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The study aims to test a measurement scale to examine social business networks (Wasta) surrounding Arab Christians and Arab Muslims.

A 31-item scale was used to capture Wasta, consisting of the following: Mojamala (emotional), Hamola (conative) and Somah (cognitive) tri-components. A total of 149 Christian Arab and 304 Muslim Arab respondents were sampled and multi-group structural equation modeling was used to confirm the concept and test several hypotheses.

The findings from the study reveal that in order for success to occur within the Arab context, a sequential process of first developing Mojamala is necessary, before Hamola can prevail. Christian Arabs are motivated to integrate with society and form relationships via generalized trust. Muslim Arabs meanwhile tend to retain their distinct culture, using social networks to forge particularized trust. Shariah principles may also play a significant role in explaining why satisfaction was not found to be a necessary condition for Arab Muslims in driving relationship performance.

The study suggests that the 370 million Arab population may not be totally cohesive and should be refrained from being grouped together. In-group identification is a major contributor in explaining why business models are different between Arab Muslims and Arab Christians. The findings further support that Muslim Arab business models are based on tribalism or sheikocracy, whilst Christian Arab business models are based on legalistic frameworks and integration.

The study supports prior research associated with Muslim Arab business models based on tribalism or sheikocracy (Ali, 1995). The findings suggest that Arab Muslim business models focus on particularized trust as opposed to generalized trust that is common in Arab Christian business models and in most western countries. The study demonstrates that Mojamala (the emotional construct), Hamola (empathy) and Somah (particularized trust) are useful constructs for building Wasta and they serve a core element for Arab Muslim business models. Mojamala and Somah both directly affect satisfaction. Somah and satisfaction have a direct influence on performance.

The findings provide evidence to support institutional theory. Also from a stakeholder theory perspective, viewing companies, not only through an economic lens, but also building social institutions, can lead to a better understanding of business models drawing on diverse cultures and faiths. The study may therefore serve as a useful reference for academics and practitioners as they grapple to enhance satisfaction and leverage performance advantages within this context.

This paper aims to investigate the impact of Islam, as a set of moral and cultural values, on economic growth and development for 17 Muslim countries over the period 1990–2019.

To identify the relationship between Islam and economic growth, the authors have proceeded with an empirical panel data analysis using the Autoregressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) model. The study is conducted initially on a sample of 17 Muslim countries and then on 2 sub-samples composed of 12 Arab Muslim countries and 5 non-Arab Muslim countries.

The empirical analysis showed a significant negative relationship between Islam and economic growth for the Arab-Muslim countries. While for the non-Arab Muslim countries, the relationship remains positive. Following the introduction of the interactive social variables (unemployment and illiteracy), the authors show that increasing unemployment exacerbates the negative effect of Islam on growth. While the effect of illiteracy remains statistically insignificant. However, for non-Arab Muslim countries, the positive effect of Islam on growth is all the greater as these countries have large social contemplation. However, the introduction of the interactive cultural variables (uncertainty avoidance index and long run orientation), show that the positive effect of Islam on growth is all the more important as the non-Arab Muslim countries have a wider cultural value system. While for the total sample and the sub-sample of Arab-Muslim countries, the cultural dimension does not affect the relationship between Islam and economic growth.

Although there are more religions, the authors have considered only Islam as its relationship with economic, social and cultural development and its influence on the entrepreneurial culture is problematic. Maybe a comparative study between different religions offers us a more convincing result.

Social conditions, cultural heritage and race (Arab or non-Arab) play an important role in determining the relationship between Islam and economic development.

The effect of Islam remains dependent on Islamic thought and its long-term orientation, uncertainty avoidance and the level of social value creation in the countries where it is practiced.

On the theoretical and on the empirical level, the analysis of the relationship between Islam and development is rarely addressed in the relevant literature because of its sociologically sensitive aspect. Islam would have a positive effect on growth when it evolves in countries that have built their growth on an extroverted and developed economic model and an adequate social and cultural value creation system. However, unemployment, illiteracy, cultural patrimony and race of the Muslim population (Arab or non-Arab) plays, in the long run, a very important role in determining the relationship between Islam and economic growth.

This paper aims to examine the variation in Arab/Muslim consumers’ willingness to buy (WTB) from product’s origins (POs) involved in the Arab/Muslim-Israeli animosity case despite their common nationality and religious affiliation.

Qualitative research methodology is used. A total of 30 Arab and Muslim individuals were interviewed, and web documents were analysed. A grounded theory approach is adopted to analyse the data collected.

The results reveal that the variation in WTB from offending PO among Arab/Muslim consumers is influenced by the intensity of animosity (IOA) as perceived by the individual consumer towards the PO. IOA is a variable affected by the antagonistic emotional impact which is evoked by the egregiousness of the PO’s actions (PO involvement) and consumer connection with the political issue (consumer involvement) and is moderated by the time of the PO’s egregious actions.

Politically favourable POs in the Arab/Muslim world need to target consumers who perceive greater connection with the political issue, whereas politically unfavourable POs need to target consumers who perceive weaker connection with the political conflict, in addition to distancing themselves from it.

This is an original attempt to gain insight into the different levels of willingness of fellow nationals to buy a product from an offending nation in the context of Arab/Muslim-Israeli animosity which is explained through the IOA model of foreign product purchase.

The Nonfinancial employment commitment (NFEC) of Muslims in general, and of Arab Muslims in particular, has not yet been studied. Accordingly, the purpose of this study is to fill this gap by exploring the NFEC among Arab Muslims in Israel and comparing it to that of Jews in Israel.

The most common indicator of NFEC is the classic “Lottery Question,” which asked whether an individual would continue or stop working if they won a lottery or inherited a large sum of money. The sample included 215 Muslims and 898 Jews representing the Israeli labor force.

The findings reveal higher NFEC among Arab Muslims, particularly among women, compared to Jews. Muslims and Jews in urban areas have a lower NFEC then those who live in smaller localities. Among both Jews and Muslims, NFEC significantly increases with education level and income.

NFEC is an important measure of the work ethic. A high NFEC of Arab Muslims, especially among women, reflects a high nonactualized potential for Western societies integrating Arab Muslim immigrants and refugees into the labor market.

The authors adapted the core–periphery model and found that it could explain the authors’ findings regarding NFEC differences among ethnoreligious groups in different residential areas. As the authors indicated before, it is the first time that NFEC of Arab Muslims has been studied.

The aim of this paper is to explore how Arab Muslim women entrepreneurs construe success, their identity as successful and the influence of Islam on these construals in the country-specific context of Lebanon.

To achieve our aim, a qualitative interpretative methodology, drawing upon 25 in-depth, semi-structured interviews with Muslim women entrepreneurs was adopted.

Equipped with Islamic feminism, Arab women entrepreneurs experienced Islam as a malleable resource. Islam allowed them to construe success and their identity as successful at the juncture of their lived experiences as business owners, Muslims of good character and standing and Arab females. Ultimately, Islam unfolded as a dynamic religion that supports women's agency in a landscape dominated by deeply entrenched patriarchal societal and cultural norms and gender-based restrictions.

First, we contribute to research on the effect of Islam on entrepreneurship by demonstrating the influence of Islam on women's identity construction as successful and their construals of success. Second, we contribute to research on how entrepreneurs construe success beyond situating their construals of success in opposing camps of either objective or subjective success. Third, we contribute to research on identity construction and identity work by demonstrating how Muslim women entrepreneurs' identity as successful is construed at the intersection of their personal and social identities.

This chapter examines a popular online trend—photo-sharing—in an understudied region, the League of Arab States. In contrast to online information from official bodies, anyone with Internet access can view and create destination photos. This study first searched for destination photos on Flickr.com, a popular photo-sharing website, from 22 Arab countries, and then content analyzed 589 Muslim and travel photos. The key results included Egypt with the most destination photos and Saudi Arabia with the most Muslim images. Common Muslim images were mosques and women with headscarves. This chapter shows that Flickr photos represent Arab images and are possible destination recommendations.

This study employs Stein Rokkan's methodological approach to analyse state formation in the Greater Middle East. It develops a conceptual framework distinguishing colonial, populist and democratic pacts, suitable for analysis of state formation and nation-building through to the present period. The framework relies on historical institutionalism. The methodology, however, is Rokkan's. The initial conceptual analysis also specifies differences between European and the Middle Eastern state formation processes. It is followed by a brief and selective discussion of historical preconditions. Next, the method of plotting singular cases into conceptual-typological maps is applied to 20 cases in the Greater Middle East (including Afghanistan, Iran and Turkey). For reasons of space, the empirical analysis is limited to the colonial period (1870s to the end of World War 1). Three typologies are combined into one conceptual-typological map of this period. The vertical left-hand axis provides a composite typology that clarifies cultural-territorial preconditions. The horizontal axis specifies transformations of the region's agrarian class structures since the mid-19th century reforms. The right-hand vertical axis provides a four-layered typology of processes of external intervention. A final section presents selected comparative case reconstructions. To the authors' knowledge, this is the first time such a Rokkan-style conceptual-typological map has been constructed for a non-European region.

The purpose of this paper is to examine how learning experiences are shaped for Arab Muslim women students by the different educational approaches (teaching style, relations with lecturers and types of knowledge) and extent of cultural pluralism in three different higher education (HE) campuses in Israel.

To clarify these issues the authors conducted narrative interviews with 12 Arab Muslim women students in the Hebrew University and in two academic colleges. Significant differences were found in the women's experiences between the university and the two academic colleges.

Arab women had difficulty integrating in the university in contrast to a supportive more familiar environment in the colleges. The different environments also had different implications for the women's identity formation. The findings indicate that since Arab women students have specific needs stemming from their different socio-cultural background, they should be assisted in their integration in academic courses with preparatory instruction and guidance.

Implications for minority students in different HE campuses are discussed.

This article examines definitions of terrorism, racial profiling and the demonisation of Arabs and Muslims in the United States (US). Additionally, it explores the impact of the US Patriot Act 2001 in the war against terrorism.

The aim of this paper is to examine gender role attitudes between Christian and Muslim college students towards 11 most heatedly debated cliches in Lebanon that concern equal access of men and women to political and social spheres including employment.

A three‐way MANOVA (gender by religion by class) was conducted on gender role items. Correlation of religiosity were performed between Christian and Muslim college students to explore associations between religiosity and gender role attitudes among respondents.

Main effects were found among respondents, with females consistently holding less gendered attitudes than males; hence attesting to the universality of gender role attitudinal differences. The gender by religion interaction showed that Christian respondents and Muslim females documented less “traditionally demarcated” gender roles in social and public domains than Muslim males. Furthermore, class appeared to be a weak predictor of gender beliefs compared to the impact gender and religion had on gender role attitudes. Finally, correlation results showed that religiosity was associated with traditional gender roles.

While the temptation is strong to generalize the attitudes of college students to the general public in Lebanon, the present study recognizes that its findings are only a mild reflection of gender role attitudes in Lebanon since it was exclusively limited to college students.

Comparing gender role attitudes between Lebanese Muslim and Christian college students is of particular importance to academics, public citizens and policymakers interested in the removal of gender inequalities.

Scarcely any research in the Arab World compared gender role attitudes among Arabs, particularly between Christian and Muslim samples.