by using both formative and summative assessments as phases within the instructional design of the single lesson. Moreover, it has also been possible to activate the internal conditions for learning by preparing the learners, affectively and cognitively. At the beginning of every lesson. Furthermore, the fruits of this marriage are presented and discussed. First, there was a substantive increase in the percentage of achievement of the primary school students9 (See Chart (1 attached). Second there had also been gains of more than 2 standard deviations for the students of 1st, 2nd and 3rd grades, of Al Furgan Primary Private School- Doha, State of Qatar. Less, but significant gains were reported for the students of the upper grades. Since our initial objective was to develop the teaching performance of Al Furgan Primary School teachers, and not to try out The Model of Effective Teaching, it has been possible to avoid some of the difficulties, which affect the internal and external validity of true experiments. Viz, the Hawthorne and Henderson Effects… Hence, it may also be reasonable to conclude that this investigation has high ecological validity. Given the state of the art, it may be reasonable to consider this research a breakthrough.
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Art Therapy And Paediatric Oncology: Strengthening The Ego Of Children Diagnosed With Acute Lymphoblastic Leukaemia
المؤلفون: Sara PowellChildhood cancer can be a traumatic, physically painful and emotionally turbulent experience. Little is still known on the psychological impact of receiving medical treatment for children with cancer, in particular children displaying symptomology of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) as a result of their painful medical procedures. Literature indicates that art therapy can be a powerful therapeutic tool for paediatric oncology patients, faced with the uncertainties of their illness allowing for exploration of diagnosis and control over an uncontrollable sickness. A crucial first step for art therapists would be the need to focus on understanding the unique perspectives of children living with cancer, in order to effectively tailor interventions. To address this gap, this study aimed to understand children's lived experience of cancer, and art therapy as a therapeutic intervention in managing the emotional repercussions of their condition. Six case studies of expatriate (Western) children residing in Singapore, diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukaemia aged between five and eight years, are presented with fragile ego structure, suspected PTSD, displaying poor awareness of their disease and having an inability to effectively cope with their illness are presented. Research has been carried out over a duration of eight one hour sessions. Images depict the child's progression in developing ego strength by working through the child's defense mechanisms, and strengthening of the ego through the framework of sublimation of internal instinctual drives (id drives). Positive gains were evident through the results of pre/post parental questionnaires, pre/post PTSD evaluation, pre/post art therapy assessment assessing ego strength 'superhero assessment', and analysis of case content and artwork. This indicated a reduction of PTSD symptoms, management of external stimuli (treatment related procedures) was better managed due to an increase in the child's ego strength which resolved internal conflict through the act of sublimation of internal id drives. The findings offer preliminary support not only limited to the use of art therapy as a modality for a child diagnosed with cancer, but also provides insight to the child's emotional experience helping health care professionals managing paediatric oncology and the parents of children with cancer. Thus, emphasizing art therapy as a non-invasive therapeutic support, a support vital for a child diagnosed with a potentially terminal illness. Ongoing research is warranted to investigate ways in which art therapy can assist in managing paediatric oncology. Keywords: paediatric, oncology, art therapy,PTSD
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Assessment Value-added Of The Summer Enrichment Programs On The Performance Of Gifted Students At The Primary Stage
المؤلفون: Alaa Eldin Abdelhamid AyoubThe current research aimed at evaluating the value-added of the summer enrichment programs on the performance of gifted students at primary school. The subjects consisted of (144) students from the fifth and sixth grades of primary school, those students who participated in the Summer Enrichment Program of AlBushra National school in Mecca in the summer of 2013. The researcher studied the performance of students by using four variables (academic orientation, practical cognitive processes, emotional social traits, and moral sensitivity) which are the main objectives of the Enrichment programs. The researcher administrated the academic trends scale, the applied cognitive processes scale, the emotional social traits scale, and the moral sensitivity scale after calculating their psychometric characteristics on the students before and after the program. The results showed the presence of three clusters of differentiated (low performance, average performance, and high performance) among the participating students according to their start point (their prior knowledge) on the research variables. The results revealed that the program had a statistically significant impact on the dimensions of the academic trends, applied cognitive processes, emotional social traits, and moral sensitivity variables among students in the three clusters. Moreover, the results showed that the effect size of the summer enrichment program was high on all the major dimensions of the students in the three clusters except the dimensions of (academic interest crystallization, and academic self-efficacy), as it was mediate for high performance students. Additionally, the results indicated the effectiveness of the program in helping low performance students to gain more value-added than the average performance students and high performance students. Furthermore, the program help average performance students to gain more value-added than the high performance students. Results were discussed in the light of research literature and suggest some recommendations related to the results of the research topic. Keywords: Assessment of value-added, performance of gifted students
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The Role Of Forgiveness In Building Social Harmony In Modern Society
المؤلفون: Basyouny NehelaThe role of forgiveness in building social harmony in modern society One may ask, what is the purpose of having different religions globally? Religions are meant to promote peaceful feelings, and stabilize the society. As a result, we find that most, if not all, the religions offer a great deal of wisdom and guidance when it comes to purifying the heart from all sorts of worldly malevolence. Finding ways to nourish and cleanse our hearts is essential and eventually causes the heart to be harmonious and peaceful. Forgiveness is step one to turning the heart into a peaceful masterpiece. A person will see that the concept of forgiveness has a multitude amount of significances. When forgiving, a person forgoes any hostility in their heart. That ultimately yields a productive and a wholehearted environment within the society. It pushes the society to be a lot more cohesive and friendly. Additionally, it leads to happiness as well, since forgiveness emanates from deep below a person's heart. Islam is a great example of a religion that tackles the idea of forgiveness beautifully. Forgiveness starts from the creator who promises limitless forgiveness to his creations. He names himself The Merciful, The Forgiving, and The Most Compassionate. The creator sets a wonderful example for his creations to follow. He asks his believers to ponder upon the essence of his names so that they can learn from the insights each name carries. A believer must act upon his lord's attributes. If you expect forgiveness, then you should practice forgiveness. In order to be forgiven by your God, you must be forgiving to the creation of God. One cannot deny that forgiveness helps build a cordial society. Conflict is inevitable in any society; therefore, encompassing a forgiving, forbearing heart can be the solution to dissolving such conflicts. Mutual forgiveness is what will keep a society in tact. This study aims at finding the role that religion plays in establishing a strong, cooperative society by utilizing one of the most potent tools: forgiveness. Moreover, this study will indefinitely prove that forgiveness is potentially the most effective method to establishing a profound community. That latter is due to the belief that our life is being architected solely in and within our hearts. Keywords: religions, forgiveness, society, community, creation, God, harmony, happiness, conflict, stability.
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How People Do Relational Reasoning? Role Of Problem Complexity And Domain Familiarity
المؤلفون: Shikhar Kumar, Iliano Cervesato and Cleotilde GonzalezThe goal of this paper is to study how people do relational reasoning, such as selecting the grade of all students in a class with GPA greater than 3.5. Literature in the field of psychology of human reasoning offer little insight as to how people solve relational problems. We present two studies that look at human performance in relational problems that use basic relational operators. Our results present the first evidence towards the role of problem complexity on performance as determined by the accuracy and discrimination rates. We also look at the role of familiarity with tabular representation of information, as found in spreadsheets for example, and other factors for relational reasoning, and show that familiarity does not play a significant role in determining performance in relational problem solving, which we found counterintuitive.
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Greening Qatar's Economy: Creating A Sustainable Workforce For The Industries Of The Future
المؤلفون: Alexis Sergio Esposto'Green jobs' help reduce negative environmental impact ultimately leading to environmentally, economically and socially sustainable enterprises and economies. More precisely green jobs as defined by the International Labour Organisation (ILO) are jobs that: *Reduce consumption of energy and raw materials *Limit greenhouse gas emissions *Minimize waste and pollution *Protect and restore ecosystems The above definition covers activities related to both mitigation of and adaptation to climate change. It implies in its inclusivity and breadth that every job can potentially become greener and can help to resolve global environmental issues. Four areas of change have been identified as necessary for green jobs: physical changes in the environment itself; environmental policy and regulation; technology and innovation; and changes in prices, markets and consumer habits. These areas are interrelated but their relative importance differs among countries. In developed countries consumer behaviour and hence market forces are seen as critical for change, whereas in developing countries environmental changes and policy and regulation remain more important. Lessons from viewing early change patterns in the take up of environmentalism in industrialized countries may be useful in deepening our understanding of the policy-making and incentives necessary for appropriate investment, business development and technology transfer. Countries like Australia and Qatar are currently coping with a host of environmental challenges, particularly in the areas of construction and tourism and their impact on the environment. To take on this challenge, Australia and Qatar have produced strong policies designed to enhance environmental conservation. However, without developing supporting job skills, knowledge and abilities in the labour force, this challenge remains difficult to achieve. In view of this, the project will focus on identifying and understanding the role of particular skills, knowledge and abilities to build and sustain a green economy within these sectors. The project is to meet the following objectives: *To identify the necessary green skills, knowledge and abilities needed to develop and sustain an environmentally engaged construction and tourism industry; *To identify and describe existing and emerging 'green jobs' in the building and tourism industries to assist in the creation of a database of 'green skills'; *To analyse and describe the skills gaps/weaknesses of current 'green jobs' in the construction and tourism industry; *To review the current skills and training system, in particular institutional capacities and skills/competency standards in relation to their ability to create and support an environmentally engaged construction and tourism industry; *To propose 'skills for green jobs' responses (in terms of policies and programmes) to support the creation of new qualifications and to adjust existing qualifications in the construction and tourism industries; and *To provide recommendations on the best way to integrate green skills/green jobs components into existing skills/competency standards for selected priority occupations within the construction and tourism sector and other industry sectors.
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Personality Types And Accounting Subfields
المؤلفون: Shahriar Mohammad Saadullah, Zaki Abushawish and Abdul Quddoos AbdulbasithAccountants have been categorized as Conventional among the six well-known Holland's personality types (Holland 1997). We argue that the personality type of successful accountants depend on their respected subfield. In this paper we have subdivided the accountants into three categories; Financial Accountants, Managerial Accountants, and Auditors. We hypothesize that while Conventional individuals are likely to be successful Financial Accountants, Enterprising and Investigative individuals are more likely to be successful Managerial Accountants and Auditors respectively. We find support for our hypothesis that enterprising students perform better in managerial accounting classes but we fail to find support for the other two hypotheses. Implications are discussed.
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What Is Published About Special Education In Arab Countries? A Preliminary Analysis
المؤلفون: Clayton Keller and Maha Al-hendawiThe use of research-based educational practices when serving students with disabilities is an essential component of special education policy as, if such a research foundation is missing, policies are compromised. Because of government funding that has supported individual and programmatic research efforts for decades, much of the special education research base used throughout the world comes from the United States. Does such research, though, automatically transfer to the context of special education services in Qatar and other Arab countries? Standard assumptions about educational research suggest that the answer might be, not necessarily. What literature from Arab countries, then, is available to guide policy makers, researchers, administrators, and educators in the Middle East and North Africa? This QNRF-funded Undergraduate Research Experience Project: (a) identified the published literature on special education in the Arab world, (b) indexed it, and (c) conducted preliminary analyses of important characteristics of the journal articles to provide a broad yet detailed preliminary characterization of the body of work that exists about special education in Arab countries. Using five library catalogs, three electronic databases in Arabic—EduSearch, Shamaa, and Al Manhal—and two in English—EBSCO's Academic Search Complete and PsycArticles—the project identified 1,916 unduplicated items about special education for Arab students: 1,247 journal articles, 408 books, 186 theses, 58 reports, 8 book chapters, 2 artworks, 1 conference proceeding, 1 newspaper article, and 5 other items. Results from the analyses of the journal articles indicate that: (a) there is indeed a literature, (b) it is research-based, (c) to a large extent it deals with educationally related topics, and (d) it is quickly increasing over time. The amount of literature, though, is relatively small when one takes into consideration the size of the Arab world. A 2009 study of 11 special education journals in the United States found 6,724 articles over a 19-year period, whereas this project only uncovered 1,274 over a longer period of time from a less restricted number of journals. In addition, it appears that there may be large gaps in the Arab scholarly literature on special education in regards to specific countries and regions of the Arab world, disabilities, and age groups. The project also raises important questions about the implications of what literature is available and to whom, questions that speak directly to the challenges of being aware of and understanding the issues about special education in the Arab world as Qatar and other Arab states make the transition to knowledge-based societies. For instance, how does the Arab special education literature that is available in Arabic differ from that published in English, and what does that mean for educational leaders who can only access material in one of the languages? As it is much more difficult to export the results of searches from the Arabic databases than it is from those in English, what might be the effects on conducting systematic reviews from those sources? And what steps can be taken to remedy such differences in Arab special education knowledge accessibility?
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The Influence Of Television On Arab Preschoolers' Cognitive Skills
المؤلفون: Rawa AlaghaWith the emergence of new brand, preschoolers' television productions and station in the Arab World (i.e. Baraem TV, a subsidiary of JCC TV www.jcctv.net), my MA paper tests the following hypothesis: Arab preschoolers develop their cognitive skills (i.e. language and behavior) once exposed to educational media. The paper orchestras Gerbner et al.'s premise; that is, content rather than screen time or the medium, is the genesis of media research. The study projects the effects of two Baraem TV productions, namely Tela Tola and Horoof w Rosoum, in contrast with Tom & Jerry, a purely entraining show. As well, the paper tackles two aspects that existing literature overlooks (Oakes, 2-3 March 2006). That is, studying the social effects of media and using field experiments in research. The paper combines field experiments with surveys to ensure external validity, while testing the theories of Piaget's language acquisition and Bandura's social learning theory. All in line with Comstock et al. (1978) communication model which credits images imitation to the times a child watches the scene as well as the social context. In line with this model and to fit the current viewing trends, I propose a new viewing model with focus on repetition and attention. The results from the experiments fit with the proposed model. The paper also introduces a simplified model of Bandura's (1971) cognition processes that lead to behavior imitation after viewing time. The new model emphasizes the memory function and the imitated behavior. For time constraints, the study is qualitative. I followed the convenience sampling method, part of the purposive sampling (Meriam, 2009) which means reaching the subjects through available resources. In the field experiments, thirty children were divided into six groups, and they watched the shows with their classmates in a natural environment: the preschool. After watching the programs, all groups went through the same processes to measure the impact of the show on their skills. To allow comparison, every two groups viewed the same program. The survey response rate was low, however. Only six parents answered the questions, and this is considered a bias. Nevertheless, the design frame of the experiments itself ensures research validity. The field experiments trigger measuring instant post viewing effects, and the results of the groups who watched the educational content were in line with the theoretical frame (i.e. Piaget's and Bandura's theories as well as Comstock et al.'s communication model). Also, around 83% of the parents agreed that television affects children's prosocial attitudes. In conclusion, as stated above, the paper emphasizes the significance of the social effects with two new models proposed (the viewing model and the cognition model). Following the results of the field experiments, I recommend rolling out the edutainment productions experience in preschools. To support this recommendation, the paper refers to some successful school examples, while emphasizing the significance of selecting the appropriate material by parents, educators and producers. Keywords: preschoolers, educational, cognitive skills, behavior, language, television, social effects, field experiments
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The Influence Of American Public Opinion On Military Interventions After The Cold War
المؤلفون: Helene DieckRecent qualitative studies of the relationship between public opinion and U.S. foreign policy put decisions into the following two categories: the President tends to lead or to follow public opinion; public opinion influences decision-making, constrains the decision, or has no impact. These studies typically research the initial decision to intervene, but fail to examine the subsequent decisions to sustain and win a war: financial and human means, conduct, objectives, duration, and communication. I argue that these elements of a winning strategy are impacted by concerns with public support at home. The impact of public opinion on the decision whether to use force is better understood when analyzing the compromise between the perception of anticipated public opinion and the necessities of a military campaign. Public opinion impacts the strategy, the timing, and length of an intervention, and inversely, those elements impact the anticipated public opinion and ultimately the decision to use force or choose a different course of action. The president can expect to influence public opinion and raise the acceptability of an intervention through various means: he can assess the possibility to alleviate the potential political damage of a war by relying on the legitimacy of a UN mandate, using airstrikes to prevent casualties, or framing the debate to emphasize the link of the intervention with national security for example. Only if these options are not expected to be sufficient, will they consider comprising their desired goals for a more popular policy and strategy. As a consequence, there is a back-and-forth process between anticipated public support for a given intervention and the consideration of the use of force: the strategy envisioned for a potential intervention affects the anticipated support, which in turn affects the preferred strategy and in the end the final decision to intervene. Contrary to the current literature, which tends to conclude that the president enjoys a substantial margin for maneuver, an analysis of post Cold War cases of interventions, limited interventions, and military escalations shows that anticipated public opinion limited the president's margin for maneuver and influenced not only the decision to intervene but also the military strategy and in the end, the result of the intervention. These findings contradict the realist paradigm for which only the structure of the international system matters and domestic politics are irrelevant in the study of international relations. This research is primarily based on extensive interviews with high-ranking staffers from the National Security Council (NSC), the State Department, and the Department of Defense involved in the decision-making process as well as the White House pollster and high-ranking officials on the ground. These interviews are completed with open sources. Decisions are also scrutinized in light of their "political context". Indicators include the President's approval ratings and their current trend, the electoral cycle, the support of Congress and the elite opinion, polls on the issue and the salience of the conflict at the time.
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Qatar Olympic Participation (1984-2012): Creating A National Representation Through Sport
المؤلفون: Luis Henrique Rolim SilvaThis study examines the Qatar Olympic participation and the creation of a national representation through sport. Until its independence from Britain in 1971, Qatar could not participate in any international sport competition. On September 3, 1971, the country's Heir Apparent appeared on local TV and announced the Qatar's independence. In subsequent years, national sports federations in Qatar started to request for membership of their respective International Federations (IFs). However, in order to participate in the Olympics, the Qatar National Olympic Committee (QOC) should be established. Thus, in 1979, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) received a letter announcing the establishment of the QOC. After got its recognition in 1980, the QOC was eligible to send athletes to the Olympics. Since that to date, one hundred and sixteen Qatari athletes have represented the country in eight Olympics, starting with the 1984 Los Angeles Games. From the governance side, until 2000 Sydney Games, QOC had four different presidents. On December, 12, 2000, H.H. Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al-Thani took the leadership of the QOC. Two years later H.H. Sheikh Tamim was appointed as the first and until today the only IOC member from Qatar. In 2012 London Games, Qatar sent its first women delegation with four athletes in different sports. In its whole Olympic history, Qatar won four bronzes in different male sports. The idea of having athletes in the opening ceremony of an Olympic Games and raising the national flag of the country can be seen as a strategy of the government to assert their national autonomy on global stage (Tomlinson, 2006). In this sense, the Olympics were used by Qatar to win international recognition (Houlihan, 2005) and to create a national representation though sport. The study is based on the theories of Cultural History (Green, 2008), National Identity (Smith, 2009) and Imagined Community (Anderson, 2006). The primary sources used in this paper are official documents, letters and telegrams from IOC, the IFs and the Official Gazette of the State of Qatar. This study is the academic result of the research conducted by the 3-2-1 Qatar Olympic & Sports Museum into the history of Qatar in the Olympic Games in preparation of "Olympics: Past and Present Exhibition" which took place in Doha, Qatar from March until June, 2013.
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Face And Object Perceptual Deficits In Schizophrenia
المؤلفون: Ahmed MegreyaClinical studies in the face perception literature report that schizophrenics have a deficit in face identification. However, it is not clear whether this deficit is a part of a general cognitive impairment or is specific to faces per se. In this study, 40 male patients with schizophrenia and 40 male healthy controls were presented with a match/mismatch face identification task, in which faces were presented upright or upside down, and a standard 1-in-6 object matching task, which consisted of a target line drawing of common objects and a six-variant target-present line-up. Schizophrenic patients performed worse with objects and all faces than the control subjects. In addition, the schizophrenic patients also showed a marked decline in performance over the course of the experiment. These findings suggest that the perceptual problems that have been observed with faces in schizophrenic patients reflect a general cognitive impairment that also affects object perception.
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Using A Gravity Approach To Explain Food Imports For Improved Food Security In Qatar
المؤلفون: Munshi Masudul Haq, Simeon Kaitibie, Samsul Huda, Noel Vock, Kep Coughlan, Kenzu Abdella, Marco Pollanen and Ahamed MoustafaToday, food security is a global problem. The Qatar National Food Security Programme describes the dimensions of food security in Qatar in terms of food quality, physical availability, and affordability, alongside the resilience of the country's food supply to short-term trade shocks and long-term global supply risks. The world's richest country per capita, Qatar has a population of just over two million, but the country does not have sufficient arable land and irrigation water which are severely limiting local food production. Thus, over 90% of food consumed in Qatar is imported, making the country vulnerable to supply disruptions and price hikes. When the global food crisis of 2007-2008 occurred, food import dependent countries like Qatar were hit harder and policy makers as well as institutions such as the World Bank prescribed the adoption of greater diversification and management of food imports for enhanced food security. Therefore, it is vital to conduct research to understand how much, what and with whom Qatar trades and what are the determinants of the trade pattern between Qatar and its food import partner countries. This will allow Qatar to develop a better food import strategy in order to complement the proposed increase in domestic food production to attain increased resilience in food security. Using food import and data other variables recorded from 2004 to 2013, we used a gravity model of bilateral trade to estimate the determinants of food import trade between Qatar and its trading partners. In its basic formulation, the gravity model suggests that the value of trade between any two countries is directly related to the sizes of the economies and inversely related to the distance between the two countries. We enhanced the predictive capacity of the gravity model by including other variables that are known to influence trade. Examples include dummy variables to capture regional integration, corruption perception, openness of the economy, and changes in foreign exchange rate regimes. In addition we used the Herfindahl Hirschmann Index to determine the extent of concentration in the import market for food. This allowed us to determine whether or not unusually large amounts of food items were imported from a few countries, a situation that would imply insufficient import market diversification. Preliminary results revealed that the Gross Domestic Product of countries from which Qatar imported food items is positively and significantly related to the value of food import by Qatar, suggesting that Qatar imported more food items from larger economies than from smaller countries. In addition, distance is negatively and significantly related to the value of trade, and hence Qatar imported more food items from nearby countries than from faraway countries. Both results are in conformance with economic theory underlying the gravity model. Among the remaining variables, we observed that Corruption Perception Index is positively related to the value of trade, implying that Qatar is importing more food items from less corrupt countries.
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Building Qatari Teacher Capacity Through Lesson Study
المؤلفون: Dudley Reynolds, Nancy Allen, Maha Ellili Cherif, Zohreh Eslami and Samah Al-sabbaghBackground & Objectives Previous project research identified three challenges for Qatari middle school students studying science: 1) a curricular and "real world" need to learn from both Arabic and English texts; 2) poor student reading comprehension across languages; 3) teaching methods that require reading comprehension and oral fluency without attention to reading processes. To help students improve their reading comprehension Qatari teachers need 1) a deeper understanding of reading as a strategic, goal-oriented process and 2) practical techniques for helping students read more strategically. There are also challenges for teacher learning. The baseline research found that teachers have a general idea of what they should report they do, but when observed in the classroom the strategic reading practices were not evident. A key objective, therefore, of teacher development in this project was helping teachers make connections between their learning and practice. Lesson Study (Lewis & Perry, 2006) is an approach to teacher development in which teachers collaboratively study an idea for improving their practice, plan a lesson together that incorporates the idea, observe student learning while the lesson is being taught by a member of the group, and then reflect on the lesson's effectiveness. This cycle is implemented multiple times to promote greater understanding. Pilot Lesson Study programs were initiated at one boys' and one girls' Qatar independent preparatory school. The programs aimed to promote science and English teachers' knowledge of strategic reading processes and their repertoire of techniques for incorporating this knowledge into teaching. This presentation examines the programs' contribution to teacher development. Method The programs in each school brought together three English and three science teachers with two members of the research team and met for six weeks. The teachers were interviewed using the same protocol before, in the fourth week, and in the week following the program. Group meetings were audiotaped, and the weekly lessons taught by group members observed. Researcher notes also provide triangulation. Transcripts of the interviews and session meetings were coded for comments indicative of the ways in which participants' knowledge, perceptions, and practices changed over the course of the six weeks. Results Areas of development identified include conceptual knowledge of reading, reading strategies, and means of professional development; perceptions of reading-related challenges faced by students and teachers; and teachers' repertoire of instructional and assessment techniques. The key components of Lesson Study that seemed to foster this development are: the reflective cycle linked to teachers' actual practice, a focus on student learning, and support provided for a community of practice. Furthermore, the inclusion of teachers from two disciplines (English and science), a unique component for Lesson Study programs, enabled participants to gain a wider perspective on their practice. Conclusions The qualitative analysis identifies a number of positive outcomes for participants and provides insight into the characteristics of Lesson Study that promote these outcomes. Future research using a more controlled experimental procedure will address whether these outcomes also lead to improved student reading.
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أخلاقيات استخدام الجمهور للشبكات الاجتماعية بعدثورات الربيع العربي وآثرها علي اتجاهاته نحو هذه الشبكات
المؤلفون: Ashraf Galal Hassan Mohamed Mohamedكان من المفترض أن تقوم وسائل الإعلام - ومن بينها الشبكات الاجتماعية - باستكمال دورها في مرحلة إعادة البناء واستكمال مكتسبات واستحقاقات الثورات العربية من إقرار الدساتير واستكمال الأنظمة النيابية والتشريعية التي تساعد في إقرار الأمن وتحقيق العدالة الاجتماعية والكرامة الإنسانية التي قامت من اجلها تلك الثورات ولكن - ومع استثناء جزئي لتونس - حصل العكس وخاصة في التجربة المصرية وقامت وسائل الإعلام والشبكات الاجتماعية خاصة بتجسيد وتأكيد التحزب والتشرذم والاستقطاب السياسي مستخدمة كافة الأساليب والممارسات غير الأخلاقية سواء من خلال حسابات صريحة أو مستعارة الأمر الذي أدى إلى فقدان الثقة والمصداقية في أداء هذه الشبكات من جانب وأثار التساؤل حول جدوى ودور هذه الشبكات في مرحلة ما بعد الربيع العربي من جانب آخر وسعت الدراسة للإجابة على سؤال أساسي وهو ما طبيعة وحدود أخلاقيات استخدام الجمهور المصري للشبكات الاجتماعية بعد ثورة 25 يناير وأثرها علي اتجاهاته نحو هذه الشبكات؟ أهمية الدراسة: 1-زيادة معدلات التحريض الإعلامي من خلال الشبكات الاجتماعية وخاصة في أعقاب عزل الرئيس مرسي و استمرار حالة عدم الاستقرار السياسي والاجتماعي الذي تشهده مصر 2-حظر نشاط بعض الجماعات مثل جماعة الإخوان المسلمين وحركة 6 ابريل وتوجههما نحو التصعيد الالكتروني من خلال الشبكات الاجتماعية الهدف النهائي للدراسة ترشيد استخدام الشبكات الاجتماعية من خلال محاولة وضع كود أخلاقي يلتزم به مستخدمو الشبكة بما يسمح بتفعيل دورها البناء في استكمال تحقيق أهداف ومكتسبات الثورات. منهجية الدراسة اعتمدت الدراسة علي منهج المسح الكيفي لرسائل الشبكات الاجتماعية عبر الفيسبوك فيما يخص الشأن المصري لحسابات 1- جماعة الإخوان المسلمين 2- حركة تمرد 3- صفحة المرشح السياسي السيسي 4- صفحة المرشح السياسي صباحي كما تم الاعتماد على مسح عينة عشوائية طبقية من الجمهور المصري من المقيمين بمدينة الدوحة قوامها 420 مفردة لقياس اتجاهاتهم نحو مستوى الالتزام الأخلاقي للشبكات الاجتماعية بوجه عام وعلى الفيسبوك بوجه خاص. الإطار النظرى تطبق الدراسة نموذج الحوكمة الإعلامية باعتبارها نظام متكامل من الأنظمة والقوانين والقرارات التي تهدف لتحقيق الجودة والتميز في الأداء من خلال تطبيق ثمانية مبادئ أساسية وهى المشاركة والموضوعية والشفافية والإيجابية والتوافق والمساواة والكفاءة والفاعلية والمسئولية والمحاسبية والرؤية الاستراتيجية فروض الدراسة : 1.لا توجد فروق معنوية من حيث الالتزام الأخلاقي بين الحسابات التي تمثل التيارات السياسية والاجتماعية المختلفة 2.هناك فروق معنوية ذات دلالة في الالتزام الأخلاقي للشبكات الاجتماعية حسب نوع الحساب (لصالح الفردي مقابل المؤسسي) و(غير الرسمي مقابل الرسمي) 3.كلما زاد مستوي الاهتمام السياسي زاد معدل استخدام الشبكات الاجتماعية 4.هناك علاقة ارتباطية ايجابية معنوية بين معدل استخدام الشبكات الاجتماعية واتجاه الجمهور المصري نحو الالتزام الأخلاقي لتلك الشبكات 5.هناك علاقة ارتباطية طردية معنوية بين تدني مستوي الالتزام الأخلاقي عبر الشبكات الاجتماعية و انصراف الجمهور عن استخدام تلك الشبكات النتائج العامة 1.هناك حالة من الانهيار الأخلاقي تسود منشورات وتعليقات مستخدمي الشبكات الاجتماعية ، فالأمر تعدى مسألة الاختلاف والحلاف والهجوم الي التشهير و التجريح والإثارة والتحريض ورفض وإنكار الأخر واستباحته على كافة المستويات وبدلا من ان تكون الشبكات وسيلة للتفاعل الحر لمناقشة مختلف الأفكار والحقائق ووجهات النظر تحولت الشبكات إلى معول هدم لقيم وأفكار الآخرين والنيل منهم كأحد آليات الاستقطاب والتحزب والتشرذم وقد ظهر ذلك في كافة الحسابات التي تم تحليلها بوجه عام وفي صفحة حساب كل من الإخوان وتمرد بشكل خاص.
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Beliefs About Jinn, Black Magic And Evil Eye Among Muslim Nursing Students At University Of Calgary In Qatar
المؤلفون: Jan Marie Graham and Diana WhiteThe purpose of this study was to raise awareness about and understanding of the meaning and significance of Jinn, black magic and evil eye for undergraduate nursing students studying at the University of Calgary in Qatar. Nursing students are educated using a Canadian curriculum that purports nursing as a science through evidence-based best practice. Based on instructor experience, it was apparent that many Muslim nursing students attribute the person's mental or physical health disorder to the presence of Jinn, black magic and evil eye. These concepts do not fit within the context of evidence-based care, yet are important considerations in developing nursing education that will result in client-centred, culturally competent nursing practice. The researchers administered the survey "Beliefs about Jinn, Possession, Black Magic and Evil Eye" developed for use in previous studies regarding beliefs about possession among Muslims in Dhaka, Leicester, and Bangladesh (Khalifa, Hardie, Latif, Jamil, & Walker, 2011; Khalifa, Hardie, & Mullick, 2012; Mullick, et al, 2012). One hundred and twenty-eight (128) approximately 41% of the nursing student population of undergraduate nursing students participated in the study. Participation was voluntary and only those who self-identified as Muslim were invited to take part. The results of the survey were analyzed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) to generate descriptive statistics and frequencies data. The benefits of this research may include enhancement of teaching strategies and curriculum by improving cultural sensitivity and competence of nursing faculty related to increased knowledge and understanding of Jinn, black magic and evil eye. This research will also enhance and add to the limited literature available on nursing education for Muslim students in the Middle East. The scholarly benefit will be more culturally inclusive content related to Islamic beliefs of Jinn, black magic and evil eye, and the potential impact on nursing care. The researchers will report on the findings of the study within the context of nursing education and share recommendations for consideration of other health science programs in Qatar. Khalifa, N., Hardie, T., Latif, S., Jamil, I., Walker, D.M. (2011). Beliefs about Jinn, black magic and the evil eye among Muslims: Age, gender and first language influences. Journal of Culture and Mental Health, 4, 68-77. Khalifa,N., Hardie, T., &Mullick, M.S.I. (2012). Jinn and psychiatry: Comparison of beliefs among Muslims in Dhaka and Leicester. Royal College of Psychiatrists. Mullick, M.S.I., Khalifa, N., Nahar, J.S., & Walker, D.M. (2012). Belief about Jinn, black magic and evil eye in Bangladesh: The effects of gender and level of education. Mental Health, Religion & Culture. DOI: 10.1080/13674676.2012.717918
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Building Tools For Dietary Health Monitoring: Studying Food Consumption Through Twitter
المؤلفون: Yelena Mejova, Sofiane Abbar and Ingmar WeberFood is an integral part of our lives, cultures, and well-being, and is of major interest to public health. According to the International Diabetes Federation, 23% of adults in Qatar had diabetes in 2013, being third most affected country in the Middle East and North Africa region. Diet, as a major cause of such diseases, is thus an important subject of study both on personal and societal levels. However, the collection of daily nutritional data involves keeping detailed diaries or periodic surveys and is limited in scope and reach. Alternatively, social media is infamous for allowing its users to update the world on the minutiae of their daily lives, including their eating habits. In this work we examine the potential of Twitter to provide insight into US-wide dietary choices by linking the tweeted dining experiences of 210K users to their interests, demographics, and social networks. We validate our approach by relating the caloric values of the foods mentioned in the tweets to the state-wide obesity rates, achieving a Pearson correlation of 0.77 across the 50 US states and the District of Columbia. We further link this data to societal and economic factors, such as education and income, illustrating that, for example, areas with higher education levels tweet about food that is significantly less caloric. Finally, we address the somewhat controversial issue of the social nature of food by inducing two social networks using mentions and reciprocal following relationships. We show that users tend to mention food of similar caloric value as their social neighbors, such that an activation effect is detectable, but not necessarily in their geographic vicinity, suggesting more diverse local ties. In effect, we present a set of tools to track dietary behavior online which we will next apply to Qatar and the Gulf region.
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The Effect Of Source Texts And Essay Prompts On Student Writing
المؤلفون: Thomas Mitchell, Ryan Miller and Silvia PessoaBackground & Objectives This study investigates effects of source texts and writing prompts on university students' writing. In courses across the curriculum, students are required to write analytical, argumentative essays based on sources and in response to prompts provided by the instructor. However, variation in source texts and prompts can greatly impact students' written productions. Much existing research on these effects has focused on quantitative measures of writing quality, such as number of words and clauses, or on raters' scores of writing quality. In addition, most research has focused on high-stakes assessment situations, such as TOEFL or IELTS testing. These leave us with little information about the effects of source texts and prompts on university classroom writing. Drawing on data from a larger 4-year longitudinal study of academic writing development at an English-medium university in Qatar, this study investigates effects of source texts and essay prompts on students' writing of argumentative history essays. Methods Student essays written based on two source texts, and in response to one of four prompts for each source (N=90 essays), were qualitatively analyzed using an established taxonomy of history genres. Students' essays were classified as Textual Recounts (include information directly from the source text), Descriptive Explanations (focus on causes and effects), and Arguments (argue for a claim using evidence from the source text). To supplement our analysis of the student writing, we also draw on interviews with students, interviews with the history professor, assignment descriptions, and grading rubrics. This additional data provides insight into the professor's and the students' perspectives, and informs and enhances our interpretations of the analysis of student writing. Results Results showed dual constraints of source text and prompt on produced genres. Overall, the analysis found that although the professor expected students to write Arguments, only 45% of the essays were Arguments. Many students in the study resorted to writing Recounts and Explanations, engaging in "knowledge telling" rather than "knowledge transformation" through argumentative writing. When the source was non-argumentative, prompts asking students to synthesize or evaluate information more often resulted in argumentative essays than prompts asking for description or comparison. However, when the source itself was argumentative, few students wrote an argument, and only in response to prompts that explicitly invited an evaluation of the source text. With argumentative source texts, most students simply mimicked the argument of the source text in a Recount. Conclusions Consistent with previous research, our findings suggest that students are drawn to and can achieve better results in their writing depending on the source text genre and also the wording of the prompt. Based on these findings, we make recommendations for source text selection and prompt construction for eliciting argumentative writing. We also suggest additions to history genre typology that take university-level writing expectations into account.
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Domesticating Genomics In The Arab World: Islamic Religio-ethical Deliberations
المؤلفون: Mohammed GhalyBy the end of 2013, the Qatar Genome Project (QGP) was launched by HH Sheikha Moza bint Nasser. Similar initiatives in the Gulf region usher new age for genomics in the Arab world. Previous experience in this field has demonstrated that mapping and sequencing human genomes always have profound ethical and social implications. This explains the establishment of the Ethical, Legal and Social Implications (ELSI) Research Program as integral part of the Human Genome Project (HGP) with annual fund of $14 Million. This successful experience of interweaving ethics and genomics became the norm for subsequent research projects conducted elsewhere on our planet. Rigorous analysis of the ethical deliberations on genomic technologies shows how religious convictions and cultural values of involved stakeholders can play a decisive role in formulating ethical positions. Bearing in mind the religio-socio-cultural fabric of the Arab world and specifically the Gulf region, one can hardly imagine successful domestication of the ongoing genomic revolution without addressing the relevant ethical concerns from Islamic vantage point. This research explores the Islamic religio-ethical perspectives on genomics-related ethical issues by providing: (A) descriptive overview of the religio-ethical deliberations that already took place in the Arab world and (B) critical analysis of these deliberations and proposing the pressing ethical issues that should still be addressed within the context of future genomic ambitions in the Arab world. (A)Descriptive Overview Realizing the complexity of ethical issues raised by genomics, both Muslim religious scholars and biomedical scientists collectively addressed these issues in successive large-scale expert meetings during the last decade. The Doha-based seminar "Ethical Implications of Modern Researches in Genetics" organized in 1993 by the Faculty of Science, Qatar University was one of the earliest initiatives in this respect. Islamic Organization for Medical Sciences (IOMS) held a seminal seminar on "Genetics, Genetic Engineering, Human Genome and Gene Therapy" in 1998 in Kuwait. The two Islamic Fiqh Academies, one affiliated with the Muslim World League and the other with the Islamic Cooperation Organization, held intensive discussions on similar issues in October 1998, November 1998, 2012 and 2013. During these meetings, various issues were examined from an Islamic perspective including population screening and reproduction ethics, gene therapy, eugenics, and genetic counseling. (B)Critical Analysis This part provides analytical reflection on the deliberations outlined in the first part by "translating" the commonly held ethical positions to a bioethics-friendly discourse in order to establish a constructive trans-cultural bioethical dialogue, e.g. what these deliberations can tell us about Muslim religious scholars' perception of concepts like confidentiality, informed consent and autonomy. Reference will also be made to some ethical issues that should still be seriously addressed because they touch upon central concepts in the Islamic tradition such as ownership, nature of human being, health and illness. Organizing academic and public events for addressing these issues will be the subject of close collaboration in the near future between the Research Center for Islamic Legislation & Ethics (CILE) and the Supreme Council of Health (SCH).
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Investigating The Eye Movements Of English L1 And Arabic L1 Speakers While Reading English Sentences.
المؤلفون: Molly Joan OakleyEye movements are now widely used to investigate cognitive processes during first language (L1) reading. However, comparatively few studies have been conducted on second language reading (L2). This presentation will describe a study which used eye tracking technology to investigate the differences in eye movements between English L1 and Arabic L1 speakers when reading English texts. A total of 75 participants were involved in the study: 36 faculty and staff members and 39 students from the College of the North Atlantic in Qatar. Reading materials were presented on a 23-inch monitor attached to an HP Z400 Workstation PC interfaced with a Tobii TX 300 eye tracking system. Participants were presented with 16 images of common signs such as street signs or shop signs. They were then asked to read at their own pace and say which of two ensuing sentences referred to the sign they had just seen. Data were exported into R, a system for statistical computation and graphics, and outcomes from 6 metrics were calculated using Wilcoxin rank-sum tests. The critical value for hypothesis tests, p, was set at 0.05. Results showed that the two groups differed significantly in 5 of the 6 metrics calculated: 1) number of fixations per individual 2) fixation duration 3) saccade length 4) number of saccades per individual and 5) length of regressions. The sixth metric calculated (number of regressions per individual) approached but did not meet significance levels. The study found that the Arabic L1 participants displayed eye movement patterns that were significantly different from, and potentially less effective than, the patterns executed by the skilled English L1 speakers. The aim of the presentation is to illustrate the results, discuss the pedagogical implications and suggest possible classroom interventions to help Arabic L1 students develop effective word-level reading skills in English.
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Qatari Women: Engagement And Empowerment Through Majlis Al-hareem
المؤلفون: Jocelyn Sage MitchellFemale engagement and participation in the Middle East and in the Arab Gulf in particular—especially among ordinary women interacting within their societies—have been largely overlooked in social science literature until quite recently (e.g., Sonbol 2012; Krause 2008). Too often, the Western and global mindset emphasizes social and cultural exclusion and segregation of women, particularly in the Arab Gulf, to argue that women are left out, oppressed, and silenced. Yet our recent qualitative and quantitative research in the state of Qatar depicts Qatari women as equal to or even surpassing men on a variety of important indicators of political, economic, educational, and social engagement (QNRF UREP 12-016-5-007). One of the most significant findings point toward a particular aspect of Qatari women's engagement with their societies: the use of majlis al-hareem (female gatherings) as a way of caring for the family, interacting with the community, and engaging with the government, on levels comparable to their male counterparts. Using the case study of Qatar, our research aims to understand the drivers and obstacles of women's agency in the Arab Gulf by focusing on the use of majlis al-hareem as a locus of engagement with greater society (QNRF UREP 15-035-5-013). We hypothesize that the majlis al-hareem is a natural setting of social life for women in the Arab Gulf, in which the act of participation has direct implications for willingness and ability to engage in greater society. Beyond the confines of the familial home, few spaces in the Arab Gulf afford women the privacy and freedom to assemble and engage in conversation. The majlis is a designated, purpose-built gendered meeting space or salon, unique to the Arab world. Yet there is no existing social science literature on female participation in these types of gatherings, as Western literature traditionally depicts the majlis as a male-only place of power. Our research employs both qualitative and quantitative methodology to gather crucial empirical evidence, combining ethnographic fieldwork and interview-based research in approximately 20 different majlis al-hareem throughout Qatar (spanning family, social, neighborhood, religious, and intellectual gatherings) and a professional survey of Qatari women (of 1,049 respondents) conducted through Qatar University's Social and Economic Survey Research Institute using random sampling and trained interviewers. Our data gives new insights into female engagement and empowerment in the Arab Gulf, filling a social science research gap and continuing the burgeoning academic conversation on the power and place of women in Middle Eastern society. References: Krause, Wanda. 2008. Women in Civil Society: The State, Islamism, and Networks in the UAE. New York, NY: Palgrave Macmillan. Sonbol, Amira El-Azhary, ed. 2012. Gulf Women. London: Bloomsbury Academic.
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Examining Service Quality For Islamic Banks In Egypt
المؤلفون: Dalia Abdelrahman Farrag and Mohamed HassanPurpose: Although a great number of research studies for service quality take place in the context of developed countries, the similar studies in the context of developing countries like in Egypt are limited. The purpose of this study is to modify a service quality scale for measuring the performance of Islamic Banks in Egypt using the SERVQUAL multi-item scale after adapting it to fit the Egyptian culture. Research design: The popular multi-item scale of measuring service quality used in this study is SERVQUAL (developed and modified by Parasuraman et al.1985, 1988, 1991,1994). Qualitative research in the form of focus groups was conducted to modify the SERVQUAL scale to fit the Egyptian Islamic banking culture. Three focus groups were conducted with managers and employees working in Islamic banks. Furthermore, a convenience sample of 30 Islamic bank clients was surveyed in order to measure the reliability and validity of the new SERQUAL dimensions derived from the focus groups conducted. Findings: Transcriptions from the 3 focus groups were analyzed using initial and focused coding techniques. Exploratory and factor analytic techniques were used to explore the dimensionality of the scale. The study developed 22 statements for measuring the five different dimensions of service quality in Islamic banks that included: tangibles, reliability, responsiveness, Empathy, Assurance and two new dimensions of trust and Shariah- compliance. Research Implications: After the 25th of January revolution, there has been a significant rise of Islamic banking and finance in Egypt. However, this trend is still considered in it's growth stage in Egypt compared to other countries specifically in the Gulf and parts of Europe where Islamic finance and banking is very well established and understood amongst vast amounts of both Muslims and non Muslims. Thus understanding points of weakness and strengths through analyzing the SERVQUAL scale dimensions is essential for Islamic banks as well as the perceptions of current clients about the service quality delivered by such banks. This paper shows that the SERVQUAL after modifications is valid and reliable in the banking industry in Egypt. Based on this study and other studies cited, it appears that future research on Service Quality should involve the development of industry specific measure of service quality.
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