Saudi Cultural Missions Theses & Dissertations
Permanent URI for this communityhttps://drepo.sdl.edu.sa/handle/20.500.14154/10
Browse
3 results
Search Results
Item Restricted Using the Concept of Work Alienation as a Lens to Explore Academic Females’ Experiences at King Saud University(University of Leeds, 2024-01-16) Alothaim, Dunya Mohammed A; Grugulis, Irena; Umney, CharlesThe purpose of this research was to explore the experience of Saudi women working in academia by using the concept of alienation as a lens. With this aim, there were three research questions: • To what extent, and in what ways, are dimensions of alienation relevant in understanding the situation of women in academia in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia? • How do women working in academia in Saudi Arabia experience gender segregation? • How are these dynamics affected by the new ways of working (notably, Saudi Vision 2030) and the technological innovations introduced as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic? The paper begins with a literature review, which established the starting point for answering the research questions. After that, a qualitative methodology was selected to collect and analyse the research data. Data collection took place via face-to-face and Zoom interviews. The study comprised 33 female academics working at King Saud University. Ten of those interviewees were interviewed more than once to collect more data about the Covid-19 pandemic. Thematic analysis was used to highlight codes and develop themes from the data. The results and discussion show that alienation is a valuable concept in exploring phenomena related to women in the workplace. Academic careers were found to have positive features, but these were based on employees’ culturally determined points of view. Aspects such as the level of autonomy enjoyed by the participants, the degree to which they felt they were under control and their sense of meaningfulness is better identified from employees’ perspectives within a specific context. The results also indicate that negative feelings, such as sadness, should not always be understood as a sign of alienation. In contrast, sadness and tiredness arose in informants as an indication of high engagement with their work. Further recommendations include more exploratory studies to enrich the concept of alienation and to provide organisations with an understanding of specific issues rather than just symptoms.9 0Item Restricted Modelling Health Emergency: An Efficient Approach in Operating via Simulations(The University of Sydney, 2024-06) Alhuntushi, Nasser; Jajo, NethalThis thesis aimed to develop a mathematical model to minimise patient wait times and stay length in the Australian Nepean Hospital's emergency department (ED). The model used integer programming to analyse patient movements and identify bottlenecks. The thesis also adopted a discrete event simulation (DES) generic model for ED patient flow to investigate weekday and weekend patients’ arrival and waiting times and staff utilisation rates, identify resource management problems, and test multiple possible scenarios solutions. The model was based on Nepean hospital’ ED data from the Nepean Blue Mountains Local Health District and analysed during the COVID-19 pandemic. We used Arena software to develop the model, identifying areas where patients may experience long wait times and supporting decision-making to improve ED efficiency. The study aimed to improve patient experience and efficiency. The research reveals that priority queuing theory is crucial for understanding the ED system, with the DES model being more appropriate. The Acute care zone has the longest wait time and highest nurse utilisation, with physician utilisation consistently exceeding 95%. The COVID-19 pandemic has not significantly impacted patient arrivals, but staff reallocation is necessary for efficiency and patient health. The thesis proposes three efficient scenarios based on ED preferences and limits: moving one physician to a new peak hour shift, hiring an extra physician, or rostering a nurse from the Subacute care zone to the morning shift. These results help decision-makers optimise service delivery, reduce wait times, and improve staff utilisation.29 0Item Restricted Teachers’ Attitudes Towards Blended Learning in EFL Classrooms: Post-Pandemic Tertiary Education in Saudi Arabia(Saudi Digital Library, 2023-02-09) Alamri, Nada; Sitter, JaneThis study aimed to determine whether or not the COVID-19 pandemic has had an effect on the perceptions of blended learning held by EFL teachers working in higher education in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. This study also looked at how teachers' attitudes differed based on their gender, age, level of education, level of training, and number of years teaching. In addition, 58 male and female EFL teachers participated in a survey questionnaire to provide the necessary data for this study. The results indicated that the attitudes of EFL teachers toward blended learning shifted in a positive direction after the pandemic. Before and after the pandemic, there were no clear differences in how male and female EFL teachers viewed blended learning based on their gender. Also, there was no statistically significant difference between the teachers' opinions and their demographic variables. The results showed that most EFL teachers liked blended learning and thought it made teaching and learning more convenient. Finally, the answers to the open-ended questions about the problems and challenges of blended learning showed that the delivery of these courses was hampered by a lack of training and technical knowledge.14 0