Financing small firms in Saudi Arabia: a study of informal investors' characteristics and decision-making behaviour

Recently, informal venture capital investors have been recognised as an important source of financing small & medium sized enterprises(SMEs). Unfortunately, very little research (if any) has been devoted to understanding how these investors fund particular investments in developing countries. This research study conducts the first-ever, detailed investigation in Saudi Arabia of the informal investor's characteristics, and decision-making behaviour across the full investment process. A theoretical framework, based on the asymmetric information that characterises this market, was used. Five hypotheses were developed to see how informal investors behave to reduce the inefficiencies and risks associated with the asymmetric information problem. Data from 156 Saudi informal investors were compiled. To analyze the data, three statistical methods, Factor Analysis, Cluster Analysis and Two-Way ANOVA, were applied. A descriptive picture of the profile and the investment activities of informal investors is presented in Chapter Seven. Research hypotheses related to investors' decision-making were then tested in Chapter Eight. First, the study shows that informal investors in Saudi Arabia depend on personal searches for investment opportunities. This is clearly supports the view that the flow of information between entrepreneurs and informal investors is inefficient. Secondly, in order to select a high quality entrepreneur and venture, investors use specific criteria though clearly the entrepreneur's reputation is the most important criterion. Third, informal investors use staging of finance and involvement in the venture to have access to information and gain better control over the venture. Fourth, informal investors apply the above methods to reduce the risks of the agency problem. However, informal investors in Saudi Arabia prefer to monitor the behaviour of entrepreneurs through outcome-based incentives with moderate use of involvement and behaviour monitoring. In concluding the thesis, recommendations and the possible implications of these findings are discussed. Finally, future research is suggested that may improve the understanding of informal investors but which is beyond the scope of this thesis or which depends on its findings

Women in management : identifying constraints on progression into senior management in the public sector in Saudi Arabia

Within a global context of huge social, political and economic changes, this research explores the phenomenon of female under-representation in senior management in the public sector in Saudi Arabia. In recent years, the participation of women in the labour force worldwide has increased and women generally are continuing to gain professional recognition. Nevertheless, they remain under-represented in management, particularly at senior level. This study investigates the perceptions and experiences of a group of female managers in an attempt to identify those factors that either constrain or facilitate their careers. The women are also invited to offer suggestions about how their career opportunities can be improved. The study is qualitative and it is based on a phenomenological/interpretive approach. Data were gathered using in-depth semi-structured interviews with 28 female managers drawn from three organizations in the Saudi public sector in which there is a high concentration of female employees.The study findings reveal that women in Saudi public sector organizations are marginalized and excluded from key senior management positions. This situation is due to the fact that the women face a number of inter-related constraints, beginning with socialization in the religion-influenced family and education systems, which in turn, generates rigidly stereotyped gender role behaviours and expectations. This gender stereotyping is reflected in the structure and culture of organizations and it shapes the personalities and attitudes of the women themselves. Yet in spite of these constraints, the participants also reported a number of positive factors, namely, access to education, strong family networks, including support from male family members, the women’s own competencies, aspirations and improved access to the global world. It emerged that a complex and intertwined relation existed between the constraints and the facilitating factors. In order to illustrate this complexity and to create a greater understanding of the way in which these factors affect women’s access to management level positions, I have proposed a new framework: the social-institutional system, organization and gender. This study also makes a number of suggestions to improve women’s career opportunities. For example, political actions to overcome gender stereotypes and traditional attitudes, which can be achieved through the education system, the media and ‘joined-up thinking’ between various institutions; professional training and development programmes; family-friendly work policies, and proactivity on women’s part to build networks and demonstrate competence

Hand Hygiene Knowledge and Perception among the Healthcare Workers during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Qassim, Saudi Arabia: A Cross-Sectional Survey

Hand hygiene is among the most important factors of infection control in healthcare settings. Healthcare workers are the primary source of hospital-acquired infection. We assessed the current state of hand hygiene knowledge, perception, and practice among the healthcare workers in Qassim, Saudi Arabia. In this cross-sectional study, we used the hand hygiene knowledge and perception questionnaire developed by the World Health Organization. Knowledge and perceptions were classified into good (80–100%), moderate (60–79%), and poor (<60% score). The majority of the healthcare workers had moderate knowledge (57.8%) and perception (73.4%) of hand hygiene. Males were less likely to have moderate/good knowledge compared to females (OR: 0.52, p < 0.05). Private healthcare workers were less likely (OR: 0.33, p < 0.01) to have moderate/good perceptions compared to the government healthcare workers. Healthcare workers who received training on hand hygiene were more likely to have good/moderate perception (OR: 3.2, p < 0.05) and to routinely use alcohol-based hand rubs (OR: 3.8, p < 0.05) than the ones without such training. Physicians are more likely (OR: 4.9, p < 0.05) to routinely use alcohol-based hand rubs than technicians. Our research highlighted gaps in hand hygiene knowledge, perception and practice among healthcare workers in Qassim, Saudi Arabia and the importance of training in this regard

Needle-Stick and Sharp Injuries among Hospital Healthcare Workers in Saudi Arabia: A Cross-Sectional Survey

Needle-stick or sharp injuries (NSIs) are critical occupational hazards for healthcare workers. Exposure to blood and body fluids through NSIs increases the risk of transmission of blood-borne pathogens among them. The objectives of this study were to estimate the annual incidence of NSIs and investigate the associated factors of NSIs among the healthcare workers in Saudi Arabia. A cross-sectional online survey was conducted between October and November 2021. A total of 361 healthcare workers participated in the survey from all over Saudi Arabia. The one-year incidence of at least one event of NSIs among the healthcare workers is estimated at 22.2% (95% CI: 18.0, 26.8). More than half of the injury events (53.8%) were not reported to the authority by the healthcare workers. Incidence of NSIs was highest among the physicians (36%) and was followed by nurses (34.8%), dentists (29.2%), and medical technologists (21.1%). The odds of NSIs was higher among the healthcare workers aged 26–30 years compared to the 20–25 years age group (OR: 2.51; 95% CI: 1.04, 6.03), as well as among the workers who directly dealt with needles or other sharp objects while working compared to those who did not (OR: 5.9; 95% CI: 2.69, 12.97). The high incidence and low rate of reporting of NSIs highlights the need of education and awareness raising programs targeting healthcare providers with higher risk of injury

Prevalence and associated factors of respiratory allergies in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia: A cross-sectional investigation, September–December 2020

Background: Prevalence of different respiratory allergies is increasing in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA). Environmental risk factors of respiratory allergy vary regionally, hence the prevalence. This necessitates the needs for regional studies. This article reports prevalence and symptoms of respiratory allergies in the Qassim region, and the factors associated with the prevalence. Methods: Eight hundred and fifty individuals aged ≥18 years and were living in the Qassim region filled up our structured online questionnaire between September and December 2020. We estimated the prevalence of different respiratory allergies with 95% confidence intervals. Multi-variable logistic regression analyses were performed to investigate the risk factors of respiratory allergies. Findings: The prevalence of any respiratory allergy in the Qassim region was 28.8%. Most families (58.1%) had at least one member with respiratory allergy. The prevalence of allergic rhinitis and bronchial asthma were 13.5% and 11.2% 4.1% respectively. The reported symptoms included runny nose (13.6%), red, watery, and itchy eyes (10.4%), difficulty sleeping at night (10.2%), difficulty breathing in cold weather (9.2%), noisy breathing (8.5%), sneezing (8%), repeated coughing (7.5%) and shortness of breath (6.4%). Individuals with a family history were more likely to report any respiratory allergy (OR: 7.8), bronchial asthma (OR: 4.2) and allergic rhinitis (OR: 8.1) compared to the individuals without such family history. Odds of respiratory allergies was higher among males (OR: 1.5). Saudi nationals were less likely to report allergic rhinitis than the non-Saudis (OR: 0.4). Among those who reported a respiratory allergy, most (73.5%) received treatment and majority (61.7%) demonstrated compliance to the treatment, 8.8% needed hospitalization, and 23.1% needed emergency nebulization. Conclusions: Prevalence reported in our study is different than that reported in other regions. Variability in the environmental exposures might explain this. We recommend a meta-analysis to estimate the national prevalence of respiratory allergies

Immunohistochemical evaluation of human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 and estrogen and progesterone receptors in breast carcinoma in Jordan

INTRODUCTION: Although breast carcinoma (BC) is the most common malignancy affecting Jordanian females and the affected population in Jordan is younger than that in the West, no information is available on its biological characteristics. Our aims in this study are to evaluate the expression of estrogen receptor (ER) and progesterone receptor (PR) and Her-2/neu overexpression in BC in Jordan, and to compare the expression of these with other prognostic parameters for BC such as histological type, histological grade, tumor size, patients' age, and number of lymph node metastases. METHOD: This is a retrospective study conducted in the Department of Pathology at Jordan University of Science and Technology. A confirmed 91 cases of BC diagnosed in the period 1995 to 1998 were reviewed and graded. We used immunohistochemistry to evaluate the expression of ER, PR, and Her-2. Immunohistochemical findings were correlated with age, tumor size, grade and axillary lymph node status. RESULTS: Her-2 was overexpressed in 24% of the cases. The mean age of Her-2 positive cases was 42 years as opposed to 53 years among Her-2 negative cases (p = 0.0001). Her-2 expression was inversely related to ER and PR expression. Her-2 positive tumors tended to be larger than Her-2 negative tumors with 35% overexpression among T3 tumors as opposed to 22% among T2 tumors (p = 0.13). Her-2 positive cases tended to have higher rates of axillary metastases, but this did not reach statistical significance. ER and PR positive cases were seen in older patients with smaller tumor sizes. CONCLUSION: Her-2 overexpression was seen in 24% of BC affecting Jordanian females. Her-2 overexpression was associated with young age at presentation, larger tumor size, and was inversely related to ER and PR expression. One-fifth of the carcinomas were Her-2 positive and ER negative. This group appears to represent an aggressive form of BC presenting at a young age with large primary tumors and a high rate of four or more axillary lymph node metastases