A Narrative Study of Technology-Oriented Academics’ Autonomy within the Context of Cloud Computing and Cloud-Based Services in Higher Education

Ed. D. ThesisThis study aims to develop an in-depth understanding of the intersections between academics’ technology-orientation, autonomy, and pedagogical practices with cloud computing and cloudbased services within higher education. Two purposes framed this study. The first is to understand how technology-oriented academics conceptualise and utilise cloud computing platforms and services in their pedagogical practices. The second is to explore how these experiences intersect with academics’ autonomy within the context of higher education. This study’s motivation was the current confluence on academics’ autonomy due to higher education structural changes and cloudbased services emergence. Nine academics from a Gulf Cooperation Council higher education institution were recruited using ‘criterion-based purposeful selection’ (Schensul & LeCompte, 2012). The selection process considered their orientations towards using technology in their pedagogical practices. Using qualitative narrative methodology (Moen, 2006; Willis, 2008; McAlpine, 2016), data sources included a series of individual, paired depth and group interviews, participants’ reflections, researcher’s notes, and relevant material. Triangulation of methods, ongoing iterative dialogue with the participants, and thematic analysis (Clarke & Braun, 2018) contributed to this study’s rigour. The findings show that academics’ technology-orientations positively influence their critical perspectives and decision-making towards utilising cloud-based services in their professional development and pedagogical practices. Their orientations, backgrounds, capacities, roles, and objectives influenced their autonomy to variable degrees. The participants’ technology orientation aligned with their autonomous pedagogical practices with cloud-based services. CC and CBS’s design and features within the participants’ work conditions seem to afford and equally constrain their cloud-based pedagogic experiences. This paradox yielded three modes of academics’ autonomy, Constrained, Guided, and Self-Directed, intersecting four modes of cloud-based pedagogies, Expanding the Curriculum, Redefining Pedagogy, Cautious Pedagogy, and Visionary Pedagogy. These findings indicate bounded academics’ autonomy in the context of cloud-based pedagogy. This thesis extends the field of intersectional studies between technology and higher education. It contributes to understanding academics’ pedagogic experiences at a time of change in higher education. It also raises important questions concerning the implications of academics’ autonomy and institutional autonomy impacts upon the ethical cloud-based practice

The importance of adaptor proteins and cell signalling in the control of peptidoglycan synthesis

Ph. D. Thesis.Bacterial cell division is a complex process that requires tight co-ordination and regulation of chromosome replication and segregation, and the synthesis and remodelling of the bacterial cell wall. The peptidoglycan sacculus is synthesised by peptidoglycan synthases and it is a vital component of the bacterial cell structure, to withstand the turgor of the cell to prevent its lysis FtsZ is one of the first proteins to localise at midcell during cell division where it forms a ring-like structure, the Z-ring, at the inner face of the cytoplasmic membrane. After Z-ring formation, the divisome is recruited to the division site to form the septum and the elongasome is positioned at the side wall for elongation. Both the elongasome and the divisome are dynamic macromolecular complexes composed of numerous proteins at unknown stoichiometries and it is thought there are proteins in both complexes that are yet to be discovered. Understanding bacterial cell division at the molecular and cellular level is an important area of research to enable the development of novel antibiotics as well as comprehending one of biology’s fundamental questions. GpsB is a conserved Gram-positive cytosolic protein that plays an important role in the elongation-division cycle by acting as a scaffold to control the relative spatial arrangements of peptidoglycan synthases (PBPs). In this thesis the molecular interactions of GpsB with cytoplasmic mini-domains of PBPs from two human pathogens (Listeria monocytogenes and Streptococcus pneumoniae) are described using structural and biochemical techniques. The importance of the critical interacting residues for the GpsB:PBP interaction for cell wall growth and viability of L. monocytogenes and S. pneumoniae were analysed in collaboration with the Halbedel, and Massidda and Winkler groups, respectively. A novel function of PBP binding was introduced into DivIVA, a cell division regulator and GpsB homolog, by protein engineering in an attempt to understand the functional divergence between GpsB and DivIVA. Potential building blocks for the development of GpsB:PBP inhibitors were identified in the form of small fragments by an X-ray crystallography-based fragment screening experiment at Diamond Light Source. Eukaryote-like serine/threonine protein kinases (eSTPKs) and partner phosphatases (eSTPs) are conserved in Gram-positive bacteria. They consist of an intracellular N-terminal kinase domain and an extracellular sensing region linked by a short transmembrane helix. The external regulatory region is comprised of three or four PASTA domains that bind to ii peptidoglycans and compounds containing beta-lactams. eSTPKs are involved in the regulation of many cellular processes including development of regulation, control of cell growth, stress response, virulence and sporulation. The eSTPK/eSTP pair from L. monocytogenes are PrkA and PrpC. This thesis concerns the importance of autophosphorylation for the function of the kinase domain of PrkA (PrkA-KD) and that phosphorylation of serine 173 is crucial for activation, agreeing with the mechanism of activation of Stk1 in Staphylococcus aureus. The previously uncharacterised phosphoprotein Lmo1503 (renamed ReoM) is a homologue of IreB from Enterococcus faecalis, a negative regulator of cephalosporin resistance. It is confirmed that ReoM is a substrate of the PrkA/PrpC pair and the crystal structure of the full length ReoM protein is presented. Isothermal titration calorimetry determined the interaction of ReoM and PrkA-KD is within the nanomolar range and there is a ten-fold reduction in affinity with a PrkAKDS173A mutation. The Halbedel group have linked ReoM phosphorylation to the activation of ClpCP-dependent degradation of the primary UDP-GlcNAc 1-carboxyvinyltransferase in L. monocytogenes, MurA. We therefore propose that cell wall integrity sensing by PrkA is coupled to the first committed step of peptidoglycan synthesis through the intermediate proteins ReoM and ClpCP

Understanding and controlling CO2 permeation across dual-phase membranes with tailored, multi- or single-pore microstructures

PhD ThesisThe importance of finding new ways of CO2 separation or improving the existing ones, has increased significantly in recent years, because CO2 emissions have become a serious environmental concern. CO2 separation from different process streams, such as flue gases, has been researched extensively over the past few years. One way of separating CO2 is through molten carbonate dual-phase membranes, which consist of a porous ceramic support infiltrated with a molten salt. They can operate continuously at elevated temperatures (400- 900 °C) with high selectivity and low energetic penalties as opposed to other separation methods, such as absorption. One of the key challenges is understanding the contribution of various factors towards CO2 permeation, such as operating conditions, membrane structure and gas phase composition. In this thesis, dual-phase membrane systems consisting of a zirconia or alumina support with various pore geometries and an alkali metal carbonate eutectic mixture were investigated. It was found that below 600 °C, CO2 permeation is largely controlled by the geometry of the support material rather than its composition. Therefore, multi- or single-pore channels were laser drilled in dense polycrystalline and single crystal materials, and the geometry of the channels was tailored with high precision. By using an Al2O3 –carbonate multiple-pore system, it was found that at around 700 °C, CO2 permeation is generally limited by the diffusion in the melt, while at temperatures around 550 °C, the rate is limited by reactions at the gas-melt interface. In single-pore systems, an effect of permeation was visualised by equilibrating the internal gas phase (gas phase behind the meniscus) to the external gas phase and observing the displacement of the molten salt meniscus. Permeation rates were extracted at low driving forces, necessary for real applications. To enhance permeation, the use of humidified gas streams was investigated. It was found that above 550 °C, CO2 permeance was on the order of 10-7 mol m-2 s -1 Pa-1 compared to 10-9 mol m-2 s -1 Pa-1 under dry conditions. Furthermore, by coupling the permeation of CO2 with H2O, CO2 could be permeated against its own chemical potential difference. This work provides an understanding on membrane performance by unprecedented control over pore geometry and the effect of water with well-defined chemical potential gradients across the membrane

Synthesis and biomedical applications of fluorescent organophosphorus compounds

PhD ThesisAn important and ongoing area of research is the treatment and imaging of diseases such as cancer and heart disease, as these are two of the leading causes of death worldwide. Prior research in this area has led to the development of effective agents such as the chemotherapeutic agent, cisplatin, and Myoview, a cardiac perfusion imaging agent. However, with the number of cases of cancer and heart disease continuing to rise, there is still an urgent requirement for further development of these agents. Thus, the synthesis of effective imaging agents and, in particular, probes with multiple modalities which can harness the benefits of multiple imaging techniques are of interest. Organophosphorus compounds provide a versatile platform to build such probes that could be applied in fluorescence imaging, SPECT, PET and MRS. Therefore, this thesis explores the functionalisation of organophosphorus compounds to afford a range of novel, fluorescent, phosphine probes with potential medicinal applications. Auranofin is a triethylphosphine containing, FDA approved therapeutic agent that has recently shown potential for its repurposing in new areas including neurodegenerative disorders, parasitic infections, HIV and cancers. Thus, Chapter 2 explores the synthesis of a series of analogues of auranofin by altering the triethylphosphine ligand. A series of fluorescent analogues of auranofin are also introduced which may hold potential as theranostic agents and perhaps aid in the derivation or elucidation of the mechanism of action of the pharmaceutical. Azacycles are nitrogen containing cyclic compounds which are commonly found in natural products and bioactive compounds. Chapter 3 introduces three novel fluorescent phosphacycles which are far less studied than their nitrogen derivatives. We investigate a highly strained three-membered cycle, a phosphirane, where we explore its air- and thermalstability and its coordination to group 6 metal carbonyl complexes. The methylation of the phosphirane to afford a phosphiranium salt is detailed for which the product has potential application as a dual optical and magnetic resonance imaging agent. We also look briefly at two six-membered 1,3,5-diazaphosphinanes, which were synthesised in collaboration with Dr Randolf Köhn, at the University of Bath are detailed. Coordination of one of the diazaphosphinanes to chromium(III) centres and the subsequent preliminary experiments to test for its application in catalytic 1-hexene trimerization will then be described. A short collaborative project with Professor Bill Henderson at the University of Waikato is introduced to detail how one of the fluorescent phosphines can be applied in the fluorescent labelling of amine modified surfaces. The final phosphacycles introduced are the seven-membered phosphacycles, the phosphepines. The synthesis of two group 6 phosphepine complexes will be described followed by a study of their electronic properties. Preliminary experiments were then carried out in an effort to afford the free ligand which would allow for its further functionalisation. Chapter 4 describes the synthesis of BodP3, a fluorescent tridentate phosphine, via a platinumcatalysed hydrophosphination of the fluorescent primary phosphine. Exploration into its coordination to group 10 metals will be detailed, with particular attention focused on the square planar platinum complexes as potential theranostic agents. Combined imaging agents are becoming increasingly popular in order to harness the benefits of multiple imaging techniques, such as optical imaging and radioimaging, to overcome the limitations of the individual techniques. Thus, Chapter 5 introduces a series of phosphonium salts which have potential as trifunctional imaging agents. These novel phosphonium salts contain i) a fluorescent Bodipy backbone suitable for in vitro fluorescence imaging, ii) a positively charged phosphonium centre to enable specific localisation within the mitochondria, and iii) an alkyne functional group to enable radiolabelling by click chemistry to facilitate in vivo PET imaging. Finally, preliminary click chemistry reactions will be described to demonstrate the synthesis of a cold standard of this trifunctional imaging agent

Corporate sustainability: The role of co-creation of value by multiple stakeholders in the food and beverage sector of Pakistan

PhD ThesisBurgeoning consumer demands result in the depletion of resources and cause environmental degradation and social distress. The emphasis on addressing this issue inspires various business organizations to incorporate sustainable business practices, which not only enable them to fulfill the demands of the current population but also preserve for the next generations to satisfy their needs. Many business organizations have understood that they are unable to resolve sustainability issues in isolation and require the involvement of diverse stakeholders to integrate resources for sustainable outcomes. This thesis aims to understand the processes through which social interactions between business organizations and their stakeholders mutually create values for sustainable outcomes. To fulfill the desired objective of this research, this thesis uses a multiple case study research design to have an in-depth understanding of the value co-creative processes in the food and beverage sector of Pakistan. A conceptual framework is developed to structure the empirical work, which comprises of six conceptual categories including values, stakeholders, motivations, service ecosystem, resources, and outcomes. The findings from the fieldwork identify diverse aspects of value co-creation processes. Firstly, it categorizes various stakeholders of companies who are directly or indirectly associated with sustainable outcomes. Secondly, it recognizes companies’ practices, accountability relationships with stakeholders, and unique factors in the business ecosystem as additional significant aspects of value cocreation processes. Thirdly, the empirical analysis highlights that the aspects of value cocreative processes, such as values, motivations, resources, stakeholders’ relationships, company practices, and factors in the business ecosystem are interconnected. Further, the study also identifies that the complex and interdependent aspects of value co-creation process are holistically developing an integrated framework for corporate sustainability. Overall, the findings depict that corporate sustainability is a proactive approach, which requires concerted efforts from companies and stakeholders to jointly create long-term values by the creation of accounts beyond economic focus and articulating social and environmental outcomes. We can also infer that sustainability is not a stand-alone approach, as it is dependent upon various values, motivations, resources, factors, and relationships in an ecosystem. Integrating various aspects of value co-creation processes demands companies to build capacities by taking into account values, motivations, and resources of different stakeholders, which are relevant in developing a sustainable future. Thus, creating mutual values for the benefits of all the parties involved

Three-dimensional eddy current pulsed thermography and its applications

Ph. D. Thesis.The measurement and quantification of defects is a challenge for Non-DestructiveTesting and Evaluation (NDT&E). Such challenges include the precise localisation and detection of surface and sub-surface defects, as well as the quantification of such defects. This work first reports a three-dimensional (3D) Eddy Current Pulsed Thermography (ECPT) system via integration with an RGB-D camera. Then, various quantitative measurements and analyses of defects are carried out based on the 3D ECPT system. The ECPT system at Newcastle University has been prooven to be an effective nondestructive testing (NDT) method in surface and sub-surface detection over the past few years. Based on the different numerical or analytical models, it has achieved precise defect detection on the rail tracks, wind turbines, carbon fibre reinforced plastic (CFRP) and so on. The ECPT system has the advantage of fast inspection and a large lift-off range. However, it involves a trade-off between detectable defect size and inspection area compared with other NDT methods. In addition, there are challenges of defect detection in a complex structure. Thus, the quantification of defects gives a higher requirement of the measurement the object geometry information. Furthermore, the analysis of thermal diffusion requires a precise 3D model. For this reason, a 3D ECPT system is proposed that adds each heat pixel with an exact X-Y-Z coordinate. In this work, first, the 3D ECPT system is built. A feature-based automatic calibration of the infrared camera and the RGB-D camera is proposed. Second, the software platform is built. A fast 3D visualization is completed with multi-threading technology and the Point Cloud Library. Lastly, various studies of defect localization, quantification and thermal tomography reconstruction are carried ou

Orientations, Spectra and Absolutes: An exploration of the attitudes towards assisted dying expressed by respiratory and palliative medicine physicians, and the influence of their professional organisations.

Ph. D. Thesis.Background: In the UK, public opinion is largely in favour of assisted dying as a legal right for individuals that wish it, but their view is not mirrored by the medical profession. Amongst doctors, there are varying attitudes, but palliative medicine physicians are the most strongly opposed, compared with those from other medical specialties, including respiratory medicine. Such differences might be explained by examining the characteristics of the people entering each specialty, or by the doctors’ experiences within the specialty. Study aims: (1) To explore and understand differences in opinions about good medical care and assisted dying between palliative and respiratory physicians; (2) To understand the influences that determine these opinions; (3) To conceptualise the relationship between professional organisations and their members regarding the above. Method: This thesis draws on qualitative interview data from specialists in palliative and respiratory medicine, interpreted through thematic analysis. The results are presented in terms of the themes identified through this analysis. In comparing the two specialties, I identified both similarities and differences in their members’ attitudes towards both good medical practice and assisted dying. Findings: I described the similarities between them as absolutes, in that all the physicians held the same view on a particular matter. The differences were identified as orientations, because most of the members of each specialty tended to hold similar views on a particular topic, which were different from those of the other specialty. At an individual level, the orientation would lie on a spectrum which exists between the two most polarised views. This analytical framework offers a new approach to the exploration and understanding of professional values and moral practice in medicine, but it has the potential for a wider application in the sociology of the professions

Diversity and biogeography of Hadal Amphipoda

Ph. D. Thesis.he ocean’s deepest ecosystem, the hadal zone (> 6000 m), is comprised of 47 subduction trenches, non-subduction troughs, and trench faults. These geomorphologically-complex features have been considered to function as ecological and evolutionary independent units, because of extreme environmental conditions, long-term geographical isolation, and evolutionary selection pressures. The order Amphipoda has emerged as a model taxon for understanding the evolution of life and ecology in the hadal zone. Much progress has been made identifying the diversity and understanding the ecology within individual features. This work, however, has solely focused on deep, subduction trenches around the Pacific Rim, leaving shallower features and non-Pacific features underrepresented. This thesis aims to improve our understanding of the drivers of diversity and population and community structure among scavenging amphipods across the hadal zone. This body of work is executed through three lines of study, utilizing a specimen collection from 16 hadal features. The first line applied an integrative taxonomic approach to expand the known diversity of scavenging amphipods in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. This work has resulted in the description of Eurythenes plasticus, the world’s first new species described to be impacted by microplastics, Eurythenes atacamensis, a unique hadal dominate lineage in the Peru-Chile Trench, Stephonyx sigmacrus, the deepest known species of this genus, and Civifractura serendipia, a new cryptic genus and species within the Alicellidae family. The second line assessed how the community shifts across the abyssal-hadal transition zone in a non-subduction hadal feature, the Wallaby-Zenith Fracture Zone, Indian Ocean. The third line investigated the global distribution and phylogeography of Bathycallisoma schellenbergi between twelve hadal features in four oceans. Together, this thesis expands our knowledge of hadal communities to features beyond subduction trenches and contributes to the disentanglement of the environmental, tectonic, and other drivers of contemporary diversity across the hadal zone

The Adoption of Pervasive Technology in Private Spaces: Exploring Pre-Exposure Beliefs and Post-Exposure Outcomes Using Cognitive Dissonance Theory

Ph. D. Thesis.The development of pervasive technology for homes has always revolved around ever-growing consumer needs for comfort, a better home experience and the convenience of technology operation. Smart home technologies promise to deliver financial, environmental and health-related benefits through real-time control and management of resource consumption, remote monitoring and support, and other tailored services for users. However, despite the benefits of the technology for its users, the adoption rate is still low. Low adoption incurs the risk that the technology’s potential will never be realised, decreasing its positive implications for individuals and society in general. Against the backdrop of the low implementation of smart homes and their fast-paced development, it is important to examine technology utilisation from the user’s perspective, focusing on beliefs that underpin the acceptance and the perceived outcomes of performance. Given that new technology raises high expectations, which may undermine post-performance evaluation, it is important to consider the psychological factors that the perception and experiences of the promised performance entail. This will provide valuable evidence about the conditions which lead people to continue with or abandon the technology. The academic community has intensified its efforts to examine the concept of the smart home, its technological capabilities, its implications and the impact on people’s lives, but the literature still lacks empirical evidence about the users’ perspective on the utilisation of technology. Users’ beliefs, such as the expected benefits and risks which may facilitate or inhibit trialling the technology in private spaces have been under-researched. Studies have examined interaction with technologies irrespective of the context, thus decreasing the validity of the analysis of situational behaviour. However, the utilisation of technology in private settings is contingent on psychological factors, the perception of outcomes, motives and beliefs. Those factors affect the perception of the values and risks that the use of the technology might entail. Secondly, there is still a lack of insight into the outcomes of the use of technology when the performance falls short of initial expectations. The behavioural and cognitive responses following poor technology performance and the coping mechanisms that users deploy to ameliorate negative consequences are under-researched. Given the gaps in the literature, the first focus of the thesis was to examine the user’s perspective on smart home utilisation by examining the beliefs that underpin the adoption of the technology. The research adopted the Task Technology Fit (TTF) model, integrated with the constructs that pertain to the users’ perception of technology performance, such as perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use. While TTF stresses the importance of the “fit” factor when it comes to task-related behaviour, perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use explain the attitudinal underpinnings of the behaviour. Additionally, the model aimed to explain whether utilitarian, hedonic values, privacy and financial risks influence the users’ perception of task-fit. The second focus of this thesis was to explore individuals’ behaviour when technology performance falls short of expectations. The hypotheses were drawn from the literature in the confirmation-satisfaction and cognitive dissonance domains. Such an approach made it possible to examine psychological, behavioural and cognitive factors following a negative experience with technology. Post-performance dissonance arousal reflecting the psychological discomfort induced by the discrepancy between performance and expectations was examined. Furthermore, the adoption of cognitive dissonance theory aimed to explore the role of different types of emotions associated with dissonance and their role in post-dissonance behaviour. The motivational roles of each emotion in predicting coping strategies for reducing dissonance, such as behaviour change, attitude change and information seeking, were investigated. Two online surveys were conducted to address the objectives of the thesis. The first survey focused on examining the antecedents of pervasive technology adoption by smart home users. The data for the first survey was collected from 422 respondents located in the United States. The focus of the second questionnaire was to examine the behaviour following disconfirmed expectations. Therefore, only smart home users who had had a negative experience with using smart home technologies were eligible to participate in the survey. After filtering non-eligible cases, the final sample consisted of 387 responses. Both questionnaires consisted of two parts: 1) questions related to the socio-demographic characteristics of the respondents, and 2) questions designed to measure the variables for the model. For the analysis of the data, structural equation modelling was utilised. Results indicated that hedonic and utilitarian beliefs are critical for the perception of task fit, whereas privacy and financial factors were found not to be significant. The fit between tasks and technology demonstrated its significant role in predicting perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, use behaviour and satisfaction. Lastly, use behaviour showed a positive correlation with satisfaction. When it came to examining the outcomes of performance following disconfirmed expectations, results indicated that weak technology performance induces dissonance due to the discrepancy between expected and actual technology performance. Dissonance triggered feelings of anger, guilt and regret. The arousal of those emotions activated distinctive dissonance reduction mechanisms aimed at reducing psychological discomfort through attitude change, behaviour change or information-seeking mechanisms. Behaviour change was selected when people felt anger and regret, while consonant information-seeking and attitude change were selected when people felt guilt. The coping mechanisms, in turn, had different effects on satisfaction and wellbeing. Satisfaction and wellbeing were achieved when people coped with dissonance by changing their attitude to the technology or searching for information to justify the use of the technology. The withdrawal of behaviour increased the likelihood of feeling dissatisfaction and reduced the likelihood of perceiving wellbeing. The results of this thesis make several contributions. The findings contribute to the literature on the acceptance of pervasive technology in private spaces. Evidence on the role of beliefs pertaining to technology utilisation (i.e. task-technology fit, perceived usefulness and perceived ease) in private spaces moves forward the theoretical front in the domain of smart homes. In addition, the examination of psychological beliefs (i.e. hedonic value, utilitarian value, privacy and financial risks) with the task-technology fit factor explained the facilitating and inhibiting conditions in which the technology is most likely to be perceived to be compatible with users’ needs. Secondly, insight into consumer experience after technology widens the boundaries of the research on innovative technology acceptance, which has predominantly focused on the underpinnings of adoption as opposed to the outcomes of initial use. The results of the thesis provide evidence about behavioural outcomes following the utilisation of technology when performance falls short of expectations. Such an approach adds to the literature adopting the expectation disconfirmation paradigm, by providing a different perspective on the behavioural outcomes of disconfirmed expectations. In contrast to prior research, the results indicate that the disconfirmation of expectations can lead to positive outcomes, such as satisfaction and perceived wellbeing. Thirdly, the results widen the application of cognitive dissonance theory, by identifying the complex psychological, cognitive and behavioural processes following the evaluation of technology performance. As far as practical implications are concerned, the results inform practitioners about the factors to focus on when developing technology to satisfy a broader user segment. Also, they provide suggestions on marketing and communication strategies that may eliminate the likelihood or the consequences of disconfirmed expectations

Mediated Representations of Women in Qatar : a mixed-methods study exploring symbolic annihilation, presentation of self, and postfeminist sensibilities in the Gulf Times and among women influencers on Instagram

PhD ThesisLittle scholarship on women’s representations in the news media or on social media has focused on Arab Gulf countries. This study addresses research gaps on women’s representations in the media in non-Western contexts, in both the mainstream media and on social media in Qatar. The datasets for the quantitative content analysis of the Englishlanguage daily newspaper The Gulf Times comprises news items and photographs from a rolling constructed two-week sample from a 14-week period in 2019. Three datasets were compiled, covering articles (n=456), photographs (n=435), individuals named in the news (n=933). I coded items using a modified codebook based on the Global Media Monitoring Project and conducted descriptive and non-parametric statistical analyses. The results showed that women in Qatar exceeded global and regional figures for representations in newspaper articles and photographs, though they were directly quoted at a rate lower than the global and regional averages. For the qualitative ethnographic content analysis of social media content, I collected Instagram posts and stories of ten of Qatar’s Instafamous women during a threemonth period in late 2019. I conducted qualitative textual and visual analysis of a portion of their posts (n=146) and all of their stories, using Goffman’s social role performance and gender expression frameworks and Gill’s postfeminist sensibilities. The results indicate that the Instafamous of Qatar both conform to and subvert dominant representations of women, and they do so through microcelebrity practice, visibility labor, and impression management, among other tools. My research challenges the Orientalist orthodoxy of the silenced Arab or Muslim woman, and presents empirical evidence to decolonize theoretical frameworks developed in the Western world. Women in Qatar exert agency by both conforming to and subverting societal expectations by knowingly navigating gender-based boundaries on social media and presenting themselves in meaningful waysAssociation for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication & Northwestern Universit