Intercultural communication in the context of Saudi Arab tertiary education

© Springer Science+Business Media Singapore 2015. This chapter is a case study of intercultural communication in a tertiary educational setting in Saudi Arabia. Given the fact that educational institutions adopt Western models of education and employ foreign professors, this study aims at shedding light on the patterns of communication in the classroom. The elements of Hofstede\u27s five dimensional model, namely, uncertainty avoidance, individualism/collectivism, and power distance dimensions were applied for the purpose of analysis. The study involved in-depth interviews with 17 female students of a private university in the Eastern Province. While assessing the perception of the students about the communication patterns, it provides recommendations on improving the educational experience of local students taught by Western professors. Ultimately, the findings will contribute in promoting a culturally responsible education characterized by critical thinking skills, individual creativity, and movement out of comfort zones, which will prepare students for the globalized job market\u27s challenges

Exploring perceptions of advertising ethics: an informant-derived approach

Whilst considerable research exists on determining consumer responses to pre-determined statements within numerous ad ethics contexts, our understanding of consumer thoughts regarding ad ethics in general remains lacking. The purpose of our study therefore is to provide a first illustration of an emic and informant-based derivation of perceived ad ethics. The authors use multi-dimensional scaling as an approach enabling the emic, or locally derived deconstruction of perceived ad ethics. Given recent calls to develop our understanding of ad ethics in different cultural contexts, and in particular within the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, we use Lebanon—the most ethically charged advertising environment within MENA—as an illustrative context for our study. Results confirm the multi-faceted and pluralistic nature of ad ethics as comprising a number of dimensional themes already salient in the existing literature but in addition, we also find evidence for a bipolar relationship between individual themes. The specific pattern of inductively derived relationships is culturally bound. Implications of the findings are discussed, followed by limitations of the study and recommendations for further research

Usability in Multiple Monitor Displays

This study was designed to examine the impact of multiple monitor use on user performance. Additionally, multitasking was evaluated as a mediational factor in performance. Twenty four students were tasked to create a web page using Macromedia\u27s Dreamweaver, as well as several video tutorials, Microsoft Office applications, and a web browser. Twelve participants interacted with a four-monitor display, and twelve used a traditional single-monitor setup. Those who used the quad-panel display were more inclined to multitask, where multitasking was evaluated between application windows, not between monitors - i.e. not exclusive to the multiple monitor setup. Participants of the multiple monitor group also scored more favorably on performance measures than those using the single monitor. In addition, users who multitasked finished objectives more quickly than those who used a sequential approach. Qualitative analysis also revealed usability issues within each setup

The Effect of Multiple Monitor Display on User Performance and Multi-tasking

An experimental study was conducted to examine the impact of multiple monitors on user performance and multitasking. Forty-three participants were assigned to two groups: a multi-monitor group and a single-monitor group, to carry out a series of tasks. Both quantitative and qualitative data were collected and analyzed. Results indicated that those who used the multi-monitor display were more inclined to multitask, and scored higher on performance measures than those using the single monitor. Interviews from the participants validated the quantitative results and provided additional insights on usability issues of multi-monitor displays

Usability in Multiple Monitor Displays

An experimental study was conducted to examine the impact of multiple monitors on user performance and multitasking. Forty-three participants were assigned to two groups-a multi-monitor group and a singlemonitor group-to carry out a series of tasks. Both quantitative and qualitative data were collected and analyzed. Results indicated that those who used the multi-monitor display were more inclined to multitask and scored higher on performance measures than those using the single monitor. Interviews from the participants validated the quantitative results and provided additional insights on usability issues of multi-monitor displays