Research Title: The mediating role of perceived value on electronic service quality and customer satisfaction: Evidence from Malaysia

Author: Mohammad Khalel Ibrahim Okour, Published Year: 2023

Innovative Marketing, 19

Faculty: Business

Abstract: The purpose of this paper is to examine the role of customers’ perceived value in mediating the relationship between Electronic Service Quality (ESQ) and customer satisfaction in online banking in Malaysia. The research model is developed based on the disconfirmation theory. Non-probability purposive sampling was adopted for data collection. A cross-sectional technique with a self-administered questionnaire was applied. The unit of analysis in this study is bank customers using online banking in Selangor, Malaysia. One hundred twenty-eight usable responses were received and analyzed. The Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) was applied to analyze the data. Findings showed that the variance in customer satisfaction can be significantly explained via E-service quality dimensions (R2 = 0.52). The ease of use, security, reliability, responsiveness (ESQ) have a significant and positive impact on customer satisfaction among online banking users (p = 0.000). Furthermore, it was found that the customers’ perceived value significantly mediates the relationship between E-service quality and customer satisfaction (p-value = 0.0004). The experimental findings for this paper strengthen and expand the theoretical understanding of the relationship between ESQ, customer perceived value, and customer satisfaction that helps the banks in Malaysia to perform more successfully in the rapid business environment.This study also contributed to diminishing the gap in the ESQ literature between developed and developing countries, especially in the Malaysian context.

Keywords: ESQ, ease of use, security, reliability, responsiveness, online banking

Research Title: Electronic health records perception among three healthcare providers specialties in Saudi Arabia: A cross-sectional study

Author: Fuad Abdul Rahman Taha Abdulla, Published Year: 2023

Healthcare Technology Letters, 2023;10:104–111

Faculty: Allied Medical Sciences

Abstract: Worldwide, more health care facilities are adapting the use of electronic health record (EHR). Healthcare providers (HCP) have different perceptions toward the use of EHR. To investigate the perception of three classes of HCP in Saudi Arabia toward using EHR, a questionnaire (targeting satisfaction, easiness, and benefits of use as major perception indicators) was prepared. The questionnaire was assessed by an expert panel for content validity. The questionnaire internal consistency was examined using Cronbach’s alpha. 108 physicians, physical therapists (PT) and respiratory care therapists (RT) from different hospitals in Saudi Arabia answered the questionnaire. Most of respondents perceived EHR systems as beneficial and made work easier. Most HCP were satisfied with the use of EHR, however, with the use of EHR more time was needed to finish the work. Age, experience, job, and job rank of HCP are of different importance in determining responses, perception, and obstacles of using EHR. Moreover, the perception of using EHR seems to be field specific. There is a positive perception among Saudi Arabia HCP about EHR use.

Keywords: Electronic health records, perception, healthcare providers, physical therapy, respiratory care therapist

Research Title: Electronic health records perception among three healthcare providers specialties in Saudi Arabia: A cross-sectional study

Author: Fuad Abdul Rahman Taha Abdulla, Published Year: 2023

Healthcare Technology Letters, 2023;10:104–111

Faculty: Allied Medical Sciences

Abstract: Worldwide, more health care facilities are adapting the use of electronic health record (EHR). Healthcare providers (HCP) have different perceptions toward the use of EHR. To investigate the perception of three classes of HCP in Saudi Arabia toward using EHR, a questionnaire (targeting satisfaction, easiness, and benefits of use as major perception indicators) was prepared. The questionnaire was assessed by an expert panel for content validity. The questionnaire internal consistency was examined using Cronbach’s alpha. 108 physicians, physical therapists (PT) and respiratory care therapists (RT) from different hospitals in Saudi Arabia answered the questionnaire. Most of respondents perceived EHR systems as beneficial and made work easier. Most HCP were satisfied with the use of EHR, however, with the use of EHR more time was needed to finish the work. Age, experience, job, and job rank of HCP are of different importance in determining responses, perception, and obstacles of using EHR. Moreover, the perception of using EHR seems to be field specific. There is a positive perception among Saudi Arabia HCP about EHR use.

Keywords: Electronic health records, perception, healthcare providers, physical therapy, respiratory care therapist

Research Title: Impact of Processing and Preservation Methods and Storage on Total Phenolics, Flavonoids, and Antioxidant Activities of Okra (Abelmoschus esculentus L.)

Author: Hani Jameel Mohammad Hamad, Published Year: 2023

Faculty: Allied Medical Sciences

Abstract: Abstract: Very few studies have thus far evaluated the impact of various processing and preservation techniques (blanching, frying, freezing, dehydration, and sun drying) on the levels of total phenolics, flavonoids, and antioxidant activities of okra. The primary objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of different processing and preservation methods on the levels of phenolics, flavonoids, and antioxidant activities of okra. The ethanolic extracts of each sample were analyzed before and after preservation and storage for a period of three months. The results showed a significant improvement (p < 0.05) in total phenolic content (134.1 mg GAE/100g) and DPPH (1-1-diphenyl1-2- pricrylhydrazyl) scavenging activity (IC50 value of 3.0 mg/mL) in blanched okra when compared to fresh okra (86.35 mg GAE/100g and IC50 value of 3.8 mg/mL, respectively). Fresh okra exhibited the highest flavonoid content (105.75 mg QE/100g), while sun-dried okra samples stored for three months exhibited a decrease in total phenolic content (14.45 mg GAE/100g), total flavonoid contents (13.25 mg QE/100g), reducing power activity (23.30%), and DPPH scavenging activity (IC50 value of 134.8 mg/mL). The DPPH inhibition activities of all okra treatments showed a significant and positive correlation with the okra phenolic and flavonoid content (r = 0.702 and 0.67, respectively). The reducing power activity (%) of okra treatments exhibited a strong correlation (r) with phenolic contents (r = 0.966), and the correlation with flavonoid contents was 0.459. Generally, different processing and preservation methods of okra revealed that the impact on total phenolic and flavonoid contents, as well as antioxidant activities, was slightly significant among samples preserved using the same method during storage. In addition, blanched and frozen okra resulted in the highest retention of phenolic contents and antioxidant activities.

Keywords: Okra; phenolic; DPPH; preservation; antioxidant activity

Research Title: Social Media Platforms and Political Participation: A Study of Jordanian Youth Engagement

Author: Abdelsalam Mohammad Al-Odat, Published Year: 2023

Social Sciences, 12

Faculty: Arts

Abstract: The wide adoption of social media platforms has altered how people communicate, obtain information, and participate in society. Regarding political participation, social media has emerged as a novel venue for people to voice their opinions, connect with others who share their viewpoints, and engage in activism. As a result, knowing the effect of social media on political participation is critical, particularly in developing nations like Jordan. This research investigates the moderating effect of certain factors on the impact of social media on political involvement among Jordanian youth. The Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modelling (PLS-SEM) approach is used to analyze data from a survey of 334 young people. The findings show that social media has a favorable and considerable impact on political participation. Gender was also discovered to have a strong moderating effect on the relationship between social media use and political participation. According to the analysis, gender positively moderates the effect of the frequency of social media use on political participation, while gender negatively moderates the effect of the purpose of social media usage on political participation. The study sheds light on the significance of social media in young people’s political participation in Jordan, emphasizing the need to take differences in gender into account when developing effective tactics to engage young people in the political processes.

Keywords: Jordan; PLS-SEM; political participation; social media platforms; gender

Research Title: Corpus-Based Analysis of the Feminine Style of Kamala Harris' Discourse: Women (Not Men) Are the Backbone of America's Democracy and Economy

Author: Hanan Ali Amaireh, Published Year: 2022

Thoery and Practice in Language Studies, 12(9)

Faculty: Arts

Abstract: Few studies analyzed the political discourse of the American Vice President Kamala Harris, especially during the presidential elections and her position as the American Vice President. This paper investigates the political discourse of Harris in a corpus-based study of 40 speeches (82,268) words, from 13 October, 2020 to 10 May, 2022. It examines whether Harris' speeches draw on "the feminine style" of political speeches as envisaged by Campbell (1989), Dow and Tonn (1993), and Blankenship and Robson (1995). Qualitative and quantitative analysis will be used. The quantitative analysis will use the Antconc Software to investigate the frequency of certain lexical items related to females such as woman, women, female(s), girl(s), lady, ladies, mother(s), and mom(s), inter alia. Moreover, the frequency of the first-person and third-person pronouns I, we are investigated to examine whether Harris shares her life experience and inspect whether she uses inclusive language. The qualitative and quantitative analysis shows that the political discourse of the Vice President draws on the feminine style of political speeches, such as constructing a political stance based on genuine experience, dedication to addressing women's issues in the political arena, promoting inclusiveness and realizing that actual achievements are required for leadership positions and highlighting that in her political discourse, which is in line with the observations of Campbell (1989), Dow and Tonn (1993), and Blankenship and Robson (1995).

Keywords: corpus analysis, discourse analysis, Kamala Harris, the feminine style

Research Title: COVID-19 IS WAR, WATER & A PERSON: Metaphorical Language of the Coronavirus Disease in "the Jordan Times" Newspaper

Author: Hanan Ali Amaireh, Published Year: 2022

Thoery and Practice in Language Studies, 12(7)

Faculty: Arts

Abstract: Metaphors permeate our daily communication, and they are part of our cognition. The present study investigates metaphors in a corpus-based study during the Coronavirus disease 19 crisis (COVID-19) using the Antconc Software. The way written media discourse framed the COVID-19 Crisis, especially in the Middle East received little attention from discourse analysts. The data include news editorials about the Coronavirus disease 19 from April 1, 2020 to July 5, 2020 collected from "the Jordan Times" Newspaper in English. The metaphors will be analysed according to Lakoff and Johnson's (1980; 2003) perspective of Conceptual Metaphors and Charteris-Black (2004) of Critical Metaphor Analysis. The quantitative analysis shows that the conceptual metaphors COVID-19 IS WAR, COVID-19 IS WATER, and COVID-19 IS A PERSON are highly used in the corpus to frame the pandemic. The conceptual metaphor COVID-19 IS WAR is not only used to represent a war against the disease, but also a war between countries. So, the metaphorical use is politicised, and reflects hidden ideology. The quantitative analysis asserts that the context is the decisive factor for the analysis of certain lexical items related to the pandemic and identifying whether they are literally or metaphorically used.

Keywords: conceptual metaphors, Covid-19, critical metaphor analysis, the Jordan Times Newspaper

Research Title: A Critical discourse Analysis of Al Jazeera's reporting of the 2021 Israel Palestine Crisis

Author: Hanan Ali Amaireh, Published Year: 2023

International Journal of Arabic English Studies, 24(1)

Faculty: Arts

Abstract: crisis as reported by Al Jazeera English. In this corpus-based study, 50 news reports were analysed using Van Dijk’s ‘ideological square’as the theoretical framework. The findings suggest that the Al Jazeera reporters reflected their personal ideology in their lexical choices, or lexicalisation, displaying either a positive or negative stance towards the crisis, with Palestinians being the ‘in-group’and Israelis the ‘out-group’. The news reporters also framed the Palestinians—‘us’—as the innocent victims of colonisation, while the ‘other’Israelis were negatively represented as victimisers, racists, and colonisers through an emphasis on syntactic agency. One key observation is that the Al Jazeera reporters emphasised the Palestinian narrative while also radiating personal feelings and attitudes towards the crisis. At the same time, the Israelis were silenced and derogatorily portrayed

Keywords: Al Jazeera network, corpus analysis, critical discourse analysis, ideological square, 2021 Israel-Palestine crisis

Research Title: Online reinforcement learning control of robotic arm in presence of high variation in friction forces

Author: Mohammed Bani Younis, Published Year: 2023

Faculty: Engineering and Technology

Abstract: The operation and accuracy of industrial robotic arms can be negatively affected by significant fluctuations in friction forces within their joints, potentially resulting in financial and operational losses. To mitigate these issues, an online model-free reinforcement learning controller specifically designed to handle high variations in joints’ friction forces. To the best of our knowledge this is the first time where reinforcement learning controller is used to handle high friction variations in a robotic arm. Initially, the dynamic equations of the robotic arm are derived, verified and validated to ensure an accurate representation of real-world behaviour. The stability of the closed-loop system is analyzed using the Lyapunov second method. The performance of the proposed controller in terms of position tracking is compared against four commonly used controllers found in literature for similar applications: (i) nonlinear model-based computed torque controller, (ii) proportional-derivative controller, (iii) adaptive iterative learning controller and (iv) radial basis function neural network adaptive controller. Simulation results demonstrate that the reinforcement learning controller outperforms the other controllers in terms of tracking performance, even in the presence of significant variations in joint friction forces.

Keywords: Reinforcement learning, controlrobotic arm, high friction variation, online learning

Research Title: Household Food Insecurity and Nutritional Status of PreSchool Children Following Relaxation of COVID-19 Restrictions

Author: Zaher Qassim Al-Bashabsheh, Published Year: 2023

Journal of Xi’an Shiyou University, Natural Science Edition, 19 ISSUE 06 19 ISSUE

Faculty: Allied Medical Sciences

Abstract: - Studies found a high prevalence of household food insecurity (HFIS) and malnutrition and an association between them during the movement restriction period of the COVID-19 pandemic. This nutritional status should have improved by now as movement restrictions, including quarantine, have been lifted. Therefore, the goal of this cross-sectional study was to determine the current prevalence of HFIS and malnutrition and their associations and contributing factors among pre-school children (i.e., children under the age of 5 years) following relaxation of the COVID-19 restrictions in Jordan. A sample of 386 children (197 boys and 189 girls) in Irbid, Jordan, were recruited in this study following the simple random sampling method. The levels of HFIS and malnutrition were assessed using the Food Insecurity Experience Scale (FIES) and the World Health Organization (WHO) growth reference values, respectively. Relevant information were managed and measurements made and employed to calculate four major anthropometric indicators for the sample children (weight to height (WHZ), height to age (HAZ), weight to age (WAZ) and Body Mass Index to age (BMI/A) (BMI/A)). The results of analysis pointed out that prevalence of food insecurity among the sample children was 58.2%, where 19.9% of the kids were experiencing moderate food insecurity and 38.3% were suffering from severe food insecurity. On the other hand, prevalence of malnutrition among those children was 1.81%, where 1.55% of the kids were emaciated and 1.26% were severely emaciated. The results also indicated that mother’s age, number of children in the family, income of the family, monthly expenses on food and beverages and the energy expenses contributed significantly (p<0.05) to food insecurity. Moreover, the study found that HFIS had negative correlations with WHZ (r=−0.272, p=0.000), WAZ (r=−0.193, p=0.000) and BMI/A (r=−0.263, p=0.000) and a positive correlation with HAZ (r=0.041, p=0.00). The study reports high prevalence of HFIS among children under the age of 5 years in Jordan, even after relaxation of the COVID-19 restrictions on mobility. However, prevalence of malnutrition among this group of the population is low. These results spotlight the continued impact of the COVID19 crisis on the financial statuses of households

Keywords: Anthropometry, Household Food Insecurity, Jordan, Malnutrition, Pre-school children.