Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Arab studies'

The purpose of this study was to observe the correlation between ethnic identity and gender as well as the relationship between ethnic identity and one’s country of origin. The study participants (n=335) were recruited through the social media sites Facebook, Twitter, Linked In, and Reddit. Participants completed the 15-question Multigroup Ethnic Inventory Measure (MEIM) and a Demographic Questionnaire, all done completely online. It was hypothesized that participants’ level of ethnic identity as measured by MEIM scores would differ significantly between the genders. Furthermore, it was posited that participant’s level of ethnic identity would differ significantly between countries of origin. Both hypotheses were supported. Implications of the study findings and recommendations for future research are discussed.

The purpose of this project was to write a grant to fund Youth for One World, a program designed to help Arab American youth predominately residing in Los Angeles and Orange counties develop leadership skills and participate in mainstream American society. The literature review described the shortages and benefits of Arab American youth involvement in leadership opportunities within mainstream America, the importance of empowering Arab American youth, and theoretical frameworks of increasing their leadership skills.

The Weingart Foundation was selected as the potential funder. The goal of Youth for One World program is to enhance leadership capabilities and promote Arab American youth by providing opportunities to build skills and proficiencies through engagement in activities that encourage and promote competence and support the involvement of Arab American youth in mainstream America activities and prospects. Actual submission and/or funding of this grant was not a requirement for successful completion of this project.

There are multiple paths for constructive cooperation between Iran and the Arab states of the Persian Gulf that can reshape the current contentious relations. Because of numerous mutual concerns, shared historic, religious, and cultural ties, as well as the importance of trade, Iran and the neighboring Arab countries must surmount the costly, zero-sum political frictions of today and envision a cooperative future that ensures the peace and security of the Persian Gulf. This thesis aims to present viable pathways for constructive cooperation between Iran and the Arab states of the Persian Gulf through analysis of the Islamic Republic’s foreign policy objectives and determinants, differentiating and analyzing identified grievances and positive factors in bilateral relations between Iran and the member states of the Gulf Cooperation Council, and the consequences of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action on the geopolitics of the region.

Within the field of school psychology there exists literature for school psychologists working with specific ethnic and linguistic groups (Frisby & Reynolds, 2005; Tomes, 2011). The Arab American population is estimated to be 3.6 million (Arab American Institute, 2012). However, there is a paucity of school psychology research on Arab American students and families (Goforth, 2011; Haboush, 2007). As active members of the special education process, school psychologists will benefit from information regarding Arab American cultural and religious beliefs about special education and disabilities. Such information will assist them in providing culturally sensitive and appropriate services to students and families.

This study utilized a phenomenological qualitative approach to illuminate Arab Americans parents' experiences with their children's encounters with the special education process and perceptions of their children's disabilities. Phenomenological data analysis revealed four core themes. First, parents attached significance to specific steps within the special education process and to cultural stigmas around special education and disabilities. Next, parents reflected on special education services and key relationships. Additionally, parents discussed their children's abilities, their understandings of special education, and their advocacy work. Finally, parents reported that their goals for their children had not changed as a result of the special education process, although the goals were tailored to their children's identified disabilities. These findings have significant implications for professionals working with Arab American students and their parents. Recommendations are made for culturally sensitive school psychology practice with Arab Americans. Suggestions are provided for further research on this important yet under-researched topic.

Substance Abuse is an illness that affects every community in every country. The United Arab Emirates had been used as a transportation hub for drug trafficking for a number of years. The exposure to illegal and legal substances has left individuals in the community susceptible to the effects of substance use and addiction. The changes in the country, due to globalization, have increased the level of stress and prevalence of depression. Substance use is a method that individuals use to cope with these changes. Studies need to be conducted to create or tailor treatments for substance abuse in the United Arab Emirates. However, the country practices Shariaa law, which perceives substance use as a sin. As a result, prison is seen as an appropriate punishment for such a sin against religion. This doctoral project aims at identifying and increasing awareness of the factors involved in Substance Abuse in the United Arab Emirates and at determining the best method to research this topic given the social, legal and religious barriers.

This study is primarily about regime survival. Applying some aspects of rentier-state model, the metaphor of father and family, and the functional superiority perspective and predominantly based on the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s experience, this study sought to unravel factors that have enabled the monarchical regimes of the Middle East to survive the ongoing upheavals in the region. While the region-wide upheavals have swept away the republican regimes of Tunisia, Egypt, Libya, the monarchies of Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Morocco, and Qatar, among others, have remained largely intact, raising the questions as to why and how they have been able to stem the tides of collapse. In response to this question, it was argued here that the ability of long-established regimes to mobilize resources—both material and non-material—to strategically and tactically deal with internal discontents provides a framework to analyze regime survival. It must, however, be noted that regime survival does not necessarily connote state or regime stability, if stability refers to absence of sociopolitical frictions and political schism. Here, regime survival simply referred to the ability of rulers to remain, or stay, in power, even if there were continuing struggles on the part of sections of the citizenry to remove them.

Since the terrorist attacks of 9/11, there has been a significant amount of research on the Middle East and Islam. These studies inform the academic community regarding the culture and religion of the region and its people. An area of research regarding the culture and people of the Middle East that has not been represented in the literature is the experience of honor. Honor has been researched from a sociological and anthropological perspective, and honor killings have been present in the media. However, there was a need for the experience of honor, specifically among first generation Levantine Arab American women, to be explored in a qualitative study. The methodology used for this study was Moustakas’ heuristic research design, which allowed the primary researcher to illuminate the experience of honor among first generation Levantine Arab American women. The study found that honor was a complex experience for the participants. The multifaceted experience was familial and societal, public and private, and individual and collective. The experience of honor among first generation Levantine Arab American women was found to be one that started in early childhood and continued into adulthood, never really ending for the participant. The participants describe their lives as a struggle between the wants of the individual and the wants of the family and community. The implications of the study are discussed further in Chapter 5.

This dissertation examines the civic experiences of women before, during and after the January 25, 2011 Uprising in Egypt in an attempt to explore this group's perception of what encouraged or discouraged them from engaging civically. Two questions guide this investigation. How do Egyptian women with a social studies background narrate their civic experiences before, during and after the January 25 Uprising? And to what extent have the K-12 citizenship education and related policies impacted the civic engagement of these future teachers before, during and after the Uprising?

Inspired by the works of Dewey, Freire and hook, this study views education as key in developing engaged citizens. Schools represent the society and are responsible for cultivating future generations. The experiences students have influences their knowledge and attitudes as citizens. This study traces the impact of education, school environment, and the society in general on empowering women to have a voice, engage in the community, and make political choices.

Data were collected in Egypt in 2013 amid much instability but at a time when Egyptians had to put their civic duty first and make many political choices. Twenty-two women took part in face-to-face semi-structured interviews. The participant pool included teachers of social studies, graduate students of social studies education or history, and undergraduate students majoring in a social studies related field. Additional sources of data included, non-participant observations, document analysis, and field notes.

Using grounded theory to analyze and interpret the data; findings reveal that societal norms and school practices have limited the participants' choices and led the women to believe that their voices were silenced. However, the data also reflects strong human agency that the women exhibited consciously and unconsciously. Through intensive fieldwork, this dissertation sets the groundwork for future studies targeting education and women in the Middle East. It offers intellectual space for a much-needed conversation on educational policies, citizenship education, democracy, and women status in the Middle East.