Affiliations: Engineering Management and Systems Engineering
Department, George Washington University, Washington, DC, 801 15{th} Street
South #1511, Arlington, Virginia 22202, USA. Tel.: +1 703 416 2248; E-mail:
nkmhfk@hotmail.com | Engineering Management and Systems Engineering
Department, George Washington University, Washington, DC, 1776 G. St. NW
#101, Washington, DC 20052, USA. Tel.: +1 202 994 4820; Fax: +1 202 994
0245; E-mail: jjchryan@gwu.edu | Engineering Management and Systems Engineering
Department, George Washington University, Washington, DC, 1776 G. St. NW
#101, Washington, DC 20052, USA. Tel.: +1 202 994 6803; Fax: +1 202 994
0245; E-mail: tjeff@gwu.edu
Abstract: This study investigated the perceptions of female faculty in Saudi
Arabia regarding the use of the Internet. The reason this population is of
interest is because there are conflicts of interests: on one hand, there is
strong desire to maintain the traditional Saudi culture, which restricts the
travel and interaction of females. On the other hand, there is a recognition
that Saudi females are valuable members of society who can contribute
significantly. This study investigated one part of this problem: how females
perceive the potential of the Internet to change the way they are able to work
and contribute to their society. Specifically, a grounded theory method was
used to investigate the perceptions of advantages and disadvantages of Internet
use by Saudi female faculty. Twenty-four female faculty members at four higher
educational institutions in Saudi Arabia in three academic disciplines
(science, humanities and religion) were interviewed extensively over a year.
The study revealed an interesting conflict of aspects influencing both
attitudes and actual usage patterns. Differences in perceptions are influenced
strongly by age and academic discipline.
Keywords: Saudi Arabia, faculty, researchers, female, internet, perception, user acceptance, technology transfer, information technology, computer science, information systems
