Saudi Government Research Articles

From Mosque to Media: How Saudi Arabia Implements Its Soft Power Strategy in Pakistan

This article examines the various soft power strategies implemented by Saudi Arabia in Pakistan, with a particular focus on the role of religious and media institutions. Through financing the construction of mosques and religious schools, the Saudi government has been able to exert significant influence over the religious landscape in Pakistan. In addition, Saudi Arabia has also invested heavily in Pakistani media, through the establishment of news channels and funding for local media outlets. By cultivating these cultural and religious ties, Saudi Arabia has been able to gain a foothold in Pakistan and increase its soft power in the region. However, these efforts have not been without criticism, with many Pakistanis expressing concern about the potential negative impact of Saudi Arabian influence on their society. This article highlights the complex interplay between soft power and cultural imperialism in the modern world.

Visual coherence in augmented reality training systems considering aerospace specific features

In May 2022, Saudi Arabian Military Industries, a Saudi government agency, acquired an augmented reality training platform for pilots. In September, the Boeing Corporation began the development of an augmented reality pilot simulator. In November, a similar project was launched by BAE Systems, a leading British developer of aeronautical engineering. These facts allow us to confidently speak about the beginning of a new era of aviation simulators – simulators using the augmented reality technology. One of the promising advantages of this technology is the ability to safely simulate dangerous situations in the real world. A necessary condition for using this advantage is to ensure the visual coherence of augmented reality scenes: virtual objects must be indistinguishable from real ones. All the global IT leaders consider augmented reality as the subsequent surge of radical changes in digital electronics, so visual coherence is becoming a key issue for the future of IT, and in aerospace applications, visual coherence has already acquired practical significance. The Russian Federation lags far behind in studying the problems of visual coherence in general and for augmented reality flight simulators in particular: at the time of publication the authors managed to find only two papers on the subject in the Russian research space, while abroad their number is already approximately a thousand. The purpose of this review article is to create conditions for solving the problem. Visual coherence depends on many factors: lighting, color tone, shadows from virtual objects on real ones, mutual reflections, textures of virtual surfaces, optical aberrations, convergence and accommodation, etc. The article reviews the publications devoted to methods for assessing the conditions of illumination and color tone of a real scene and transferring them to virtual objects using various probes and by individual images, as well as by rendering virtual objects in augmented reality scenes, using neural networks.

Consequences of COVID-19 Shocks and Government Initiatives on Business Performance of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises in Saudi Arabia

The purpose of this paper is to determine how COVID-19 shocks and government policies affected MSMEs’ financial and non-financial performance during the economic turmoil. The paper used both quantitative and qualitative methods. An online questionnaire survey was used to collect quantitative data from 380 Saudi MSMEs. The direct effects of the exogenous variables on the endogenous variable were determined using partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM). Furthermore, multigroup analysis was used to examine the moderating effect of policy response on other variables. Interviews were conducted from a qualitative standpoint, and the information was converted into texts and qualitatively analyzed. Demand Shocks, Management/Operational Shocks, and Supply Shocks all have a significant impact on financial performance. The only significant predictor of non-financial performance was demand side shocks. Management/operational side shocks, on the other hand, have no effect on the non-financial performance of MSMEs. Furthermore, policy response was found to be a powerful predictor of both financial and non-financial performance. During the COVID-19 outbreak, MSMEs’ policies and assistance programs had no discernible impact on demand and supply side shocks, as well as financial and non-financial performance. Overall, the findings of this study will help the Saudi government and other policymakers determine the best way to deal with current and future COVID-19 pandemics.

The determinants of smart government systems adoption by public sector organizations in Saudi Arabia

This study investigates the determinants of smart government systems that are used in public service organizations in Saudi Arabia. The world's developed nations have conducted studies on smart government systems, but little research has been done on the Middle East, particularly in Saudi Arabia. This study fills the lacuna in the literature. Based on a number of theories including the Technology, Organization, and Environment framework (TOE), Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT), and Technology Acceptance Models (TAM), the study established an integrated conceptual research model. Online survey questionnaires were sent to 2060 employees in four ministries and after the second reminder a total of 427 completed answers were received, of which 419 (22% response rate) were deemed useable for the analysis. Multivariate statistical analysis was used to analyze the data and results indicated that 51% of the variance (R2 = 0.51) of employees' perceptions of smart government systems is explained by independent determinants. Findings show that security concerns (t (419) = 2.051, p < 0.041), ICT strategy (t (419) = 4.215, p < 0.000), managerial support (t (419) = 5.027, p < 0.000), incentives (t (419) = 5.263, p < 0.000), and trust (t (419) = -1.957, p < 0.050) are significant predictors of smart government systems acceptance. Meanwhile cultural values (t (419) = 0.669, p < 0.504) and religious values (t (419) = 1.082, p < 0.280) have no significant effect on the attitude to smart system adoption. Perception was found to have a strong significant effect on adoption of smart government systems (t (419) = 8.411, p < 0.000). These results have significant implications for the Saudi government's drive to implement smart government systems in all its agencies.

High-performance Work System and Employee Retention: A mediated Mediation Model

High performance work systems HPWS are integrated human resource approaches designed to enhance employees' skills and efforts, resulting in higher levels of performance and productivity (Zhu, et al., 2018). The major components of HPWS include selective hiring procedures, employment security, decentralization of decision-making, extensive training, information exchange, and fair paying, all of which are interconnected and work in concert (Zhang et al., 2019). Performance is increased when HPWS is employee service-oriented, while morale and employee retention ER are increased when HPWS is creativity-oriented (Jo et al., 2023). HPWS is more efficient than traditional organizational systems, nevertheless, it is yet unclear how this happens. Multiple studies have produced conflicting findings, and some even contend that HPWS may increase employee effort and stress (Jensen et al., 2022; Cooke et al., 2019). There is a gap on previous researches explaining how HPWS can help translate EPB, JE, and EP into better ER outcomes and whether this relationship differs depending on the organizational setting or the industries, these connections need to be explored further in order to find practical methods improve organizational capacity for employee retention. In accordance with Vision 2030 and the (National Transformation Program) the Saudi government is increasing the private sector's contribution to the nation's healthcare system (Rahman &amp; Al-Borie, 2021).Even though a lot of work has been put into HPWS, there are still large research gaps in Saudi Arabia.So this study is enhancing the current knowledge by examining possible mediators (i.e., EPB, JE, and EP) between HPWS and ER helps further knowledge of the function of HPWS in the Saudi Arabian healthcare system in light of Vision 2030. Keywords: High performance work system, Employee Proactive Behaviour, Job engagement, Employee performance, Employee retention

Development of Nursing Research in Saudi Arabia: Implications for Policies and Practice.

Background: Nursing research in Saudi Arabia can be evaluated based on productivity as well as the quality of publications. The scope of scientific inquiry in nursing research expands to include clinical, health system, and outcome-based research, education, and administration. Aim: The purpose of this article is to track the development of nursing research in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Design: Systematic review. Methods: This study used keywords, databases including MEDLINE, CINAHL, and PubMed to search for published articles on nursing in Saudi Arabia. The search resulted in the identification of 681 publications, from which 360 articles met the inclusion criteria and were included in the review. Results: The highest percentage of studies (56.7% of articles) focused on nursing clinical practice, and 76.0% of the studies were conducted in a hospital setting, followed by an educational setting. Most of the studies were quantitative and non-funded. More than 50.0% of the studies were first authored by Saudi scholars. Conclusions: This study concluded that nursing research in Saudi Arabia is still in its infancy, with notable improvements in the last 5 years. This correlated with an increasing number of nurses holding postgraduate degrees. With the Saudi government's strong support, the number of scientific research papers published on Saudi nursing has steadily increased over the last year.

Detecting Land Surface Temperature Variations Using Earth Observation at the Holy Sites in Makkah, Saudi Arabia

During Hajj, Muslims throughout the globe assemble at the holy sites in Makkah, Saudi Arabia. The Saudi government aims to increase the number of pilgrims. To ensure the pilgrims’ safety from the impact of surface urban heat island (SUHI), a scientific approach using artificial intelligence and Earth observation (EO) is recommended for crowd management and human health. SUHI is usually measured using satellite LST data. UHIs impact the walkability of cities in hot climates. The development of digital technologies has provided researchers with a better understanding of crowd management modeling to control such a mass gathering, especially within the summer season and in drought regions. In this study, an approach was used to detect the UHI in holy sites and understand the factors causing them. To achieve this goal, EO data were used to calculate the LST using the Landsat 8 thermal band (TIRS) and calculating the surface emissivity and Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI). Then, UHIs were identified by adding the mean of the LST to half of its standard deviation. Based on the results of this study, LST had a strong correlation with NDVI (negative) in Arafah. In addition, the strength of the correlation became much weaker within Mina and Muzdalifah. As for the correlation of LST and elevation, the strength appeared to be weak but negative in Arafah, but stronger in Muzdalifah and Mina. The results show that there is a certain correlation between LST, NDVI, and NDBI and elevation in the study area. Using Earth observation technologies can help in studying climate change.

Engineering Economies of Identity: Saudi Planning, Pan-Islamism, and Transnational Architectural Production

Between the early 1960s and the 1980s, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia commissioned a series of large-scale architectural projects as part of an ambitious building programme drawing on both local and foreign sets of resources and expertise. Building from a reading of planning documents and commentaries produced by the government of the Kingdom alongside archival material from several US architecture firms, this article resituates these architectural projects as part of two of the government’s larger political agendas: economic development planning and Pan-Islamic solidarity. By doing so, the article reveals the multifaceted character of these projects and the complex role of architecture in the Saudi government’s nation building activities. It further shows how these architectural projects became a means of engineering internal and international political economies in a manner that helped establish and shape larger long-lasting patterns of transnational architectural production.

Measuring Performance of Rural Mental Healthcare Services in Saudi Arabia.

Recently, the Saudi government has proposed several initiatives to promote mental health, including the national program named Wazen. The objective of this study was to observe the performance of mental hospitals using a balanced scorecard through this federal program. Secondary quantitative analysis was implemented utilizing the Wazen report program data in 2022. The report adopted a balanced scorecard (BSC) concept. The study focused on 19 mental health facilities (Eraddah Hospitals) in the Ministry of Health (MOH) regions. The MOH's annual statistical report for 2018 and 2022 was reviewed to explore more about beds, staff, and the number of new mental disorder cases. Data were analyzed using Microsoft Excel 365 and the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS Version 25) software. Mental health hospitals were classified into three categories. Most rural hospitals had lower performance in the yellow threshold value that might need improvement. The data shows that the mean of all hospital performance in some domains ranged, yielding 70% staff engagement and 77% continued educational activity, indicating unsatisfactory performance across public mental health services. The means score of access to care was 97.0% and 94.7%, marking the better mental health services provided. Between 2018 and 2022, there was a significant rise in the prevalence of mental disorders, as evidenced by the number of new patients and outpatients indicated by specific mental diseases, including conditions of psychological development (F80-F98). The high quality of mental healthcare is manifested by therapeutic ethos with a high degree of interaction between professional careers and service users. The former is enhanced by highly educated, competent, compassionate, self-aware, and specialized healthcare professionals in mental health. When assessing mental healthcare services, we recommend considering providers' and professionals' conditions for successful implementation in alignment with patient experience.

Socio-economic sustainability approaches applied within the conservation strategies of the historical city of Jeddah “The case study of Al-Balad”

Sustainability has gained significant attention in recent years due to the critical circumstances of global crises. The historical city of Al-Balad has been the center of attention given to the conservation field aiming to preserve the city's identity while considering its historical role, unique buildings, the past of the city, and its people. Socio-economic sustainability in conserving the old district of Al-Balad is achieved through multiple strategies including the economic opportunities offered for the locals in terms of business development, as well as attracting tourists, increasing property value, and adaptive reuse. The aim of the research is to detail the socio-economic heritage preservation techniques and analyze the efforts made by the Saudi government and civil organizations to create a series of recommendations based on the recent research and literature review to evaluate its effectiveness in protection. The research methodology used is a qualitative approach, with field visits to take a closer look at current activities and progress in the field, as well as peer literature reviews and official sources. The findings of the research show a development in the social and economic aspects of the community as a result of the efforts related to the conservation of the heritage place.

Managing the COVID-19 pandemic in thirty-two policy measures in Saudi Arabia: A mixed-methods analysis

BackgroundThe Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has developed rigorous strategies to control and prevent the spread of COVID-19. However, the effectiveness of these measures in containing and mitigating the epidemic has yet to be studied. This paper aims to assess the efficiency of preventive policy initiatives that Saudi Arabia has taken to reduce the spread of COVID-19, which was rapid and progressive in nature. Information on the effectiveness of measures applies to help the Saudi government adjust policy responses when considering which measures to relax once the epidemic is controlled. MethodsData for this study were retrieved via publicly available data sources such as the Saudi Arabia Ministry of Health and the government's official news agency—Saudi Press Agency (SPA) websites. Other datasets, such as prevention measures, were gathered from the Country Policy Tracker website. Our dataset's time component extends over 590 consecutive days from 20 January 2020–31 August 2021. Moreover, a mixed-method approach combining COVID-19 data and prevention measures was adopted to assess preventative measures practice. We compiled the dataset used in this study in a Microsoft Excel database. The significance of observed differences among implementing effective strategies was determined using ANOVA and Mixed methods approach. Noticeably, the statistical analysis was performed using the open-source statistical system R version 4.2 (available at http://cran.r-project.org). ResultsOur analysis showed that only three out of the 32 (9.4%) measures significantly reduced the spread of COVID-19. Our results also show substantial variations in the spread of COVID-19 associated with preventive measures in Saudi Arabia. There was a significant positive correlation between activating and massive testing in communities and cases of COVID-19 (measure effect = 923.086 and p < 0.05). A similar result was found for complete curfew across the Kingdom and cases of COVID-19 (measure effect = 621.389 and p < 0.10). Removing slum areas interrupted the spread of Covid-19 (measure effect = 305.689 and p < 0.01). The other preventive measures did not significantly affect the COVID-19 pandemic distribution. These findings consistently concluded that activating and massive testing in communities, complete curfew across the Kingdom, and removal of slum areas were the most effective measures for reducing the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. ConclusionOnly by understanding these correlations will it be possible to control and reduce the rate of COVID-19 spread and, therefore, suggest a possible exit strategy once the epidemic is controlled.

The effect of spatial distribution on the composition of the middle social class in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia: A spatial econometric analysis

This article examines the formation of the Saudi middle class using econometric models and a national survey of household budget and consumption data from 44,000 households in 2019. The study compares the spatial offset model (SAR) and spatial error model (SEM) with the Space Turbine Model (SDM) and Space Turbine Error Model (SDEM), finding that the SDM and SDEM models offer better benefits and options. The SDEM model exhibits the best-fit quality based on the Akaike information criterion. The results reveal a positive spatial effect indicating that human capital accumulation is vital in knowledge diffusion and technological transfer. The study also identifies spatial inequalities in the distribution of the middle class, with a concentration in urban areas like Riyadh and the Eastern Province. While the poor class is concentrated in rural areas which surround the main cities such (e.g., Rumah, Tawala, Hanak, Araar and Aljof) while the wealthy class is concentrated in urban areas, particularly Riyadh. The article emphasizes the importance of regional development and suggests measures to reduce inequality and enhance the middle class's role in the economy. In effect, the Saudi government should increase access to quality education and training by investing in the education system to provide citizens with the skills needed for a modern economy, including higher education, vocational training, and apprenticeships. Nevertheless, the Kingdom should promote entrepreneurship by creating an environment that encourages entrepreneurship and supports small business growth through tax incentives, access to capital, and start-up support. Moreover, the most important is improving access to finance by making it easier for businesses, especially small ones, to access finance through loan guarantees and support programs.

Organizational Justice and its Relationship with Job Involvement in Saudi Government Ministries

Purpose: This study aims to Investigate employees’ perception of Organizational Justice and its relationship with job involvement in Saudi Government Ministries. Theoretical framework: Organizational justice in the organization is one of the most important factors that shape attitudes and behaviors of employees towards their organizations and focuses on employees understanding the extent of integrity laws and procedures followed by employees. Therefore, any defect or error in these laws and regulations or methods of implementation will lead to a negative result regarding the involvement of employees in their work and the extent to which they are connected to the job in which they work because of their sense of injustice in their organizations. Hence, this study is intended to investigate the relationship nature between organizational justice and job involvement in Saudi ministries. Design/Methodology/Approach: The study population includes all employees in Saudi Government Ministries with different job names. Due to the large size of the study population and for selecting a representative sample for this publication, a random sample from these Ministries' employees was used. A descriptive-analytical method was used due to its appropriateness to this study. Findings: The study concluded a set of results; the most important is that there is a positive relationship between organizational justice in its various dimensions (distribution justice, procedures justice dealing justice) and employee job involvement in Saudi Ministries. Research, Practical &amp; Social Implications: The study showed high employee job involvement in Saudi Ministries, and there is a sense of organizational justice availability with all its dimensions in Saudi Ministries. Originality/Value: This study is considered one of the first studies dealing with organizational justice and its relationship with job involvement in Saudi ministries. Consequently, the study results will provide decision-makers in the Saudi public sector with important information on the organizational justice level and its relationship with employees' jobs in Saudi ministries. So, this helps them in making proper decisions to improve efficiency, and effectiveness and enhance productivity.

Classroom Discourse Analysis of Computer-Mediated Communication during COVID-19

In March 2020, the Saudi government announced that school and university courses were to be held online to control the COVID-19 outbreak. A sudden yet smooth movement occurred from traditional face-to-face classrooms to online courses. This shift influenced the nature of classes, the nature of the interaction, and the participants’ roles. Interaction in online classes is viewed as a form of computer-mediated communication. This paper explores the nature of computer-mediated communication in online courses at one of the major research universities in Riyadh during the COVID-19 pandemic. Using an in-depth qualitative analysis of Walsh’s (2006) framework of Self-Evaluation of Teacher talk, this study examines the nature of classroom discourse and interactions among level six students who took a content course in English and lectures were transcribed for this study. Results answer questions regarding the common interaction modes and features and how efficient they are to encourage participation during Computerized Mediated Communication. Analysis reveals that using traditional interactional features is not suitable in virtual classes.Teacher dominated classes with excessive IRFs patterns do not cultivate interaction in Computerized Mediated Communication. New modes of communication and discursive features using more interactive tools and engaging features such as referential questions promote interaction. Results provide an insight into the nature of interaction in online university classrooms. It also adds to the current literature on Computerized Mediated Communication interaction to enhance the existing practices done in classrooms.

Reflection of Saudi Women’s Participation and Leadership: A Study on the Gender Differences in Leadership and Structural Barriers

This article examines gender disparities and structural barriers in the Saudi Arabian workforce from 2000 to 2022. It proposes measures to promote women’s participation and leadership. Multiple databases, including Emerald, IEEE Explore, Science Direct, PubMed, Google Scholar, and Web of Science, were searched using generic terms. Additionally, official Saudi government reports, magazines, newspapers, books, and journals were used as secondary data sources. Torraco’s method analyzed 10 studies on gender gap and gender differences (2011-2023), 16 studies on structural barriers (2000-2012), and 30 studies (2013-2022). The study highlights critical areas of disparities and barriers, including the need for legal and policy reforms, increasing women’s visibility in the economic sector, transforming attitudes towards women’s leadership and participation, addressing time and mobility constraints, reducing wealth and power inequalities, inspiring and supporting women in leadership roles, and providing assistance for the transmission of leadership roles that recognize and promote women’s rights. The findings divulged various implementations and Strategies to overcome the gender gap, gender differences in leadership, and structural barrier to women’s participation by Saudi government. The research emphasizes the importance of policy reform to foster gender equality in the Saudi Arabian workplace. Reforms outlined in the “Saudi Vision 2030” have made significant progress. Policymakers can utilize this study’s findings to promote women’s participation and leadership in the Saudi workforce.

Attitudes and Practices of the Public Toward Precautionary Measures Post-COVID-19 Pandemic in Saudi Arabia.

This study aimed to assess the practices and attitudes of the general population towards coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID)-19 after the removal of precautionary and preventive measures in Saudi Arabia. A cross-sectional study was conducted among the general population in all regions of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, from September 2022 to October, 2022 via a virtual survey to evaluate the practices, and attitudes of the general population towards COVID-19. A stratified random sampling technique was applied to collect the sample with inclusion criteria for all individuals who are Arabic language speakers using social media platforms. The individuals selected for this study were 18 years and older. A total of 2406 responses were received for the study questionnaire. Most of participants (66.3%) were females aged 18 to 29 years (61.8%). Half of the participants reported a positive history of COVID-19 infection. Nearly 90% of participants still wear masks, 80% attended a crowded event, and 60% often wash their hands even though the Saudi government has erased the precautions. Females, young (30-39 years) and elderly (60 years and over) individuals, singles, those with a postgraduate degree, those who are employed, and healthcare workers were more likely to adhere to COVID-19 precautionary measures (p<0.05). The study's findings indicate that most of the population discontinued practicing precautionary measures after lifting the measures in Saudi Arabia. More public health initiatives should raise the scores of sanitary best practices to prevent the spread of viral illnesses.

Teaching of subject Biostatistics Its Applications and Research Methodology to Undergraduate Pharmacy Students in Central Region of Saudi Arabia

Background: Biostatistics means statistical tools have been used in the study of medical/biomedical sciences. It is also called Medical Biostatistics/Medical Statistics. It is an important subject in medical, nursing, pharmacy, Bioallied Health Sciences, and other biology related specialties. In this article, I briefly explained my teaching and research experiences related to Biostatistics to the College of Pharmacy (COP) students. Materials and Methods: In this paper I have discussed and explored all the steps related to teaching Biostatistics, its applications, and research methods and its implications to the College of Pharmacy students in Saudi Arabia. Online classes was conducted at the time of Covid-19 pandemic time of the year 2020 – 2021 and 2021 – 2022. Results: I trained COP students in all aspects of Biostatistical tools, their applications, research methods, and other research steps fully. That’s why the Statistical thinking is a crucial part of the studies in pharmacy/medical and biomedical areas. COP students followed my instructions and advice in a good way, and they benefited from my teaching and research methods and its steps throughout their graduation study. Conclusion: I have concluded that teaching of the subject biostatistics and its applications are essential and important to all science and medical specialty students all over the world. Saudi Government must take a necessary step to implement/initiate Biostatistics departments/unit in all colleges separately. It will be very useful to their pharmacist/pharmacy to educate the patients, safe and high-quality care, to control the drugs effect/adherence among patients successfully and to achieve the best high-quality results of patients’ health. Key Words: biostatistics, teaching, research methodology, college of pharmacy, Saudi Arabia

Understanding Citizens’ Tweets During and After the COVID-19 Pandemic in Saudi Arabia: A Thematic Analysis Study

The coronavirus began in December 2019; in Wuhan, China, later the virus spread rapidly within a relatively short period of time, causing a global pandemic. Therefore, the Saudi government responded to the threat of COVID-19 from the start by imposing a lockdown to curb the number of affected patients and to prevent the fast-spreading virus, such as turning to distance learning, banning travel, imposing curfews, and postponing social activities. As social activities and social communication were affected by the crisis, people in Saudi Arabia tend to increasingly use social media platforms, one of which is Twitter. Little is known about the Saudis’ reactions on Twitter during COVID-19 and after. Therefore, the present study aims to investigate how Saudi Twitter users express their feelings qualitatively during and after COVID-19 outbreaks. For the scope of this study, Arabic tweets related to COVID-19 expressed by Saudi citizens were collected from Twitter using the web scraping service Apify. The data covered the periods of COVID-19 from the 1st of January 2020 to the 7th of July 2022. The selection of these tweets was primarily based on trending hashtags and keywords populated from Saudi Arabia. A total of 11,900 Arabic tweets were obtained, and only 473 tweets were considered in this study. A qualitative thematic analysis of Saudis’ tweets resulted in the identification of five main themes: 1) negative attitudes (i.e., fear, frustration, and sadness, 309, 65%); 2) positive attitudes (56, 12%); 3) advise-giving (48, 10%); 4) humour (34, 7%); and 5) information-seeking (26, 5%). These findings suggest that Saudi governmental agencies should actively engage in two-way communication with the public, provide trustworthy information, and manage the crisis based on the public’s needs. Our present research has shown that Twitter is a valuable source of reality, reflecting unique experiences among its users. Thematic analysis has proven to be a useful approach in providing insightful information about the Saudis’ needs in times of crisis and after. In addition, governments and health authorities can have a better understanding of the public's needs and thus prepare their crisis management strategies in order to relieve the public’s psychological pressures.

WILLINGNESS TO PAY FOR HEALTH INSURANCE: THE CROSS-SECTIONAL STUDY IN SAUDI ARABIA

Due to rapid changes in disease pattern, demand for advance healthcare services has been increased extensively in Saudi Arabia. In Saudi Arabia, health facilities are provided free to general public. This has increased the burden of communicable and non-communicable diseases expenditure on ministry of health. On other hand, to private sector employee cooperative health insurance program is established. Saudi Government plan to extend this program to the public sector as well. In this study willingness to pay for health insurance opinion was taken from general public as they are main stakeholder. In case if government extend this private employer cooperative insurance program to other sectors whether people are willing to pay for private insurance or not. Non-probability convenience sampling technique was used to select sample size. Findings revealed that majority of people in Saudi Arabia have no chronic disease and likewise they have no private insurance ownership as well. On the basis of gender, education, income, insurance ownership, family size, chronic disease and obstacles people are significantly willing to pay for health insurance. Policy makers, &amp; MoH can take benefits from findings of the current study and it would help them to formulate insurance premiums &amp; provide additional source of funding for healthcare in Saudi Arabia.

The History of Television and Its Impact on Saudi Society

This study analyzes the impact of television on conservative Saudi society and gives a comprehensive view of the history of Saudi television. It is clear from studying the history of Saudi television that religious extremism was the only obstacle to the development of Saudi television. Although extremist Islamic groups control Saudi television, the Saudi government has been able to overcome them in recent years.