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1 – 10 of 14Ghassan Elkahlout, Sansom Milton and Ruba Hawa
The purpose of this paper is to explore the feasibility of mud brick houses as an alternative to the more widely adopted emergency shelters used in war-torn Syria. It focuses on…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explore the feasibility of mud brick houses as an alternative to the more widely adopted emergency shelters used in war-torn Syria. It focuses on the mud houses’ sustainability, cost effectiveness, cultural preference, income generation and security.
Design/methodology/approach
This study uses a qualitative research approach to a single case study. Interviews were conducted with field experts from the Qatar Red Crescent Society and members of the internally displaced persons (IDPs) community living in mud brick houses.
Findings
The findings reveal that the utilisation of mud houses is a good alternative in relief efforts. The houses are sustainable and cost-effective, take into consideration cultural dynamics and provide economic empowerment to IDPs. However, the maintenance of mud brick houses turns out to be the largest flaw, and this problem requires further research.
Originality/value
The paper highlights the inefficiency of current emergency sheltering practices in Syria and reveals that tents are not a preferred mode of shelter. It further sheds light on a unique case study in which mud houses were used by an aid and development organisation, highlighting its strengths and weaknesses. This paper contributes to practical discussion and ideation on more appropriate housing for IDPs.
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Surveys in Europe show that immigration is more of a challenge than an opportunity for a significant number of people. However, little attention is given to attitudes toward…
Abstract
Purpose
Surveys in Europe show that immigration is more of a challenge than an opportunity for a significant number of people. However, little attention is given to attitudes toward immigration in the Middle East. This paper examines the effects of personal values and religiosity on the anti-immigration attitudes of citizens in the Middle East and North African countries.
Design/methodology/approach
Utilizing data from the World Values Survey, we analyze how personal values and religiosity affect anti-immigration attitudes in nine Middle Eastern countries. The data covers individual-level data of 9 MENA countries from the WVS Round 7 (2017–2022). Factor analysis is applied as a data reduction method. Afterward, an OLS regression analysis is conducted on the pooled data.
Findings
Anti-immigration attitudes increase with age, education, and religiosity. Personal values such as national pride, support for nationals, and belongingness to one’s country significantly affect anti-immigration attitudes. Furthermore, the importance of religion as a measure of religiosity was found to be positively associated with anti-immigration attitudes.
Originality/value
This paper contributes to underexplored literature by investigating how individual-level determinants, such as demographic indicators, personal values, and religious factors, shape anti-immigration attitudes in the MENA context, distinct from European dynamics.
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Samaneh Khademi, Caroline Essers and Karin Van Nieuwkerk
This article develops an innovative multidisciplinary conceptual framework in the field of refugee entrepreneurship by combining the theory of mixed embeddedness with the concepts…
Abstract
Purpose
This article develops an innovative multidisciplinary conceptual framework in the field of refugee entrepreneurship by combining the theory of mixed embeddedness with the concepts of intersectionality and agency. Focusing on the phenomenon of refugee entrepreneurship, this conceptual framework addresses the following questions: how is entrepreneurship informed by the various intersectional positions of refugees? And how do refugees exert their agency based on these intersecting identities?
Design/methodology/approach
By revising the mixed embeddedness approach and combining it with an intersectional approach, this study aims to develop a multidimensional conceptual framework.
Findings
This research illustrates how the intersectional positions of refugees impact their entrepreneurial motivations, resources and strategies. The authors' findings show that refugee entrepreneurship not only contributes to the economic independence of refugees in new societies but also creates opportunities for refugees to exert their agency.
Originality/value
This conceptual framework can be applied in empirical research and accordingly contributes to refugee entrepreneurship studies and intersectionality theory.
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Azadeh Motevali Zadeh Ardakani, Maura Sellars and Scott Imig
The purpose of this study was to gain a deeper understanding of the experiences and challenges of Middle Eastern refugee mothers in using technology for language learning in…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study was to gain a deeper understanding of the experiences and challenges of Middle Eastern refugee mothers in using technology for language learning in regional Australian context.
Design/methodology/approach
This study used a qualitative research design and used a narrative enquiry technique to understand participants’ experiences of language acquisition with limited access to technology in new resettlement setting.
Findings
The findings presented in this paper were derived from a qualitative investigation conducted on a sample of 21 refugee mothers from Middle Eastern countries. The research aimed to explore the role of a language education programme on their integration within the regional Australian context. Participants discussed a variety of aspects of their everyday lives within their new resettlement context while offering insights on the language education programme and its impacts on their educational progress. The theme “lack of access/use of technology in English language learning” emerged from the narratives. This paper draws on selected interview data from the participants.
Originality/value
This study fills the gap in the literature on Middle Eastern refugees in regional Australia by exploring how lack/limited technology access can impact language acquisition of women from under-represented contexts.
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Although there is a growing body of work on immigrants' information behavior, little is known about the pre-arrival information experiences of immigrants who consult formal…
Abstract
Purpose
Although there is a growing body of work on immigrants' information behavior, little is known about the pre-arrival information experiences of immigrants who consult formal information sources such as immigration agents. Drawn from a larger study on the information behavior of immigrants, this paper mainly reports the semi-structured interview findings on the pre-arrival information experiences of Bangladeshi immigrants who used formal information sources with discussion on how that affected their post-arrival settlement into Canada.
Design/methodology/approach
The study used a mixed method approach with semi-structured interviews (n = 60) and surveys (n = 205) with participants who arrived in Canada between the years of 1971 and 2017. Data were collected from May 2017 to February 2018.
Findings
Although the overall scope of the original study is much larger, this paper features findings on the pre-arrival information experiences derived mainly from an analysis of interview data. This study provides insights into the pre-arrival information experiences of Bangladeshi immigrants consulting formal information sources such as immigration firms, individual immigration consultants and more formal government agencies. The author introduces a new concept of “information crafting” by exploring the negative consequences of selective information sharing by immigration consultants/agents in newcomers' settlements in Canada, primarily positive information about life in Canada, sometimes with exaggeration and falsification. The interview participants shared story after the story of the settlement challenges they faced after arriving in Canada and how the expectations they built through the information received from immigration consultants and government agencies did not match after arrival. This study emphasizes the importance of providing comprehensive information about life in Canada to potential newcomers so that they can make informed decisions even before they apply.
Originality/value
The findings of this study have theoretical and practical implications for policy and research. This study provides insights into the complicated culturally situated pre-arrival information experiences of Bangladeshi immigrants. Moreover, the study findings encourage researchers in various disciplines, including psychology, migration studies and geography, to delve more deeply into newcomers' information experiences using an informational lens to examine the information newcomers receive from diverse sources and their effects on their post-arrival settlement in a new country. The study challenges the general assumptions that formal information sources are always reputable, useful, and comprehensive, and it provides some future directions for research that seeks to understand the culturally situated information behavior of diverse immigrant groups.
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İsmail Cengiz Yılmaz and Hamdi Tekin
Migration is on the rise due to globalization and human mobility. This has led to increased impacts that have affected many industries, including the construction industry. A…
Abstract
Purpose
Migration is on the rise due to globalization and human mobility. This has led to increased impacts that have affected many industries, including the construction industry. A large number of migrants are employed in the construction sector, and employers are challenged to make sure all employees are properly integrated to meet the demands needed for construction projects. This article addresses key differences between migrant and native workers to help hiring departments in the construction industry analyse workers' attitudes based on cultural and motivational factors to have the workforce they need to succeed.
Design/methodology/approach
The research used both quantitative and qualitative surveys. A two-part questionnaire, designed through a comprehensive literature review, was carried out to identify key differences between native and migrant workers. The data were obtained and then analysed using different statistical approaches, including factor analysis protocol, factor structure model, reliability analysis, relative importance index and nonparametric test analysis. A semi-structured interview was then conducted to discuss all the findings.
Findings
The study indicated that migrant workers, compared to natives, tend to give more importance to their working environment, particularly accommodation, work safety and relations with teammates. Also, migrants typically take a socialistic approach instead of an individual approach while at work and reveal an extensive range of behaviours based on a sense of belonging. It might be more important for migrants to have a place in society, to have a settled life and to be integrated into an established order than to improve their rights and benefits. On the other hand, the study argued that native workers tend to prioritize their benefits at work, such as regular payments for overtime and insurance premiums. Their behaviours might carry a more neutral and individual attitude as well as specific cultural traces.
Research limitations/implications
The study is limited to a sample of participants in the Turkish construction sector. Further research based on more cultural models and motivational factors with a larger group of respondents from different countries could offer better results. The results of the study might not apply to a broad context due to many other factors that affect worker behaviours, such as geography, cultural structures and working conditions. Despite these drawbacks, the present paper may help employers and other stakeholders understand the best way to incorporate migrants into the construction industry.
Originality/value
This research is very important for the construction industry in various countries that are currently employing thousands of migrants. Being able to address the key differences between migrants and native workers based on cultural and motivational factors might help with engagement and create a level of harmony in the field for greater productivity.
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JORDAN: Amman will maintain economic rectitude
Details
DOI: 10.1108/OXAN-ES286979
ISSN: 2633-304X
Keywords
Geographic
Topical
Rosemarie Santa González, Marilène Cherkesly, Teodor Gabriel Crainic and Marie-Eve Rancourt
This study aims to deepen the understanding of the challenges and implications entailed by deploying mobile clinics in conflict zones to reach populations affected by violence and…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to deepen the understanding of the challenges and implications entailed by deploying mobile clinics in conflict zones to reach populations affected by violence and cut off from health-care services.
Design/methodology/approach
This research combines an integrated literature review and an instrumental case study. The literature review comprises two targeted reviews to provide insights: one on conflict zones and one on mobile clinics. The case study describes the process and challenges faced throughout a mobile clinic deployment during and after the Iraq War. The data was gathered using mixed methods over a two-year period (2017–2018).
Findings
Armed conflicts directly impact the populations’ health and access to health care. Mobile clinic deployments are often used and recommended to provide health-care access to vulnerable populations cut off from health-care services. However, there is a dearth of peer-reviewed literature documenting decision support tools for mobile clinic deployments.
Originality/value
This study highlights the gaps in the literature and provides direction for future research to support the development of valuable insights and decision support tools for practitioners.
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Gerardo Petruzziello, P.M. Nimmi and Marco Giovanni Mariani
This study aims to understand how employability capitals’ dynamics foster self-perceived employability (SPE) among students and graduates, which is still being empirically…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to understand how employability capitals’ dynamics foster self-perceived employability (SPE) among students and graduates, which is still being empirically explored. Building upon the Employability Capital Growth Model and the Social Cognitive Career Theory’s career self-management model, we aimed to understand how different capitals associate by testing a serial mediation model connecting career identity (reflecting career identity capital) and SPE through the serial mediation of cultural capital and job interview self-efficacy (ISE) (an element of psychological capital).
Design/methodology/approach
We adopted a two-wave design involving 227 Italian University students and graduates. We recruited participants through multi-channel communication. The hypothesised relationships were analysed employing the structural equation modelling approach with the SPSS AMOS statistical package.
Findings
The results indicated that career identity, cultural capital, ISE and SPE are meaningfully related. In particular, in line with our expectations, we observed that career identity predicts cultural capital, which is positively associated with ISE which, ultimately, impacts SPE.
Originality/value
Our work adds to existing research by advancing the understanding of employability capitals, explaining how they interact and influence SPE, which is crucial for a sustainable transition into the workforce. At a practical level, our findings call upon, and guide, efforts from various stakeholders in the graduate career ecosystem (i.e. universities and their partners) to offer students and graduates meaningful experiences to form and use their employability capitals.
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The psychological foundations of consumers’ reasons for product choices are analyzed in the field of marketing. The purpose of this research is to identify the implicit reasons…
Abstract
Purpose
The psychological foundations of consumers’ reasons for product choices are analyzed in the field of marketing. The purpose of this research is to identify the implicit reasons for white meat consumption in the UK and Turkey.
Design/methodology/approach
In the scope of the means-end chain theory, in-depth interviews were conducted with individuals, and the reasons for consumers’ product preferences were revealed by moving from concrete to abstract.
Findings
It has been determined that the white meat consumption of Muslims in the UK is primarily shaped by their religious approach. In Turkey, on the contrary, both consumption patterns and reasons for preference are changing. It has been found that white meat consumption is associated with values such as security needs, satisfaction with life, self-fulfillment and happiness.
Research limitations/implications
This research has contributed to the marketing literature by examining consumers’ implicit consumption reasons for white meat in the context of religion and culture.
Practical implications
Marketing strategies should focus on building trust in halal certification, particularly in the UK. Brands should associate their promotion strategies with feelings of security and happiness, which are associated in the minds of consumers.
Originality/value
This study is a new study in terms of revealing the connotations of consumers about consuming chicken and fish and showing the implicit needs that the brands can emotionally associate with.
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