Assessing the Values Structure Among United Arab Emirates University Students

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to clarify the values structure among United Arab Emirates University students in general and in terms of gender and citizenship. The study sample size was 242 males and 353 females. Results indicated that religious and cognitive values came first in the structure, while social and economic values came in last. This structure was a little different in terms of citizenship and gender. These results are discussed on the basis of the literature.

Family Involvement in Emirati College Student Education and Linkages to High and Low Achievement in the Context of the United Arab Emirates

“…Proportionately, nearly 8 times more males were working than females, and 91% of the married males were working. The findings support the assertions of Ridge (2010), Ridge (2009), and Kamali and Simidi (2004) that males drop out of the educational process earlier 18 G. M. Daleure, R. Albon, K. Hinkston, T. Ajaif, & J. McKeown FIRE -Forum for International Research in Education than females and that males are expected to financially support themselves and their families, especially when married.…”

“…This trend was not observed in this study. Since females outnumber males nearly two to one in post-secondary education, Emirati families may feel that young males warrant more engagement to ensure successful completion of their degrees and entry into the workforce so they can become financially responsible for their nuclear and extended families, as suggested by (Simidi & Kamali, 2004).…”

“…Concerns surfaced that Emirati culture and traditional values were being adversely affected by the rapid economic expansion and exposure to foreign cultures. In the traditional Emirati value system, according to Simidi and Kamali (2004), family expectations and the Islamic religion held males financially and socially responsible for their nuclear and extended families. However, studies by Crabtree (2007) and Schevanevaldt et al (2005) reported growing concerns that young Emirati males, who persisted in postsecondary education only half as frequently as did females by the mid-2000s (Ridge, 2010), may not be adequately prepared to provide for an acceptable lifestyle for their families.…”

“…In the case of the UAE, rapid development over a span of about half a century and an influx of foreign labor to fuel this development have led to important economic and social changes since nationalization in 1971 (Alsayegh, 2001). Each consecutive generation of Emiratis experienced different circumstances in the rapidly developing society, yet parents and other family elders tended to influence the decisions, attitudes, and opinions of youth in the tribally based society (Alsayegh, 2001;Crabtree, 2007;Ridge, 2010;Simidi & Kamali, 2004). This paper examines the types of family involvement that exist in Emirati college student education and the extent to which each type of family involvement is liked to academic achievement.…”

Married Emirati Students Pursuing Teaching Careers from the Perspective of their Spouses

“…The family, not the individual, is considered the primary unit with communal interests usually overriding individual ones. Gender role delineations and shifts have implications in orientations towards family life and family processes [1].…”