The Consequences of Wasta (Favoritism and Nepotism) on Individuals’ Psychological

Well-being from Educators’ Perspectives

Tarik Abdulkreem Alwerthan

Submitted in Partial Fulfillment

Of the

Requirements for the Degree

Doctor of Philosophy

Supervised by

Professor Dena Phillips Swanson

Warner School of Education

University of Rochester

2016
   ii

Dedication

This project is dedicated to my father who was my teacher during elementary schooling and I

am still learning from his wisdom. Your large amount of support and parenting style have

influenced my life positively. To my mother who has always been there for me and who always

knows what I am feeling and thinking about by just hearing my voice or seeing my face. To my

wife who has supported, encouraged, and unconditionally loved me, which has positively affected

me, allowing me to complete the doctoral journey. To my beloved daughter and son -princess

Nora Alwerthan and prince Ziyad Alwerthan- who have been the light of my life. To my siblings:

Tahany, Abdulaziz, Monirah, Talal, Tagreed, Latifah, Bayan, Batool, I appreciate your

encouragement and love. To my nephews and nieces: Muhammad, Haya, Sadeem, Ritaj, Nora I,

Abdulkreem I, Norah J, Abdullah, Zaid, Abdulkreem J, Eyad, Haila, Lana, Abdulkreem II, and

Norah III who have been the source of my liveliness.

   iii

Biographical Sketch

Tarik Abdulkreem Alwerthan was born and raised in the Kingdom of Saudi

Arabia. In 2008, he received a scholarship from King Abdullah to learn English as a

second language and to obtain master and doctoral degrees from the United States of

America. Prior to coming to the U.S., he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Arabic

literature in 2005 and a Graduate Certificate in General Education from King Saud

University in 2007. He attained a Master of Science degree in Organizational

Development and Leadership from Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine. In the

Fall of 2011, he came to the University of Rochester where he started graduate studies in

the Counseling and Human Development Department under the direction of Dr. Dena

Phillips Swanson. At the end of the Spring semester of 2014, he received a Master of

Science degree in Human Development in Educational Contexts and a Graduate

Certificate in Program Evaluation from the Margaret Warner Graduate School of

Education and Human Development at the University of Rochester. During his graduate

career, he became an Adjunct Faculty member and taught undergraduate level courses for

the Department of Religion and Classics.

   iv

Acknowledgements
Reaching this point would not have been possible without the mercy and blessings from

Allah and then the endless support from my family members and relatives, professors, academic

advisor, friends and colleagues.

Thank you to my dissertation committee: To Dr. Dena Phillips Swanson, for advising me,

inspiring me and challenging me to grow personally and professionally since I enrolled at the

University of Rochester in the Fall of 2011. To Dr. Silvia Sorensen, who guided my research by

providing valuable suggestions to make my work be about human development. To Dr. Ronald

Rogge, for your feedback to strengthen my knowledge about research procedures and analyses.

Moreover, it is important that I express appreciation to everyone who facilitated my journey with

their suggestions and advice while collecting data from educators in Riyadh: Dr. Ibrahim Al-

Badah, Dr. Ibrahim Alhumaidan, Abdulaziz Abdulkreem Alwarthan, Abdulaziz Zaid Abotaily,

Dr. Ajlan Alshehri, Ebtasam Salih Albawardi, Lila Rashid Al-Dokhi, Turki Abdulaah Alsarami,

Nada Albawardi, Muhammad Ali Aljuwair, Fahad Aloiradi, Warthan Al-Warthan, Naif Alajlan,

Majid Alskik, Waleed Alharbi, , Eman Alwarthan and every educator who participated in my

study.

I would like to acknowledge a list of extended family members, friends, colleagues, and

mentors, who have contributed to my personal success directly or indirectly: Hamad Saad

Alwarthan, Dr. Abdullah Alsarami, Ali Aljuwair, Asim Javed, Muhammad Alwarthan, Ahamad

Alsarami, Khalid Al-warthan, Dr. Lucia French, Ebna Zabir, Aron Murante, Badner Al-Warthan,

Muhammad Al-Kaabi, Francis Ellis , Dr. Nancy Ares, Dr. Lucia French, Dr. Brian Brent, Dr.

Michelle Palermo-Biggs, Brenda Grosswirth, Crys Cassano, Dr. Kara Finnigan, Dr. Joyce
   v

Duckles, Dr. David Donnelly, Dr. Martin Lynch, Dr. Richard Ryan, Dr. Edward Deci, Donna

Harris, Dr. Rabia Hos, Dr. Edward Brockenbrough, Dr. Jing Che, Dr. Kathryn Douthit, Dr.

Kankana Mukhopadhyay, Adil Al-Jumah, and Mubark Al-Mhaish, Dr. Sheila B. Robinson, Dr.

Nahoko Kawakyu-O’Connor, Dr. Rafael Outland, Dr. Andre Marquis, Dr. Constance Flahive, and

Dr. Kiah Nyame. Finally, I must acknowledge the government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia,

for its financial support to obtain my graduate degrees from the U.S.A.
   vi

Abstract
Wasta (favoritism and nepotism) as a practice exists in individualistic and collective

societies. Studies demonstrated that wasta is associated with negative consequences on

organizational productivity and job satisfaction of the organization personnel. Studies in the

sociological field demonstrated that it is a social norm in some cultures. The aim of the current

study was to investigate the relationship between providing and receiving wasta and

psychological distress. Self-determination theory is utilized to explain this relationship by treating

the basic psychological needs (autonomy, competence, relatedness) as mediators. The data of this

study come from gathering self-reported instruments of 1,088 educators who work for the Saudi

education system. The findings showed that basic psychological needs mediated the relationship

between engaging in wasta (benefitting from wasta and providing wasta) and psychological

distress. Benefitting from wasta was a predictor of low needs satisfaction, which in turn predicted

higher psychological distress (depression, anxiety, stress). In contrast, providing wasta to others

was a predictor of higher needs satisfaction, which in turn predicted lower levels of psychological

distress.
   vii

Table of Contents

Dedication ii

Biographic Sketch iii

Acknowledgements iv

Abstract vi

List of Tables x

List of Figures xi

Chapter 1 Introduction: Rationale 1

1.1 Understanding Wasta 1

1.2 Wasta and Discrimination 3

1.3 Wasta and Well-being 5

1.4 Conceptual Framing 6

Chapter 2 Literature Review 9

2.1 Wasta and Well-being 9

2.2 Wasta’s Impacts on Society and Organizations 10

2.3 Wasta and Helping Behavior 13

2.4 Self Determination Theory (SDT) 15

Chapter 3 Methods 18

3.1 Context and Settings 18

3.2 Participants 19

3.3 Instrumentation 20

3.3.1 Basic Psychological Needs Satisfaction Scale 21

   viii

(BPNSS)

3.3.2 Depression Anxiety Stress Scale (DASS) 22

3.3.3 Benefitting from Wasta 23

3.3.4 Providing Wasta 23

3.3.5 Demographic 23

3.4 Translating the Survey to Arabic 24

3.5 Research Aim 24

Chapter 4 Results 26

Study Descriptive 26

Testing Proposed Mediation Models 28

Discussion 38

Overview 38

Receiving (benefitting from) Wasta Could Be Harmful 38

Providing Wasta Could Enhance Well-being 40

Need Satisfaction is Strongly Linked to Well-being 41

The Value of Current Study 42

Limitations and Future Research 44

Implication 45

Conclusion 46

References 47

Appendix A Letter from Ministry of Education 53

Appendix B Recruitment Letter 54

   ix

Appendix C Educators Questionnaire 56

   x

List of Tables

Table Title Page

Table 4.1 Background Characteristics 26

Table 4.2 Sample Descriptive and Bivariate Correlations 27

Table 4.3 Standardized path coefficients from the SEM structural 31

model testing global need satisfaction as a mediator.

Table 4.4 Testing Significance of Indirect Paths with MacKinnon's 33

Asymmetric Confidence Interval Approach.

Table 4.5 Standardized path coefficients from the SEM structural 35

model testing autonomy, competency, and relatedness as

distinct predictors.
   xi

List of Figures

Figure Title Page

Figure 4.1 Standardized path coefficients from the SEM structural 32

model evaluating global need satisfaction as a mediator.

Figure 4.2 Standardized path coefficients from the SEM structural 36

model evaluating autonomy, competency, and relatedness

as distinct predictors.
   1

Chapter 1: Rationale

The aim of this research is to investigate the association between wasta, a form of favoritism

in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and individual emotional well-being from the perspective of school

personnel. Although there is literature that acknowledges the existence of wasta and suggests

reasons why it exists, the literature has not clearly demonstrated the relationship between wasta and

psychological distress. In this chapter, the rationale for studying wasta in relationship to

psychological distress is presented. This includes the relevance of wasta as a practice of

discrimination and as sources of corruption in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Middle-Eastern

states, and introduces the theoretical basis informing the current study.

1.1 Understanding Wasta

Wasta is an Arabic word used in reference to both favoritism and nepotism (Hutchings &

Weir, 2006). The Arabic root for the word “wasta” means connectionism (Cunningham & Sarayrah,

1993; Taha, 2011; Yaghi 1991); in practice, it is favoritism (Loewe, Blume, Schönleber, Seibert ,

Speer, & Voss, 2007) and a form of discrimination and source of corruption (Bekker, 1991). In

terms of corruption, it has been defined as abusing the power of public office to gain private

advantages (Al-Shamari, 2012; Hallak & Poisson, 2005). While there are many forms of corruption,

only one is wasta (Al-Shamari, 2012; Bekker, 1991; Taha, 2011), which is the focus of the current

study. Although some studies have tried to demonstrate that corruption is good for economic reasons

and other aspects of development in a country, these studies have not taken into account the effects

on individuals’ psychological distress (Colombatto, 2003; Leff,1964; Huntington & Harvard

University: Center for International Affairs, 1968). A report from the United Nations (UN) contains

three essential components to measure human development: health, which is assessed by life

expectancy, education, which is measured by mean year of education, and standard of living, which
   2

is evaluated by gross national income per capital (Akcay, 2006; Sims, Gong, & Ruppel, 2012). Their

definition of health does not include mental health, which makes it difficult to understand the

potential impact of corruption and its different forms on psychological distress. However, reports by

UNESCO and Corrupted Countries Index, republished by the United Nations (UN), show that

corruption affects human development in corrupted countries (Akcay, 2006). Furthermore, research

consistently suggests that a high level of corruption predicts lower levels of productivity in countries

and lower levels of health, education and standards of living essential to development (Akcay, 2006;

Chakraborty, 2003; Haq, 1996; Taha, 2011). As the UN report suggests however, there is no

country that is free of wasta (Cunningham & Sarayrah, 1993). Wasta is not only present in Saudi

Arabia but it is a common behavior across the world that has been defined as “preferential treatment

of relatives, friends, and neighbors or other acquaintances. It is a widespread pattern of social

interaction in many parts of the world – known as blat in Russia, guanxi in China, and wasta in the

Arab world” (Loewe et al., 2007, p.3).

However, in response to the growing concerns about corruption generally, and wasta more

specifically, The National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

was established on March 18, 2011 to protect “integrity” and fight “corruption”

(http://www.nazaha.gov.sa). The NACC states that a large amount of corruption in the Kingdom of

Saudi Arabia exists due to favoritism. In a survey of 404 employees in Saudi private and

governmental sectors that aimed to investigate their administrative corruption, Al-Shamari (2012)

found the most prevalent forms of administrative corruption are “making decisions in favor of

corrupted people, mediation instrumentality, bribery, discrimination, preference, [and] profiting from

the position” (p.176). Yaghi (1991) states that

Wasta is a negative phenomenon which is built on different considerations such as political,

   3

social, economic, relative, friendship, etc.…during treating individuals and groups instead of

considering qualifications, capability …… then favoritism which is done by connectionism

has negative impacts on the system, values, and admirable habits. These behaviors are

preventing people from getting what they deserve and giving some people what they do not

deserve (p. 266).

Wasta is in many aspects of Middle Easterners’ lives; it is utilized not only for attaining

employment, as is common in the Western world, but exists in several areas (social, professional,

academic, etc.) in middle-eastern societies (Cunningham & Sarayrah, 1993; Taha, 2011). Studies

show that wasta is present in educational and related settings from teachers’ and administrators’

perspectives. For example, in surveying 310 teachers and 50 principals in Kuwait, Al-Enizi

(2006) demonstrated that wasta exists in the schools of Kuwait and that the principals saw it

more often than teachers, especially regarding activities and school regulations. Also, male

participants recognized the existence of wasta much more than female participants. In collected

surveys from 288 teachers, Aydogan (2009) showed that wasta was present in the Ministry of

Turkish National Education and in its districts and schools. It was also recognized in the hiring

process of high-level administrators and in providing resources to schools and public housing.

The participants indicated that favoritism established noncompliance with rules and regulations

as an acceptable behavior.

1.2 Wasta and Discrimination

As a practice including both favoritism and nepotism, wasta is also acknowledged as a form

of discrimination (Becker, 1957; Fershtman, Gneezy, & Verboven, 2005). Becker (1957)

distinguished between two kinds of discrimination: a positive one which is discrimination in

favor of, such as nepotism, and a negative one which is discrimination against (Graham, 2013;
   4

Taylor & Turner, 2002; Williams, Yu, Jackson, & Anderson, 1997). Importantly, Becker (1957)

highlights that “the social and economic implications of positive prejudice or nepotism are very

similar to those of negative prejudice or discrimination” (p. 7). This allows an investigation

examining the relationship between wasta and mental health to utilize prior research on

discrimination as an initiating guide particularly relevant in conducting the current study. In

particular, different studies have demonstrated how favoritism can be a form of discrimination.

Goldberg (1982) proposed that racial discrimination is not a dislike for individuals of color but

instead favoritism towards Caucasians. In a book that provided numerous examples of wasta in

practice, Cunnigham and Sarayrah, (1993) demonstrated that Middle-Easterners view wasta as

favoritism that leads to discrimination against individuals who do not have connections.

Similarly, in a study aimed to identify favors that increase United Arab Emirates’ citizens’

employment numbers and retention percentages, Al-Ali (2008) stated that wasta is an illegal and

discriminative practice that occurs in Arab countries. Overall, discrimination in the western

countries has been recognized as denying opportunities to deserving individuals or applying

unjustified punishments to individuals as a result of belonging to an unprivileged group (Zick,

Pettigrew & Wagner, 2008). Likewise, wasta in the middle-eastern countries is perceived as

providing opportunities to those who do not necessarily deserve them and withholding

punishments from those who deserve them (Cunningham & Sarayrah, 1993). However, the

notion of helping is regulated religiously by Qura’nic and prophetic statements.

From a religious standpoint, which is central to Saudi culture, scholars in Saudi Arabia

emphasize being good to one another within legal and humanistic boundaries, without causing

any direct or indirect harm. For instance, the General Presidency of Scholarly Research and Ifta

(2012) has distinguished between wasta and intercession by highlighting this Qur’anic verse:
   5

“Whoever intercedes for a good cause will have a reward therefrom; and whoever intercedes for

an evil cause will have a burden therefrom. And ever is Allah, over all things, a Keeper” (An-

Nisaa, 85). In expounding on the use of these teachings, there is a prophetic narration that

underscores the importance of helping one another; the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him)

said: "[h]elp your brother, whether he is an oppressor or he is oppressed." People asked, "…It is

right to help him if he is oppressed, but how should we help him if he is an oppressor?" The

Prophet said, "By preventing him from oppressing others" (Al-Bukhari, 1981, p. 624).  

He also stated that

He who alleviates the suffering of a brother out of the sufferings of the world, Allah
would alleviate his suffering from the sufferings of the Day of Resurrection, and he who
finds relief for one who is hard pressed, Allah would make things easy for him in the
Hereafter, .................... Allah is at the back of a servant so long as the servant is at the
back of his brother, and he who treads the path in search of knowledge, Allah would
make that path easy, leading to Paradise for him (Al-Qushayri & Siddiqui, 2000, p.
1417).

The scriptures imply that an individual should help people, especially family, but also prevent

someone from oppressing others. Since discrimination or favoring some people undeservedly is a

form of oppression, … wasta is not condoned. Drawing upon the different definitions, religious

statements, and concepts highlighted thus far, the current study defines wasta as a social norm

that provides favorable treatment through connections that subsequently denies favorable

treatment and opportunities to those without connections, which is accepted in the middle-

eastern states culturally and and disapproved religiously.

1.3 Wasta and Well-being

There is still a need to investigate the relationship between wasta’s existence and

psychological well-being. In the context of this study, this relationship is examined from the

perspective of Saudi educators. Examining educators’ perspectives towards wasta is crucial for
   6

several reasons. Firstly, as educators, teachers work for one of the most important sectors in

every nation. Secondly, teachers’ well-being has a relationship with their job satisfaction; results

of surveys from 274 teachers, Ferguson, Frost and Hall (2012) showed that stress and depression

were major predictors of job satisfaction. The current study involves teachers from five different

regions in Riyadh, and these regions differ in their socioeconomic representation. The north and

east regions consist of mostly upper-middle class and upper-class citizens. Thus, people could

vary in their level of engagement in wasta (receiving wasta and giving wasta) as socioeconomic

factors and relationships with others, in positions with connections, is important in determining

the level of engagement.

1.4 Conceptual Framing

In order to understand the psychological effects of wasta, it is useful to draw from the

literature regarding discrimination in America. For instance, racial discrimination in the U.S. has

a similar history with wasta, as it was once accepted as the social norm. Scholars who have

inquired about discrimination from a psychological lens demonstrate that the perception of being

treated unfairly is accompanied by negative emotional well-being such as stress, depression, and

anxiety (Buchanan & Fitzgerald, 2008; Branscombe, Schmitt, & Harvey,1999; Huynh, 2012;

Klonoff , Landrine, & Ullman, 1999; Nyborg & Curry, 2003; Rivas-Drake, Hughes, & Way,

2009). Thus, because pervasive discriminatory practices in a society are related to individuals’

well-being (Becker, 1957; Fershtman, Gneezy, & Verboven, 2005), understanding the literature

related to racial and socioeconomic discriminations elucidates the association between wasta and

well-being.

The psychological theory that is used to understand the mechanism defining the

relationship between wasta and psychological well-being is self-determination theory (Baard,

   7

Deci, & Ryan, 2004; Deci & Cascio, 1972; Kasser & Ryan, 1999; Sheldon & Filak, 2008;

Sheldon, Ryan, & Reis, 1996). The theory identifies the significance of satisfying three innate

psychological needs: autonomy, competence, and relatedness (Baard, et al., 2004; Deci &

Cascio, 1972); SDT focuses on showing the importance of supporting human natural tendencies

to behave in healthy and effective ways (Deci & Ryan, 2000). There is ample research that

demonstrates how these three needs are associated with well-being (Kasser & Ryan, 1999;

Sheldon & Filak, 2008; Sheldon, et al., 1996). SDT therefore serves as an appropriate lens to

investigate wasta from a psychological perspective. This theoretical perspective is used to

investigate how the satisfaction of the basic psychological needs relates to well-being when

either engaging in wasta or not. For the individual who provides wasta to others (e.g., family

member, relatives, friends, colleagues), it may mean that the individual has satisfied these needs,

which results in having optimal well-being. In contrast, the individual who receives wasta may

not have satisfied these needs, which in turn, would predict higher levels of anxiety, depression

and stress.

In sum, research has shown that wasta is primarily perceived as a negative practice

(Almuhanna, 1999; Al-Shamari, 2012; Aydogan, 2009;Yaghi, 1991), and that discrimination has

a negative association with the individual’s well-being (Nyborg & Curry, 2003; Klonoff ,

Landrine, & Ullman, 1999; Rivas-Drake, Hughes, & Way, 2009). The mechanisms by which

wasta may affect well-being, however, have not been examined. Because SDT suggests that

needs satisfaction plays a vital role in humans’ well-being, it is possible that wasta affects well-

being through its impact on need satisfaction. In the current study, SDT is used to examine the

mediating influence of psychological need satisfaction on engaging in wasta and psychological

distress (depressive symptoms, anxiety symptoms, and stress). Specifically, the focus on the
   8

research is whether the satisfaction of the three basic psychological needs mediates the

relationship between wasta engagement (benefitting from wasta, and providing wasta to others)

and psychological distress.

The current study investigates (a) wasta from a psychological perspective to explore

whether wasta has a relationship with psychological distress; (b) how the satisfaction of basic

psychological needs mediates the relation between either benefitting or not benefitting from

wasta and well-being; and (c) how the satisfaction of basic psychological needs mediates the

association between either having or not having the ability to provide wasta to family members

and friends and well-being. The main research question is:

What is the relationship between engaging in wasta (receiving and providing wasta) and

psychological well-being?

Two sub questions are:

Ø   How does the satisfaction of the basic psychological needs mediate the

relationship between receiving wasta and psychological distress?

Ø   How does the satisfaction of the basic psychological needs mediate the

association between providing wasta to others and psychological distress?

   9

Chapter 2: Literature Review

This chapter highlights studies regarding wasta specifically in the Kingdom of Saudi

Arabia and related studies in the Middle East. In addition, wasta is presented as a form of

discrimination (Becker, 1957; Fershtman, Gneezy, & Verboven, 2005). Then, self-determination

theory (Deci & Ryan, 1985) is presented as the theoretical framework being used to offer deep

insight of the phenomenon (Deci & Ryan, 2000; Ryan & Deci, 2001). At the end of this chapter,

a statement of the current study’s theory is presented, which is built upon the results of other

studies.

2.1 Wasta and Well-being

As indicated in the literature, there is no study that has investigated the relationship

between neither receiving nor providing wasta (positive discrimination or undeserved favor) in

relation to psychological distress. In addition, no studies have investigated the relationship

between the satisfaction of the basic psychological needs (autonomy, competence, and

relatedness), well-being, and discrimination. However, several studies have investigated negative

discrimination (discrimination against), such as racial discrimination (e.g., Buchanan &

Fitzgerald, 2008; Branscombe, Schmitt, & Harvey,1999; Graham, 2013; Huynh, 2012; Nyborg

& Curry, 2003; Taylor & Turner 2002; Williams, Yu, Jackson, & Anderson,1997) or

socioeconomic discrimination (e.g., Gee, Lively, Larsen, Keith, Stone, & MacLeod, 2007;

Bower, Thorpe, & LaVeist, 2013) in relation to well-being and have shown that discrimination

is correlated with psychological distress. For instance, in a meta-analysis of 134 articles, Pascoe

and Richman (2009) showed a strong relationship between perceived discrimination and a

variety of psychological distress symptoms (e.g., depression, anxiety, stress etc.). The current

study explicitly focused on the potential impact of engaging in wasta (benefitting from wasta and
   10

providing wasta to others) as a discriminative practice on the individual's psychological distress.

Literature about the linkage between negative discrimination and psychological distress is used

to show that such an association would be applicable, to some extent, to individuals who were

favorably discriminated because of wasta.

Numerous studies indicate that experiencing discrimination is correlated with symptoms

of psychological distress. For instance, in a study using surveys from 91 African American

women experiencing sexual harassment and racial harassment, Buchanan and Fitzgerald (2008)

found experiencing discrimination is a positive predictor of psychological distress. In collected

surveys from 247 Latino and 113 Asian American high school students in South California,

Huynh (2012) found that discrimination is associated with high levels of anxiety and stress. In

another study, 34 African Americans from the Black Student Union at the University of Kansas

were surveyed about the legitimacy of specific scenarios about perceived discrimination

(Branscombe, Schmitt, & Harvey, 1999). Results suggested that perceived discrimination

predicts poor well-being (e.g., depression, weariness, helplessness, lifelessness, sadness, and

unhappiness). In surveys gathered via phone, interview, and self-administered mail

questionnaires form a sample of 3,032 Americans (2,485 white, 339 black, and 141 other),

Kessler, Mickelson, and Williams (1999) found that perceived discrimination predicted high

levels of anxiety and depression. Thus, these findings helped to highlight a number of potential

negative effects that discrimination could have on individual’s psychological distress.

2.2 Wasta’s Impacts on Society and Organizations

Wasta, which includes favoritism and nepotism, is a form of discrimination (Becker, 1957;

Bekker, 1991; Goldberg, 1982; Mohamed & Mohamad, 2011; Cunningham & Sarayrah, 1993;

Taha, 2011). Two decades ago, studies of favoritism from the perspective of male college
   11

students in Saudi Arabia showed that favoritism was considered a social norm (Faisal, 1990;

Faisal & Abdellah, 1993). In Faisal’s (1990) study of favoritism (wasta) as a social norm among

male Saudi university students, individuals attempted to create a balance between traditional

social structures and new social structures. A high percentage of the participants believed that the

complexities of life were the reason why favoritism appeared, and that favoritism is not “social

deviance.” Moreover, the participants highlighted that wasta was a standard by which to measure

loyalty to the family and the tribe; more than half of the participants believed that it was a

standard to measure friendship. A lack of wasta signified that an individual would be lost and

businesses would be interrupted or stopped.

Favoritism has been investigated from administrative perspectives in an Arab tribal

society - the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan - which shares a border with the Kingdom of Saudi

Arabia (Al-Taweel, 2011; Loewe, Blume, & Speer, 2008). In interviews with 175 people from

governmental and non-governmental organizations, citizens and foreigners, and 180 anonymous

standardized surveys in the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan by Loewe et al. (2008) found that

individuals associated favoritism with unity and trustworthiness among relatives and friends. In

addition, the interviewees indicated that it was hard to get things done without depending on

wasta because it was impossible to overcome bureaucratic obstacles when taking a non-

favoritism based approach. In addition, the notion of helping others and being generous were

significant features of Arab culture; not helping relatives and people they know led to being

considered a person with lower status, and lacking in generosity.

The literature taking an administrative perspective is contradictory to date. In surveys

from 222 full-time employees of 8 different Pakistani public sector organizations, Sadozai,

Zaman, Marri and Ramay (2012) revealed that favoritism had a positive relationship with job
   12

satisfaction (Sadozai et al., 2012). Conversely, Arasli and Tumer (2008) investigated job stress in

relation to favoritism through surveys from 576 respondents who worked for a banking industry

in Northern Cyprus. The study revealed that favoritism was perceived as a stressor for the

organization’s personnel, which led employees to look for other work. Through surveys that

were collected from 166 Jordanian and 345 Egyptian human resource managers, Hayajenh,

Maghrabi, and Al-Dabbagh, (1994) demonstrated that high levels of wasta were associated with

lower long-term goal achievement, lower effectiveness of organization policies, and high levels

of stress and frustration among the workers. Using surveys of 376 male and female students in

Kuwait University and the Public Authority for Applied Education and Training in Kuwait,

Almuhanna (1999) showed wasta was seen as a primary social problem shaping youths’

concerns about their future careers. Students felt that wasta was linked to a lack of objectivity in

the hiring processes and a lack of clarity in the job description. More than a third (77.8%, 294

subjects) of the sample believed that wasta was a critical social issue.

Similarly, in a study using vignettes conducted with 421 Junior Egyptian undergraduate

students who were studying business as a major in Cairo universities, Mohamed and Mohamad

(2011) demonstrated that participants perceived an individual who received advantages as a

result of having wasta as incompetent and less moral in comparison to others who received

advantages without wasta. Participants from low socioeconomic classes perceived individuals

who used wasta more positively compared to participants from higher socioeconomic classes.

Furthermore, a survey study in India that included 400 participants (2,200 employed males, 200

unemployed males, 200 employed females, and 200 unemployed females) argued that one of the

important factors leading to unemployed youth in India was favoritism and employed individuals

have reported greater level of well-being than un-employed participants (Sharma, 2012).
   13

2.3 Wasta and Helping Behavior

Providing wasta to others such as relatives, friends, and colleagues is perceived as a

positive practice in the middle eastern states (e.g., Faisal, 1990; Faisal, Abdellah, 1993;

Cunningham & Sarayrah, 1993; Loewe et al., 2007; Taha, 2011). For instance, from the

perspective of 482 Saudis, individuals reported wasta as falling into several distinct categories:

94% perceived it as exchange benefits, 68% perceived it as helping behavior, 52% saw it as

intercession, which is a term used to assist an individual to get what he deserves and prevent him

or her from what they do not deserve, 40% looked at it as personal relations, and 28% perceived

it as pity to individuals who can not get what they want or need easily (Faisal & Abdellah, 1993).

Literature on helping behaviors suggests that helping others can be beneficial. For

example, in an experimental study of 10 elder volunteers (2 males, 8 females, mean age =70)

who received massage training in order to massage infants for three time a week, Field,

Hernandez-Reif, Quintino, Schanberg, and Kuhn (1998) found that adults who massaged an

infant three times a week for three weeks reported lower levels of anxiety and depression.

Furthermore, being able to provide assistance to others is more likely to lead to satisfaction of

the competency need. In a sociological longitudinal study of 4,000 women and men who

graduated from a Wisconsin high school in 1957, follow-up surveys via phone and mail (in 1964,

1975, 1992, and 2004), Piliavin and Siegl (2007) showed that volunteering predicts optimal well-

being. In addition, “mattering” (e.g., feeling important, recognized, valued by the society’s

members) mediated this relationship. Weinstein and Ryan (2010) utilized self determination

theory to look at the mediational effects of the satisfaction of basic psychological needs between

prosocial behavior and well-being; they found that prosocial behavior predicts higher satisfaction
   14

of basic psychological needs which leads to greater daily well-being. In addition, individuals

tend to provide help to others in satisfying their relatedness need.    

The existing literature about wasta has neither clearly investigated receiving wasta nor

providing wasta to others in relation to psychological distress (Mohamed & Mohamad, 2011). It

is important to note that “[p]sychological well-being is a fundamentally micro-level construct

that conveys information about how individuals evaluate themselves and the quality of their

lives” (Ryff, Magee, Kling, & Wing, 1999, p. 247). Self determination theory in the current

study is a psychological perspective (Deci & Ryan, 1985; Deci& Ryan, 2000; Ryan & Deci,

2001) for investigating wasta at the micro level.

   15

2.4 Self Determination Theory (SDT) and Psychological Needs

Self-determination theory (SDT) is a theory of human motivation (Deci & Ryan, 2002),

which considers the innate psychological needs as a key to gaining a deep understanding of

human motivation; as a theoretical framework it is used to conduct inquiries about behavior,

individual motivation, and psychological well-being (Deci & Ryan, 2000). As previously noted,

the basic premise is that individuals have three psychological needs; autonomy, competence and

relatedness that are the foundation for self-motivation (Ryan & Deci, 2001; Reis, Sheldon,

Gable, Roscoe, & Ryan, 2000). These needs are seen as universal and applicable across gender

and culture. The autonomy need is defined by Deci and Ryan (2000) as an individual’s innate

desire while conducting a task to experience choice and freedom which can be done through

giving the individual psychological spaces (Broeck, Vansteenkiste, De Witte, Soenens, & Lens,

2010). For instance, individuals are autonomous when they willingly devote time and energy to

accomplish tasks. The competence need is defined as an individual’s innate desire or wish to be

operative in interacting with their surrounding environments and be involved in difficult tasks in

order to assess the individual’s abilities; solving difficult tasks provides feedback to the

individual regarding his/her effectiveness (Deci & Ryan, 2000). For example, individuals are

competent when they feel able to handle or meet daily challenges. Ryan (1991) defined the

relatedness need as an individual’s desire to feel connected with others, especially with

significant others. Relatedness also refers to the need to be associated, connected, linked to a

group, and be an active member of that group, a part of something and being cared for (Broeck,

et al., 2010). The essential notion of this theory is that satisfaction of the basic psychological

needs predicts positive outcomes and drives the individual to reach the ideal stage of performing

and well-being. (Deci & Ryan, 2000).

   16

Scholars who utilize self-determination theory (SDT) as a theoretical framework for their

studies have shown that satisfactions of the basic psychological needs predicts optimal well-

being and high levels of job satisfaction and performance (Lynch, Plant, & Ryan, 2005; Sheldon

& Filak, 2008; Sheldon, et al., 1996). Studying employees (186 staff from all administrative

levels, 54% women, 46% men) of a psychiatric hospital via collecting surveys, Lynch, et al

(2005) demonstrated that the satisfaction of each need was positively correlated with high levels

of psychological well-being, job satisfaction, and vitality. After collecting surveys from 60

college students to examine daily fluctuations in well-being, Sheldon, Ryan and Reis (1996)

showed within-person daily variations in the attainment of competence and autonomy that were

associated with maximal well-being such as demeanor and vitality.

Similarly, Baard, Deci, and Ryan (2004) suggested that there is a relationship between

satisfaction of basic needs and well-being (anxiety, depression) in a study of 59 employees who

worked at operation centers for a major banking corporation. Specifically, the more autonomy

the workers had, the higher association with positive results in terms of performance and

emotional well-being. Also, results from in-person interviews with 87 residents at a nursing

home showed that receiving autonomy support is associated with fewer depression symptoms

and higher levels of wellbeing and vitality (Kasser & Ryan, 1999). In another study that included

daily reports for two weeks from 76 college students, Reis, et al. (2000) found that the

satisfaction of the basic psychological needs (autonomy, competence, relatedness) was strongly

linked to greater psychological well-being, as measured by lower levels of stress, depression, and

anxiety.

Taken together, studies of SDT and studies about wasta suggest that providing wasta to

others may be a behavior in which individuals engage to feel a sense of relatedness to others
   17

(Loewe, Blume, & Speer, 2008) which is also consistent with studies on helping behavior (e.g.,

Weinstein & Ryan, 2010). In contrast, other studies have found that benefitting from wasta is

associated with being perceived as incompetent and questioning one’s true ability (Mohamed &

Mohamad, 2011). This may have implications for satisfaction of the need for competence (Deci

& Ryan, 2008; Field, et al., 1998). Although the effects of wasta may be interpreted in light of

SDT, there is currently no research examining the relationship of wasta to the need for

autonomy, relatedness, or competence as defined and measured by SDT researchers. The current

study used self-determination theory to better understand both the receipt and provision of wasta

in relation to the basic needs of autonomy, competence, and relatedness.

The next chapter presents the methods and procedures used to address the following

hypotheses:

H1 The satisfaction of the basic psychological needs will mediate the relationship

between benefitting (receiving) from wasta and psychological distress.

H2 The satisfaction of the basic psychological needs will mediate the relationship

between providing wasta and psychological distress.

   18

Chapter 3: Methods

To conduct the present study, 12-15 minute anonymous surveys consisting of several

measures were administered to assess individuals’ psychological needs (Basic Psychological

Needs Satisfaction Scale), psychological distress and emotional well-being (Depression Anxiety

Stress Scale), benefits from wasta and providing wasta to others (Wasta Engagement Scale:

Benefitting from Wasta and Providing Wasta), and demographic data (see Appendix C).

3.1. Context and Settings

Riyadh is the capital and largest city of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and most of the

government ministries and head offices are located there; as a result, its residents are more likely

to be from different regions of the country. The number of public schools in Riyadh is 2,443

(employing 66,821 teachers, 16,181 administrators); these are further broken down into 1,143

elementary schools (employing 14,128 male teachers, 16,985 female teachers, 1,307 male

administrators, 6,662 female administrators); 683 middle schools (employing 7,989 male

teachers, 10,188 female teachers, 539 male administrators, 4,425 female administrators); and 617

high schools (employing 6,708 male teachers, 10,823 female teachers, 278 male administrators,

2,970 female administrators) .

According to the Teacher Affairs Department in the Riyadh General Education

Administration, the distribution of the schools in the Riyadh Districts that report to the General

Education Administration in Riyadh is uneven; it varies such that some districts have more

schools than others. These schools are overseen by 14 different educational offices that report to

the General Education Administration in Riyadh and its employees receive training from centers

that work closely with these offices. The workshops at the Riyadh Educational Training Center

are offered to principals, vice principals, teachers, administrators, lab workers, resource
   19

specialists, and student consultants.

A permission form was completed and submitted to the Riyadh General Education

Administration for approval to collect data from a convenience sample of educators attending

workshops at the Educational Training Centers (see Appendix A). In Riyadh, there are five

centers that provide workshops for personnel who work in Riyadh’s schools and educational

offices. Their aim is to improve school personnel performance by exposing them to new

pedagogical methods and theories. The workshops last two to five days and teachers are

encouraged to enroll in a maximum of two, especially for morning workshops; the morning

workshops require every teacher to obtain permission from the principal to register. The evening

workshops do not require the permission of the school’s principal, as the attendance does not

affect the school’s schedule. The schools’ personnel are expected to go back to their schools for

two weeks before attending another workshop. Educators are encouraged and expected to attend

training at the centers throughout the year. Participation in the study was completely voluntary

and subjects had the right to withdraw anytime without penalty or any consequences (see

Appendix B). Collecting data from these centers allowed the researcher to include participants

from diverse areas in Riyadh.

3.2. Participants

Educators who work as teachers, principals, vice-principals, student consultants, teacher

advisors, and administrators in the Riyadh schools were invited to participate in the current

study. These positions require at least an associate’s degree or higher. The sample was recruited

from the Riyadh General Education Administration’s elementary, middle, and high schools by

approaching participants attending workshops at the training centers in the Riyadh area over the

course of two weeks. This approached yielded a sample of 1,088 respondents who were 98%
   20

Saudi Arabian Nationals, 47% female, and who reported an average age of 36.6 years (SD =

7.3).

Power Analyses. Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) path analyses typically require a

sample of at least 300 respondents to provide a stable solution that is replicable. However, the

proposed project also sought to examine basic psychological needs as possible mediators of links

between wasta and mental health problems. As this involves testing the significance of indirect

paths (i.e., benefiting from wasta predicting lower autonomy, which in turn predicts greater

depressive symptoms), it was crucial that the study afforded sufficient power to detect those

indirect paths (which tend to be smaller in magnitude). Thus, I ran power analyses using the

regression subroutine of the Piface Application (Lenth, 2009). I set the number of predictors to 4

(wasta and the 3 dimensions of need satisfaction), the variance inflation factor to 2 (assuming

that the predictors will share roughly 50% of variance with one another), and the measurement

error to .5 standard deviations (a fairly high level for such well validated scales). The analyses

suggested that a sample size of 1,088 respondents should have given the analyses a power of

.9965 for detecting meaningful path coefficients as small as .100. These results would suggest

that my sample afforded high levels of power for detecting the mediational relationships that I

hypothesized.

3.3 Instrumentation

The utilized instrument to examine the influences of basic psychological need satisfaction

as a mediator between engaging in wasta (benefitting from wasta and providing wasta) and

psychological distress contains several sections, namely, basic psychological needs (autonomy,

competence, relatedness), emotional well-being (depression, anxiety, stress), benefitting from

wasta, providing wasta to others, and demographic and general information, (see Appendix C).
   21

The psychological needs scale and depression anxiety and stress scale were presented in a way

that allowed the participants to answer the items without indication of the term wasta. The

participants were asked to indicate their answers by ranking the extent to which each statement is

applicable by using a Likert scale that has six potential answers (Not At All, A Little, Somewhat,

Quite A Bit, Very Much, Extremely). The surveys were translated into Arabic, the participants’

native language. This chapter introduces the context, participants, procedure, instrument, and

research aim.

3.3.1 Basic psychological needs satisfaction scale (BPNSS). This measure assessed the

extent to which the autonomy, competence, and relatedness needs have been satisfied (Deci &

Ryan, 2000; Baard, et al. 2004; Deci & Cascio, 1972; Kasser & Ryan, 1999; Lynch, et al., 2005;

Reis et al., 2000; Sheldon & Filak, 2008; Sheldon, et al. 1996). The Arabic version scales were

built on the Deci and Ryan’s (2000) instrument and translated into Arabic by Olyan and Qalhot

(2005), has been found to be valid and reliable. In Olyan and Qalhot’s study the three subscales

demonstrated reasonable levels of internal consistency in a pilot sample of 35 adult participants

(15 male and 20 female): αautonomy = .82, αcompetency = .74, and αrelatedness = .90. The current study

used seven items to assess autonomy (e.g., “I feel like I am free to decide for myself how to life

my life”), seven items to assess competency (e.g., “I do not feel very competent” – reversed), and

ten items to assess relatedness (e.g., “People in my life care about me”). Three items (one item

from every construct) that loaded poorly on their factors were excluded from subsequent analysis

(“In my daily life, I frequently have to do what I am told”, “In my life I do not get much of a

chance to show how capable I am”, “People are generally pretty friendly toward me”).

Respondents answered these items on a 6-point scale (1 = not at all to 6 = extremely), and the

items were averaged so that higher scores reflected higher autonomy, relatedness, and
   22

competency, respectively. These scales demonstrated adequate internal consistency in the current

sample: αautonomy = .62, αcompetency = .63, and αrelatedness = .76.

3.3.2 Depression anxiety stress scale (DASS). The short-form of the Depression Anxiety

Stress Scale (DASS) was utilized to assess levels of depression, anxiety, and perceived stress

experienced over the past week (Lovibond & Lovibond, 1995). This scale has been found to be

reliable and shown to have satisfactory internal consistency for all three scales in both clinical

and non-clinical settings (Antony, Bieling, Cox, Enns, & Swinson, 1998; Brown, Chorpita,

Korotitsch, & Barlow, 1997; Crawford & Henry, 2003; Lovibond & Lovibond, 1995). The

Cronbach alpha of the DASS (English version) are 0.94 for depression, 0.87 for anxiety, 0.91 for

stress (Antony, et al., 1998). For the Arabic version scale for immigrants in Australia,

Cronbach’s alpha values were: αdepressive symptoms = .93, αanxiety symptoms = .90, and αstress = .93

(Taouk, Lovibond, & Laube, 2001). In a study that was conducted to determine the prevalence of

depression, anxiety, and stress among caregivers of hospitalized Saudi patients, Al-Zahrani,

Bashihab, Ahmed, and Alkhodair (2015) showed that this instrument has a good internal

consistency with giving a Cronbach’s alpha of .86 in a piloted study of 30 caregivers. The

current study used seven items assessing depressive symptoms (e.g., “I felt down-hearted and

blue”), seven items assessing anxiety (e.g., “I felt scared without any good reason”), and seven

items assessing perceived stress (e.g., “I found it difficult to relax”). Respondents answered these

items on a 6-point scale (1 = not at all to 6 = extremely) indicating how much they experienced

each symptom over the past week, and the answers were averaged so that higher scores reflected

higher depressive symptoms, anxiety symptoms, and stress, respectively. These scales

demonstrated high internal consistency in the current sample: αdepressive symptoms = .86, αanxiety

symptoms = .85, and αstress = .86.

   23

3.3.3 Benefitting from wasta. This construct contains items that capture the extent to

which individuals benefit from engaging in wasta. This scale was based on literature that

inquired about wasta in middle-eastern countries. Again, this section was created because the

literature on wasta highlighted that the level of the individual’s wasta varies (Faisal, 1990; Faisal

& Abdellah, 1993). In addition, engaging in wasta was perceived by the Saudi society as being

generous and helpful and many respondents believed that an individual cannot have things done

without wasta. The current study used 15 items assessing level of benefitting from wasta in

different domains. For example, the items (e.g., “I have wasta in most of the important areas of

my life”, “wasta has really made my life easier in many important ways”, “I have no wasta”).

This scale demonstrated high internal consistency in the current sample: αBenefitting from wasta = .91.

3.3.4 Providing wasta. This construct contains items that differentiate between

individuals who offer wasta to others (family’s members, friends, colleagues, friends of friends,

relatives) in contrast to the individual benefits of wasta. Family members, relatives, and friends

are more likely to expect wasta from a person in a position of power (Faisal, 1990; Faisal &

Abdellah, 1993). In addition, a person who is known not to help their relatives and people who

know them is perceived in a negative way by the people they know (Faisal & Abdellah, 1993;

Loewe et al., 2008). This construct contained four items that asked about the extent to which an

individual utilizes connections to provide wasta to family members, relatives, friends, and

colleagues. This scale demonstrated high internal consistency in the current sample: αWasta

provision to others = .94.

3.3.5 Demographics. The demographic scale contains questions regarding citizenship,

level of education, marital and family status, last obtained degree, occupational category

(Principal, Vice Principal, Administrator, Student Advisor, Teacher), years of current job
   24

experience, and monthly income (income level). Due to the nature of the environment from

which the data were collected, it was important to determine whether demographic factors have

an effect on participant responses.

3.4 Translating the Survey to Arabic

A majority of the measures in the survey were originally developed in English,

necessitating the translation of the survey in to Arabic. Although the Psychological Needs Scale

and the DASS had already been translated into Arabic and validated in Arabic speaking samples,

I also included them in the translation process, allowing me to double check the quality of those

previous translations. The scales focused on wasta and demographic information were translated

directly from English to Arabic as described below.

Since the participants speak Arabic as their first language, the survey was translated by

individuals who were fluent in both Arabic and English and were familiar with American and

Saudi cultures. In addition, Saudi scholars who are currently in the Kingdom were consulted

regarding the instrument. Experts in the educational and psychological fields within the

Kingdom were asked to provide their feedback to strengthen the content and construct validities

of the final translated survey. As a final step in the translation process, a former teacher who

served for almost 40 years as a teacher and a current teacher with almost 4 years of experience

were asked to review and provide input on the Arabic version of the instrument.

3.5 Research Aim

The aim of the current study was to examine the mediating influence of basic

psychological need satisfaction (autonomy, competency, relatedness) between engaging in wasta

(providing wasta to others and benefitting from wasta) and psychological distress (depression,

anxiety, stress). When the data were collected, they were hand entered into Excel spreadsheets

by three different individuals. The accuracy of those data entries was examined by ensuring that
   25

the data matched perfectly across those three separate passes of data entry. Following this

process, the data were imported into SPSS and MPLUS for further cleaning and analyses.
   26

Chapter 4: Results

4.1 Study Descriptive

Background characteristics. As previously described, the sample of 1,088 respondents

represented a range of socio-economic levels. Table 4.1 provides descriptive data on

participants’ income and sample size by occupation. As noted, 59% earned more than $2,667

per month with 15% earning less than $1,333 per month. As expected, the majority (77%) were

teachers working in elementary schools (84%).

Table 4.1. Background Characteristics

Monthly Income Percentage Average

Occupation Percentage Number
1 $800 to $1,333 15 1,066 1 Teacher 77.2 840
2 $1,334 to $1,999 8.7 1,666 2 Administrative Staff 7.9 86
3 $2,000 to $2,666 17 2,333 3 Vice Principal 5.2 57
4 $2,667 to $4,000 39 3,333 4 Principal 2.2 24
5 $4,001 to $5,333 19 4,667 5 Student Advisor 4.1 45
6 $5,333 to $6,666 1.1 5,999 6 Resource Specialist 1.5 16
7 Teacher Supervisor 1.8 20
 

Levels of wasta. As seen in Table 4.2, participants reported an average of 2.35 points of

providing wasta (SD = 1.34) on a 1 to 6 scale and only an average of 1.87 (SD = 0.96) points of

benefitting from wasta. A repeated measures ANOVA on these wasta scores indicated that this

was a significant difference (F(1,1073) = 215.6, p < .001), suggesting people reported providing

wasta at a higher level than receiving it in this sample. To break these means down further on the

providing wasta items, 33% of participants gave an average response of not at all, 29% a little,

15% sometimes, 13% quite a bit, 7.1% very much, and 2.3% extremely. On the benefitting from

wasta items, 45% gave average responses of not at all, 32% a little, 13% sometimes, 7.2% quite
   27

a bit, 1.9% very much, and 0.3% extremely. Although these response rates indicate that the lower

answer choices were far more popular, the large size of this sample provided reasonable numbers

of respondents reporting higher levels of providing and benefitting from wasta (n = 246

reporting an average response of 4 or higher on providing wasta; n = 92 for benefitting from

wasta).

Table 4.2. Sample Descriptive and Bivariate Correlations

Correlations among Scales

Variable Range M SD
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Depressive
1 1–6 2.29 0.98 ---
Symptoms (DASS)
Anxiety Symptoms
2 1–6 2.22 0.97 .81 ---
(DASS)
Perceived Stress
3 1–6 2.65 1.05 .78 .78 ---
(DASS)
4 Autonomy (BPNSS) 1–6 3.87 0.66 -.41 -.34 -.37 ---
Competency
5 1–6 4.66 0.74 -.42 -.35 -.28 .47 ---
(BPNSS)
Relatedness
6 1–6 4.34 0.77 -.33 -.26 -.24 .46 .60 ---
(BPNSS)
Providing Wasta to
7 1–6 2.35 1.34 .21 .22 .17 -.03 -.09 .03 ---
Others (WES)
Benefitting from
8 Wasta Yourself 1–6 1.87 0.96 .34 .33 .23 -.13 -.26 -.11 .62
(WES)
Note: DASS = Depression, Anxiety & Stress Scale. BPNSS = Basic Psychological Needs Scale. WES =
Wasta Engagement Scale. Correlations significant at p < .05 have been bolded.

Bivariate correlations. As expected, the depressive symptoms, anxiety symptoms and

perceived stress subscales of the DASS demonstrated strong correlations with one another,

suggesting that they share 61% to 66% of their variance with one another. Thus, although they

serve as distinct indicators of psychological distress, a majority of their variance is shared. As a

consequence, these subscales were used as a single latent variable of psychological distress in the
   28

SEM analyses presented below. In contrast, although the autonomy, competency, and relatedness

subscales of the BPNSS were correlated, they were modest in magnitude, sharing 21% to 36% of

their variance with one another. As a result, the BPNS subscales were modeled in two different

SEM analyses as follows:

•   In one analysis, these subscales were used as indicators to create a latent construct of

general need satisfaction, thereby focusing on their shared variance (Model 1).

•   In a second analysis, these subscales were treated as three distinct mediators while

allowing their errors to correlate (Model 2), thereby focusing the analysis on the unique

variance that each of these subscales offer to the mediational model linking wasta to

Psychological Distress.

Turning to the subscales of the wasta engagement scale, providing and benefitting from

wasta also demonstrated a moderate correlation, suggesting that they share roughly 38% of their

variance. As these two forms of wasta engagement could be considered conceptually distinct

(e.g., providing as a form of helping behavior, benefitting as a form of favoritism or nepotism),

these constructs were treated as separate predictors in the SEM analyses, thereby focusing the

analyses on their unique contributions to psychological distress and need satisfaction.

4.2 Testing Proposed Mediation Models

Analytic approach. To test satisfaction of psychological needs as a mediator of the proposed

negative links between engaging in wasta and psychological distress, a series of SEM structural

analyses were run using M-Plus software. The primary research question is:

Ø   What is the association between engaging in wasta (receiving and providing

wasta) and psychological distress?

Two sub questions were:

   29

Ø   How does the satisfaction of the global basic psychological needs (shared

variance of basic psychological needs) mediate the association between engaging

in wasta (receiving and providing wasta) and psychological distress?

Ø   How does the satisfaction of each individual basic psychological need (autonomy,

competency, and relatedness) mediate the association between engaging in wasta

(receiving and providing wasta) and psychological distress?

Two hypotheses served as a guide to answer the research questions:

H1 The satisfaction of the basic psychological needs mediates the relationship

between benefitting (receiving) from wasta and psychological distress.

H2 The satisfaction of the basic psychological needs mediates the relationship

between providing wasta and psychological distress.

To test the first hypothesis, an SEM model was created in which the three subscales of the

BPNSS formed a latent factor that represented global need satisfaction (Model 1, see Figure 4.1).

To test the second hypothesis, the three subscales of the BPNSS were treated as distinct

mediators in an SEM model (Model 2, see Figure 4.2).

Baron and Kenny (1986) laid the groundwork for the analysis of mediation by outlining

criteria for demonstrating mediation. Although researchers have begun to question the necessity

of some of Baron and Kenny’s criteria (e.g., Zhao, Lynch, & Chen, 2010), researchers continue

to agree that fulfilling those criteria represents a robust method of demonstrating mediation.

Consequently, I used Baron and Kenny’s criteria as a starting point for testing my mediational

hypothesis in the current study. Following Baron and Kenny’s guidelines, before calculating

either of those mediational models, a simple model (Model 0) was run which treated the two

forms of wasta (i.e., providing wasta to others and benefitting from wasta oneself) as correlated
   30

predictors (i.e., exogenous variables) of psychological distress without including any mediators

in the model. This served to establish that wasta was indeed linked to psychological distress.

Two separate path models (Models 1 and 2) were then run to test the remaining criteria for the

mediation. As seen in Figure 4.1, the autonomy, competency, and relatedness subscales of the

BPNSS were indicators of the latent variable of need satisfaction, thereby focusing the analyses

on mediation by the shared variance across these three forms of need satisfaction (thereby testing

Hypothesis 1).

As seen in Figure 4.2, in Model 2 the autonomy, competency, and relatedness subscales

of the BPNSS were separate and distinct mediators (thereby testing Hypothesis 2). Because the

error variances of those three variables were allowed to correlate with one another in the model,

the analyses focused on how each of those forms of need satisfaction might also serve as unique

mediators of the links between wasta and psychological distress. Models 1 and 2 provided

estimates of the indirect paths between wasta and psychological distress, addressing Baron and

Kenny’s (1986) remaining criteria for demonstrating mediation. To bring analyses in line with

more current conceptualizations and statistical tests of mediation, the statistical significance of

the mediational indirect paths from the models was tested using MacKinnon’s asymmetric

confidence interval test (see MacKinnon, 2008).

Model 1: Global need satisfaction as a mediator. This model demonstrated excellent

fit: χ2(10) = 90.47, CFI = .979, SRMR = .029, RMSEA = .071 (LL = .057, UL = .085). As seen

in the first two sections of Table 4.3 and in Figure 4.1, the subscales of the DASS all served as
   31

Table 4.3. Standardized path coefficients from the SEM structural model testing global need
satisfaction as a mediator

Portion of the Model

SE T P  
    Variables
Latent Psychological Distress    
  Depressive Symptoms .991 .015 65.5 .001  
  Anxiety Symptoms .818 .016 49.6 .001  
  Perceived Stress .791 .016 49.1 .001  
Latent Global Need Satisfaction    
  Autonomy .727 .033 22.2 .001  
  Competency .888 .030 29.5 .001  
  Relatedness .660 .027 24.7 .001  
Paths Predicting Psychological Distress    
  Latent Global Need Satisfaction -.450 .030 -15.0 .001  
  Providing Wasta to Others .062 .034 1.8 .070  
  Benefitting from Wasta Yourself .192 .035 5.4 .001  
Paths Predicting Need Satisfaction    
  Providing Wasta to Others .133 .040 3.3 .001  
    Benefitting from Wasta Yourself -.329 .039 -8.5 .001  
Note: Significant path coefficients (p < .05) have been bolded for ease of
interpretation. This model demonstrated excellent fit: χ2(10) = 90.47, CFI = .979,
SRMR = .029, RMSEA = .071 (LL = .057, UL = .085).

strong indicators for the latent construct of psychological distress and the subscales of the

BPNSS served as strong indicators for latent global need satisfaction, supporting my decisions to

create those specific latent constructs. Turning to the structural portion of the model, as seen in

Figure 4.1, benefitting from wasta and providing wasta were positively correlated, suggesting

that as people benefit from wasta they also tend to provide it to others (or vice versa). Consistent

with the hypothesis, benefitting from wasta predicted higher levels of psychological distress (β =

.331, p < .01, from Model 0). After controlling for that association, providing wasta failed to

significantly predict current levels of psychological distress (β = .01, ns, from Model 0). Thus,
   32

Figure 4.1. Standardized path coefficients from the SEM structural model evaluating global need
satisfaction as a mediator.

Note: GLOBAL NEED SAT = Global Needs Satisfaction; DEPR SX = Depressive Symptoms; ANX
SX = Anxiety Symptoms.

the results of Model 0 suggested that benefitting from wasta might be damaging to emotional

well-being. As seen in Table 4.3 and Figure 4.1, after global need satisfaction was introduced

into the model as a mediator, the link between benefitting from wasta and psychological distress

was reduced (β = .192, p < .01, from Model 1), suggesting that global need satisfaction might

explain about 42% of the variance in that association. Furthermore, both benefitting and

providing wasta demonstrated significant links to current levels of global need satisfaction.

Specifically, the portion of benefitting from wasta that is distinct from providing wasta actually

predicted lower global need satisfaction, again suggesting possible negative correlates of

benefitting from wasta. In contrast, the portion of providing wasta (that was distinct from

benefitting from it) predicted higher levels of current need satisfaction. This would suggest that

providing wasta to others could function much like other helping behaviors, providing
   33

psychological benefits to the provider. As anticipated, higher levels of global need satisfaction

were associated with lower levels of current psychological distress, highlighting the importance

of need satisfaction.

Table 4.4. Testing Significance of Indirect Paths with MacKinnon's Asymmetric Confidence
Interval Approach

Indirect
Indirect Path Tested 95% Confidence Interval
Path
Estimate Upper
Lower Limit
Limit
Benefitting from Wasta Yourself
Wasta ==>> Need Satisfaction ==>> Distress (Model
.148 .110 .189
1)
Wasta ==>> Autonomy ==>> Distress (Model 2) .046 .025 .069
Wasta ==>> Competency ==>> Distress (Model 2) .065 .040 .093
Wasta ==>> Relatedness ==>> Distress (Model 2) .015 .001 .031
Providing Wasta to Others
Wasta ==>> Need Satisfaction ==>> Distress (Model
-.060 -.097 -.024
1)
Wasta ==>> Autonomy ==>> Distress (Model 2) -.021 -.042 -.002
Wasta ==>> Competency ==>> Distress (Model 2) -.023 -.041 -.006
Wasta ==>> Relatedness ==>> Distress (Model 2) -.011 -.024 -.001
Note: All of the indirect paths tested were statistically significant by this approach. This can be seen
by the fact that none of the 95% confidence intervals included the value of zero (suggesting that
there is less than a 5% chance that these were spurious effects – p < .05).

The path coefficients from Model 1 were then evaluated to see if they suggested significant

indirect paths between the two forms of wasta and psychological distress using MacKinnon’s

asymmetric confidence interval test (see MacKinnon, 2008).

As seen in Table 4.4, Model 1 revealed a significant indirect path linking benefitting from

wasta to higher psychological distress through their associations with global need satisfaction. In

fact, this was the strongest mediational path that emerged in the analyses and suggested that

benefitting from wasta predicted lower levels of need satisfaction, which, in turn, predicted

higher levels of psychological distress. Model 1 also revealed a significant indirect path linking
   34

providing wasta to lower psychological distress through their associations with global need

satisfaction. This indirect path suggested that providing wasta predicted higher levels of need

satisfaction which, in turn, predicted lower levels of psychological distress.

The wasta totals in the current study were positively skewed with many respondents

reporting low levels of benefitting from or providing wasta. Although regression-based analyses

like SEM tend to be robust to such deviations from normality, secondary analysis was performed

to ensure that the results observed were not an artifact of that skew. Thus, transformed versions

of the wasta variables were created (specifically a negative reciprocal transformation) and a

modified Model 1 using those variables was performed. The results with the transformed

variables were virtually identical to those with the original variables, suggesting that the results

were robust and largely unaffected by the skew in the wasta variables.

Model 2: Autonomy, competency, and relatedness as distinct mediators. This model

demonstrated excellent fit: χ2 (9) = 54.54, CFI = .988, SRMR = .016, RMSEA = .068 (LL =

.051, UL = .086). As seen in the first section of Table 4.5 and in Figure 4.2, the subscales of the

DASS all served as strong indicators for the latent construct of psychological distress. The

subscales of the BPNSS were treated as distinct mediators in this model and demonstrated

moderate correlations with one another (second section of Table 4.5; not shown in Figure 4.2).

As seen in Table 4.5 and Figure 4.2, when reports of autonomy, competency, and relatedness

need satisfaction were introduced into the model as separate mediators, the link between

benefitting from wasta and psychological distress was reduced (from â = .33 in Model 0 to â =

.22 in Model 2), suggesting that the separate dimensions of need satisfaction explain about 33%

of the variance in that association. Furthermore, both benefitting and providing wasta

demonstrated significant links to current levels of autonomy, competency, and relatedness.

   35

Table 4.5. Standardized path coefficients from the SEM structural model testing autonomy,
competency, and relatedness as distinct predictors

Portion of the Model

 SE T p
Variables
Latent Psychological Distress
Depressive Symptoms .983 .015 67.4 .000
Anxiety Symptoms .825 .016 51.6 .000
Perceived Stress .797 .016 50.0 .000
Correlations among Forms of Need Satisfaction
Autonomy with Competency .458 .024 19.1 .000
Autonomy with Relatedness .451 .024 18.7 .000
Competency with Relatedness .586 .020 29.4 .000
Paths Predicting Psychological Distress
Autonomy -.260 .031 -8.4 .000
Competency -.197 .034 -5.7 .000
Relatedness -.070 .033 -2.1 .035
Providing Wasta to Others .059 .034 1.7 .081
Benefitting from Wasta Yourself .217 .034 6.4 .000
Paths Predicting Autonomy
Providing Wasta to Others .081 .038 2.1 .033
Benefitting from Wasta Yourself -.176 .038 -4.6 .000
Paths Predicting Competency
Providing Wasta to Others .116 .037 3.1 .002
Benefitting from Wasta Yourself -.328 .036 -9.1 .000
Paths Predicting Relatedness
Providing Wasta to Others .157 .038 4.1 .000
Benefitting from Wasta Yourself -.209 .038 -5.5 .000
Note: Significant path coefficients (p < .05) have been bolded for ease of interpretation. This
model demonstrated excellent fit: χ2(9) = 54.54, CFI = .988, SRMR = .016, RMSEA = .068
(LL = .051, UL = .086).

Specifically, the portion of benefitting from wasta that is distinct from providing wasta actually

predicted lower levels of autonomy, competency, and relatedness. This suggests that benefitting

from wasta might have adverse effects on all three basic psychological needs. In contrast, the

portion of providing wasta distinct from benefitting from it actually predicted higher levels of
   36

autonomy, competency, and relatedness. As anticipated, higher levels of autonomy, competency,

and relatedness were associated with lower levels of psychological distress.

Figure 4.2. Standardized path coefficients from the SEM structural model evaluating autonomy,
competency, and relatedness as distinct predictors.

Note: DEPR SX = Depressive Symptoms; ANX SX = Anxiety Symptoms.

As seen in Table 4.4, when the indirect paths of Model 2 were evaluated with

MacKinnon’s (2008) asymmetric confidence interval test, the results suggested significant

indirect paths linking benefitting from wasta to higher psychological distress through its

associations with all three dimensions of need satisfaction. Thus, benefitting from wasta

predicted lower levels of all three forms of need satisfaction, which in turn, predicted higher

levels of psychological distress. Model 2 also revealed significant indirect paths linking

benefitting from wasta to lower psychological distress through their associations with all three

forms of need satisfaction. Thus, providing wasta predicted higher levels of autonomy,
   37

competence, and relatedness, which, in turn, predicted lower levels of stress, anxiety, and

depression.

To ensure that the results of Model 2 were not unduly influenced by skew in the wasta

variables, I ran a modified Model 2 using transformed (negative reciprocal) versions of the wasta

variables. This path model yielded virtually identical results, suggesting that the Model 2 results

were robust to the skew in the wasta variables.

 
   38

Chapter 5: Discussion

5.1 Overview

While previous research has established wasta as a form of discrimination and a source of

corruption that negatively influences both employees and organizational productivity, no previous study

has clearly investigated this phenomenon from a psychological perspective within Middle-Eastern

countries. The current study used self-determination theory as a theoretical framework to investigate the

way basic psychological needs satisfaction (autonomy, competence, relatedness) and as an intermediate

mechanism between wasta engagement (benefitting from wasta, providing wasta to others) and

psychological distress (anxiety symptoms, depressive symptoms, stress). The results revealed that

benefitting from wasta (receiving wasta) was associated with poorer satisfaction of the basic

psychological needs and more psychological distress. In contrast, providing wasta to others was a

predictor of greater satisfaction of the basic psychological needs and less psychological distress. Below I

review the major conclusions that can be drawn from the data and discuss their limitations and

significance, and make recommendations for future research.

5.2 Receiving (benefitting from) Wasta Could Be Harmful

Receiving wasta is linked to poorer emotional well-being. The results of this study underscore

basic psychological needs satisfaction as mediating the association between benefitting from wasta and

psychological distress. Consistent with the proposed hypothesis, benefitting from wasta predicted lower

levels of autonomy-, competency-, and relatedness-satisfaction, which, in turn, predicted higher levels of

psychological distress (anxiety symptoms, depressive symptoms, stress). This finding, concerning

individuals who benefit from wasta, is consistent with other related studies about those who do not

benefit from it (i.e., when someone is being discriminated against or perceiving someone else who has

been utilizing wasta). For instance, Mohamed and Mohamad (2011) found Egyptian college students
   39

perceived individuals who received advantages through connections as less moral and less competent. In

addition, getting a job via connections might lead to negative consequences on the individual’s self-

image because the person is more likely to question his or her job abilities. Results of the study regarding

low level of competency satisfaction for individuals who benefit from wasta can be partially explained by

Mohamed and Mohamad’s findings. Being perceived in one’s surroundings as less competent negatively

influences an individual’s personal sense of competency. Moreover, being perceived as immoral or

someone who gets unfair treatment in comparison to others is more likely to affect an individual’s level

of relatedness with others. The current findings are also consistent with findings from Arasli and Tumer’s

(2008) study, in which favoritism was perceived as a source of discomfort and a job stressor for the

employees of a banking industry in Turkey.

Not only does wasta harm those who receive it, but also harms those who don’t receive it as they

become victims of discrimination. Thus, the current findings suggest that benefitting from wasta

(favoritism) which results in discriminating against others who do not have wasta (negative

discrimination) is harmful for both the individual who receives it as well as and the one who does not

benefit from wasta. A large literature documents the negative effects of discrimination on individuals

who do not benefit from access to resources or relevant connections. For instance, Buchanan and

Fitzgerald (2008) found experiencing discrimination predicted psychological distress among African

American women subjected to sexual harassment and racial harassment. In several studies,

discrimination has been associated with high levels of anxiety, stress, (e.g., Huynh, 2012) depression,

weariness, helplessness, lifelessness, sadness, and unhappiness (Branscombe, Schmitt, & Harvey,1999).

Collectively, these studies highlight a myriad of negative effects of discrimination on the individuals who

are being denied opportunities. The current study extends these findings by revealing the negative effects

on the individuals who are offered opportunities based on wasta.

   40

5.3 Providing Wasta Could Enhance Well-being

In the current study, being able to provide wasta to others is linked to higher needs satisfaction for

autonomy, competence, and relatedness. In addition, providing wasta to others predicts less

psychological distress (e.g., depressive symptoms, anxiety symptoms, stress) which is consistent with the

proposed hypothesis. The findings on the impact of providing wasta to others are consistent with

literature on helping behaviors, which suggests that helping others can be beneficial. For example,

Weinstein and Ryan (2010) showed that prosocial behavior had a positive relationship with higher

satisfaction of basic psychological needs, which leads to greater subsequent well-being (e.g., Field, et

al.,1998; Piliavin & Siegl, 2007). Furthermore, being able to provide assistance to others is more likely to

lead to satisfaction of the competency need and optimal well-being. In addition, it makes elder to have a

sense of mattering, which mediates the relationship between helping others and psychological well-being

(Field, et al.,1998). As indicated earlier in Faisal (1990), Faisal and Abdellah (1993), and Loewe et al.’s

(2007) studies, providing wasta to family, relatives, and friends is an expectation from someone who has

connections to provide wasta. In addition, individuals reported wasta as falling into several distinct

categories and helping others was one of them.

Providing wasta may be beneficial is because it is seen as part of helping others, which is

encouraged culturally and religiously in Middle-Eastern cultures. For instance, providing wasta is

perceived within Saudi society as being generous and helpful (Faisal, 1990; Faisal & Abdellah, 1993).

Saudis view the act of receiving help from their relatives when they need it as a family obligation (Faisal,

1990; Taha, 2011). This is because Saudi Arabian society is a tribal society, in which individuals that do

not help may bring shame to themselves and their tribe. The notion of helping others and being generous

is one of the significant features of Arabic culture; a person who is known to help their relatives and

individuals who know them, is looked at as a generous person (Loewe, Blume, & Speer, 2008). In
   41

addition, being miserly is considered a negative, which means that society may make individuals feel a

sense of shame as well as guilt if they do not assist one another (Faisal & Abdellah, 1993; Loewe, Blume,

& Speer, 2008)). Religiously, Qur’anic texts and hadiths encourage believers to help others who are in

need, especially family members, relatives, neighbors, and friends without causing direct or indirect harm

to others or engaging in religiously prohibited actions. Finally, having optimal emotional well-being by

satisfying the basic psychological needs might be explained by people’s interpretation of such

psychological, cultural, and religious expectations.

5.4 Need Satisfaction is Strongly Linked to Well-being

Consistent with the self determination theory, satisfaction of the basic psychological needs predicts

optimal well-being in the current study. This finding suggests that the satisfaction of each of the three

basic needs is a predictor of less psychological distress (as the result of individuals who provided wasta

to others) and not satisfying any need was a predictor of higher levels of psychological distress (as the

result of individuals who benefited from wasta). Studies have supported that basic psychological needs

satisfaction is a reliable predictor of psychological distress as the satisfaction of the autonomy,

competency, and relatedness needs predict lower levels of anxiety symptoms, depressive symptoms, and

stress. The same is true for the current study when all needs were treated together as well as separately.

These findings are consistent with other studies; the satisfaction of the basic psychological needs was

associated with low levels of anxiety and depression in Baard, Deci, and Ryan’s (2004) study. In another

study, receiving autonomy support was linked to lower levels of depression (Kasser & Ryan, 1999),

anxiety, stress, and other components (Reis, et al., 2000).

Deci and Ryan (2000) highlighted that the satisfaction of the three needs within self-determination

theory can be met by a wide range of behaviors that could be different based on individuals’ preferences

and not culture. This can be clearly exemplified by comparing the current study’s findings, which
   42

recruited individuals from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, a collectivist society, to Weinstein and Ryan’s

(2010) study with college students in the United States, an individualistic society. Whereas, providing

wasta in this study showed similar results to Weinstein and Ryan’s study in terms of the helper,

benefitting from wasta (or obtaining help from others) was associated with the opposite effect of

receiving help in Weinstein and Ryan’s study. This difference in findings is explained by considering the

general requirements of meeting basic psychological needs within the culture studied. First, in terms of

the competence need, according to self-determination theory, humans tend to control the outcome and

have an inherent desire to experience mastery, which is less likely to happen when the individual benefits

from wasta. In addition, asking others who are competent to do what one is not able to do personally can

affect competency need negatively. Second, with regard to the relatedness need, humans need to be

connected and to develop strong and stable interpersonal bonds with others. Theoretically, this cannot be

done for someone who builds his/her relationships primarily based upon extrinsic advantages. Regarding

the autonomy need, humans have an inherent tendency to behave with a sense of volition and/or choice.

This need may not be met if a person has little influence on future events that they feel are dependent on

wasta.

5.5 The Value of Current Study

Based on a review of current research, this study is the first to investigate the potential

relationship between wasta and individuals’ psychological needs, and the first to examine those links

from the framework of self-determination theory (SDT). More specifically, this study is the first to utilize

SDT’s conceptualization of basic psychological needs as mediators in investigating wasta, or favoritism.

Drawing on data from a large and diverse sample of Arab educators, the findings offer strong cross-

cultural support for the SDT model, revealing that basic psychological needs play a key role in explaining
   43

links between wasta and psychological distress. The study also used educators that reflect a system

comparable to other organizations with a similar structure of hierarchy.

There are two shortcomings in the Baron and Kenny classics criteria that have been lately

questioned by researchers (e.g., Krause, Serlin, Ward, Rony, Ezenwa, & Naab, 2010; Zhao, Lynch, &

Chen, 2010) which this study empirically demonstrates. One shortcoming is the necessity to have a

statistically significant association between the predictor and the outcome before the mediator is included

in the analysis. The other shortcoming is that the association between the predictor and outcome must be

reduced after the inclusion of the mediator. When Baron and Kenny established their model, they

considered relationships that involved only one mediator to account for variance. These conditions

however do not account for multiple mediator variables within a model. When other mediating variables

are included, they may independently cancel each other out. Also, there may be significant indirect paths

between the predictor and mediator, while there is little to no significance within the direct path between

the predictor and outcome variable (limitation of the first condition). Moreover, due to the addition of

multiple mediators, the association between the predictor and outcome variable may not necessarily be

less than the association when the mediator is not included (limitation of the fourth condition). In the

current study, the mediational models used Baron and Kenny’s (1986) classic criteria. The first

hypothesis, which linked benefiting from wasta to psychological distress through basic psychological

needs, met Baron and Kenny’s classic criteria. In contrast, the second hypothesis, which highlighted

providing wasta to others as a predictor, did not meet the first and last condition of their criteria.

However, the mediational results were statistically significant in both models. This study offers evidence

of alternative approaches to testing mediational models and opens the door to further investigate the

impact of wasta (and other forms of favoritism and nepotism) on individual lives by building upon prior

research on discrimination and helping behavior.

   44

5.6 Limitations and Future Directions

Despite the unique approach and novel findings of the current study, the interpretation of the

results is somewhat limited by a number of factors. First, the exclusive use of self-reported data incurs

the risk that participants might not have been fully aware or fully willing to share the impact of wasta on

their lives. The assessed constructs, however, are issues that individuals in the workplace consider on a

routine basis and are generally willing to talk about (and report on) in an honest manner, limiting

concerns about the use of self-report data (i.e., social desirability, under-reporting well-being symptoms).

Second, the current study was cross-sectional, collecting data from each respondent at one time point

within a common work system. If the study examined these same mediational models longitudinally, the

findings would ensure that predictive paths supported proposed directions of causality across time.

Alternatively, cross-sectional data across multiple work systems would provide additional validation for

the current findings. Third, the survey focused on general need satisfaction across all areas of life. This

generalized approach does not allow for significant effects of job-specific need satisfaction as mediators

and job-specific well-being (e.g., burn-out, job satisfaction) as outcomes. Fourth, two of the basic

psychological needs subscales have low reliability (αautonomy = .62, αcompetency = .63) which can raise

concerns. This was less of a concern in the current study due to the significance of the results despite the

low subscale reliabilities. Finally, unemployed individuals and others who did not obtain employment in

their fields as a result of not having wasta are not captured in this study.

There are several significant future directions of research that merit considering. Future work

might augment the current study through expanded methodological procedures. For example, future work

could design experimental paradigms where subjects are randomly assigned to benefit or not benefit from

wasta (and potentially comparable designs examining providing wasta), allowing researchers to examine

the immediate effects of wasta on individuals in a controlled setting. In addition, research should assess
   45

the impact of harm by wasta to understand the positive and negative effects of this social behavior. An

area unexamined in the current study but relevant to continued research is examining wasta among

unemployed individuals and others who did not obtain employment in their fields of study as a result of

lacking wasta. Future work could also benefit from using a multiple informant approach (gathering data

from spouses, family members, coworkers) to deeply investigate the potential relationship between wasta

engagement (benefitting from wasta and providing wasta to others) and psychological distress.

Assessments used in future work could also enhance the direction of this research. The current

study more thoroughly assessed benefitting from wasta than providing wasta. Future work could expand

the assessment of providing wasta, potentially including assessments of the motivations underlying the

provision of wasta (consistent with SDT) to more carefully examine how providing wasta impacts

individuals. In fact, organismic integration theory (OIT), a mini-theory of SDT that focuses on explaining

the extent that a behavior has been internalized (Deci & Ryan, 1985; Ryan & Connell, 1989), would posit

motivation as an important moderator. Specifically, the more internalized and autonomous the motivation

for providing wasta, the stronger the psychological benefits of that act will be (e.g., higher need

satisfaction, lower psychological distress). Thus, future research could explore various forms of

motivation as moderators of the benefits of providing wasta.

5.7 Implications

The results of the current study will warrant replication, but as an initial investigation, it has

findings worth consideration for potential implications for organizations, particularly within education.

Given the negative impact of wasta on individuals (e.g., Mohamed & Mohamad, 2011) and work climate

(e.g., Arasli and Tumer, 2008; Loewe, Blume, & Speer, 2008), as reported here, organizations may be

able to decrease their personnel’s level of anxiety, depression, and stress. This is possible by (1) raising

awareness of the potential consequences of wasta on the organizational, personal, and social levels, and
   46

(2) generating anti-wasta policies (anti-favoritism, anti-nepotism) that assist in reducing wasta

engagement. Furthermore, decision makers in every organization and the public in general must be aware

of the fact that benefitting from wasta predicts lower levels of needs satisfaction and higher levels of

psychological distress. Although providing wasta is good for the provider, it is bad for the receiver.

Providing wasta to others in order to help them actually hurts their competence, autonomy, and

relatedness needs and, in turn, the receiver’s well-being. Thus, while providing wasta may be satisfying

to the provider, it does not actually help the beneficiary. In fact, some literature in the helping behavior

field suggested that people might engage in what it is considered helping behavior for for the sake of

feeling good about one’s self (e.g., Cialdini, Schaller, Houlihan, Arps, Fultz, & Beaman, 1987). The

motivation for individuals to provide wasta to others might be driven by social demands as well (or at

least conforming to social norms and demands).

5.8 Conclusion

The findings of this study underscore that basic psychological needs mediate the linkage between

wasta engagement and psychological distress. The findings are novel because they introduce a theoretical

lens (SDT) to understanding how wasta impacts people’s lives. The current study investigates wasta from

a micro-level, whereas as previous studies about wasta took a macro-level approach. Additionally, the

current integrates previous work on favoritism, negative discrimination, helping behavior, and self-

determination theory. The significance of the results lies in the finding that benefitting from wasta is

associated with undesirable outcomes as it predicts lower needs satisfaction and higher psychological

distress. In contrast, providing wasta to others is linked to higher levels of need satisfaction and lower

levels of psychological distress. These results have practical implications for employers seeking to

develop better workplace morale in Middle-Eastern countries.

   47

References

Akcay, S. (2006). Corruption and human development. The Cato Journal, 26(1), 29-48.

Al-Ali, J. (2008). Structural barriers to emiratisation: Analysis and policy recommendations

(Unpublished doctoral dissertation). Victoria University, Australia.

Al-Bukhari, M. (1981). Sahih Al-bukhari. Beirut: Dar Al-Fikr.

Al-Enizi, A. H. (2006). The spread range of nepotism in the school of the state of Kuwait
according to head masters/mistresses and teachers point of view (Unpublished master’s
thesis). University of Oman, Jordan.

Almuhanna, M. (1999) Kuwaiti youth issues. Kuwait National Assembly. Retrieved from
http://www.kna.kw/clt/run.asp?id=835#sthash.emvcmB5m.dpbs

Al-Qushayri, M. I., & Siddiqui, A. (2000). Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim: Being traditions of the sayings and
doings of the prophet Muhammad as narrated by his companions and compiled under the
title Al-jāmiʻ-Uṣ-ṣaḥīḥ. New Delhi, India: Kitab Bhavan.

Al-Taweel, H. M. (2011). The responsibility of the Jordanian institution in tribal violence from
university students’ perspective. Science Rresearch Journal, 4(1) 1-24. Al-Shamari, N.
(2012 ). The corruption perception of the employee in the public and private sector in
KSA. 174-203. Retrieved from
http://www.nazaha.gov.sa/en/Library/Document/Literature/Pages/default.aspx

Al-Zahrani, R., Bashihab, R., Ahmed, A. E., Alkhodair, R., & Al-Khateeb, S. (2015). The
prevalence of psychological impact on caregivers of hospitalized patients: The forgotten
part of the equation. Qatar Medical Journal, 2015(1), 3.

Antony, M. M., Bieling, P. J., Cox, B. J., Enns, M. W., & Swinson, R. P. (1998). Psychometric
properties of the 42-item and 21-item versions of the Depression Anxiety Stress Scales in
clinical groups and a community sample. Psychological Assessment, 10(2), 176-181.

Arasli, H., & Tumer, M. (2008). Nepotism, favoritism and cronyism: A study of their effects on
job stress and job satisfaction in the banking industry of North Cyprus. Social Behavior
and Personality: An International Journal, 36(9), 1237-1250.

Aydogan, I. (2009). Favoritism in the Turkish educational system: Nepotism, cronyism and
patronage. Educational Policy Analysis and Strategic Research, 4(1), 19–35.

Baard, P. P., Deci, E. L., & Ryan, R. M. (2004). Intrinsic need satisfaction: A motivational basis
of performance and well-being in two work settings. Journal of Applied Social
Psychology, 34(10), 2045-2068.

Baron, R. M., & Kenny, D. A. (1986). The moderator-mediator variable distinction in social
psychological research: Conceptual, strategic, and statistical considerations. Journal of
Personality and Social Psychology, 51, 1173-1182.
   48

Becker, G. S. (1957). The economics of discrimination. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

Bekker, J. C. (1991). Nepotism, corruption and discrimination: A predicament for a post-apartheid

south African public service. South African Journal of Political Studies, 18(2), 55-73.

Bower, K. M., Thorpe, R. J., & LaVeist, T. A. (2013). Perceived racial discrimination and mental
health in low-income, urban-dwelling whites. International Journal of Health Services:
Planning, Administration, Evaluation, 43(2), 267-280.

Broeck, A. V. d., Vansteenskiste, M., Witte, H. D., Soenens, B., & Lens, W. (2010). Capturing
autonomy, competence, and relatedness at work: Construction and initial validation of the
work-related basic need satisfaction scale. Journal of Occupational and Organizational
Psychology, 83(4), 981.

Brown, T. A., Chorpita, B. F., Korotitsch, W., & Barlow, D. H. (1997). Psychometric properties
of the Depression Anxiety Stress Scales (DASS) in clinical samples. Behaviour research
and therapy, 35(1), 79-89.

Buchanan, N. T., & Fitzgerald, L. F. (2008). Effects of racial and sexual harassment on work and
the psychological well-being of African American women. Journal of Occupational
Health Psychology, 13(2), 137-151.

Chakraborty, L. S. (2003, May). Public expenditure and human development: An empirical

investigation. Paper presented at the Wider International Conference on Inequality,
Poverty and Human Well-Being, Helsinki, Finland.

Cialdini, R. B., Schaller, M., Houlihan, D., Arps, K., Fultz, J., & Beaman, A. L. (1987). Empathy-
based helping: Is it selflessly or selfishly motivated? Journal of Personality and Social
Psychology, 52(4), 749-758.

Colombatto, E. (2003). Why is corruption tolerated? The Review of Austrian Economics, 16(4),
363-379.

Crawford, J. R., & Henry, J. D. (2003). The Depression Anxiety Stress Scales (DASS): Normative
data and latent structure in a large non-­‐clinical sample. British Journal of Clinical
Psychology, 42(2), 111-131.

Cunningham, R., & Sarayrah, Y. K. (1993). Wasta: The hidden force in Middle Eastern society.
Westport, CT: Praeger.

Deci, E. L., & Cascio, W. F. (1972, April). Changes in intrinsic motivation as a function of
negative feedback and threats. Paper presented at the Eastern Psychological Association,
Boston, MA.

Deci, E. L., & Ryan, R. M. (1985). Intrinsic motivation and self- determination in human
behavior. New York: Plenum.
   49

Deci, E. L., & Ryan, R. M. (2000). The "what" and "why" of goal pursuits: Human needs and the
self-determination of behavior. Psychological Inquiry, 11(4), 227-268.

Deci, E. L., & Ryan, R. M. (2002). Handbook of self-determination research. Rochester, NY:
University of Rochester Press.

Deci, E. L., & Ryan, R. M. (2008). Facilitating optimal motivation and psychological well-being
across life’s domains. Canadian Psychology, 49, 14–23.

Faisal, A. (1990). Favoritism (wasta): An exploratory study of university students. King Saudi
University Journal. 2(2) 693-711.

Faisal, A. & Abdella, M. (1993). A methodological analysis of wasta: A study in Saudi Arabia.
King Saud University Journal, 1(5) 269-301.

Ferguson, K., Frost, L., & Hall, D. (2012). Predicting teacher stress, anxiety, and job satisfaction.
Journal of Teaching and Learning, 8(1), 27-42.

Fershtman, C., Gneezy, U., & Verboven, F. (2005). Discrimination and nepotism: The efficiency
of the anonymity rule. The Journal of Legal Studies, 34(2), 371-396.

Field, T., Hernandez-Reif, M., Quintino, O., Schanberg, S., & Kuhn, C. (1998). Elder retired
volunteers benefit from giving massage therapy to infants. Journal of Applied
Gerontology, 17(2), 229-239.

Gee, G. C., Lively, K., Larsen, L., Keith, J., Stone, J., & MacLeod, K. (2007) Hungry for respect:
discrimination among adults using emergency food services. Journal of Health Disparities
Research & Practice, 2(1) 1-20.

General Presidency of Scholarly Research and Ifta (2012). Differentiation between wasta and
intercession: The impact of an Anti-Corruption Commission referendum. Retrieved from:  
http://www.nazaha.gov.sa/Media/News/Pages/news193.aspx

Goldberg, M. S. (1982). Discrimination, nepotism, and long-run wage differentials. The

Quarterly Journal of Economics, 97(2), 307-319.

Graham, J. R. (2013). Racism and anxiety in a black American sample: The role of mediators and
a brief mindfulness manipulation (Doctoral Dissertation). Available ProQuest
Dissertations and Theses. (UMI No. 3608211).

Hallak, J., & Poisson, M. (2005). Ethics and corruption in education: an overview. Journal of
Education for International Development, 1(1).

Haq, M. U. (1996). Reflections on human development. New York: Oxford University Press.

Branscombe, N. R., Schmitt, M. T., & Harvey, R. D. (1999). Perceiving pervasive discrimination
among African Americans: Implications for group identification and well-being. Journal
of Personality and Social Psychology, 77(1), 135-149.
   50

Hayajenh, A. F., Maghrabi, A. S., & Al-Dabbagh, T. H. (1994). Research note: Assessing the
effect of nepotism on human resource managers. International Journal of Manpower,
15(1), 60-67.

Huntington, S. P., & Harvard University: Center for International Affairs. (1968). Political order
in changing societies. New Haven: Yale University Press.

Hutchings, K., & Weir, D. (2006). Guanxi and wasta: A comparison. Thunderbird International
Business Review, 48(1), 141-156.

Huynh, V. W. (2012). Ethnic microaggressions and the depressive and somatic symptoms of
Latino and Asian American adolescents. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 41(7), 831-
846.

Kasser, V. G., & Ryan, R. M. (1999). The relation of psychological needs for autonomy and
relatedness to vitality, well-­‐being, and mortality in a nursing home. Journal of Applied
Social Psychology, 29(5), 935-954.

Kessler, R. C., Mickelson, K. D., & Williams, D. R. (1999). The prevalence, distribution, and
mental health correlates of perceived discrimination in the United States. Journal of
Health and Social Behavior, 40(3), 208-230.

Klonoff, E. A., Landrine, H., & Ullman, J. B. (1999). Racial discrimination and psychiatric
symptoms among blacks. Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology, 5(4), 329-
339.

Krause, M. R., Serlin, R. C., Ward, S. E., Rony, R. Y. Z., Ezenwa, M. O., & Naab, F. (2010).
Testing Mediation in Nursing Research: Beyond Baron and Kenny. Nursing Research,
59(4), 288–294.

Leff, N. H. (1964). Economic development through bureaucratic corruption. American Behavioral

Scientist, 8(3), 8-14. Lenth, R. V. (2009). Java Applets for Power and Sample Size
[Computer software]. Retrieved March 2, 2015, from
http://homepage.stat.uiowa.edu/~rlenth/Power/

Loewe, M., Blume, J., Schönleber, V., Seibert, S., Speer, J., & Voss, C. (2007) The impact of
favoritism on the business climate: A study on wasta in Jordan. German Development
Institute (DIE). 30, 1-211. Retrieved from https://www.die-
gdi.de/uploads/media/Studies_30.pdf

Loewe, M., Blume, J., & Speer, J. (2008). How favoritism affects the business climate: Empirical
evidence from Jordan. The Middle East Journal, 62(2), 259-276.

Lovibond, S. H., & Lovibond, P. F. (1995). The structure of negative emotional states:
Comparison of the depression anxiety stress scales (DASS) with the Beck depression and
anxiety inventories. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 33(3), 335-343.
   51

Lynch, M., Plant, R., & Ryan. R. (2005). Psychological needs and threat to safety: Implications
for staff and patients in a psychiatric hospital for youth. Professional Psychology:
Research and Practice, 36(4), 415.

MacKinnon, D. P. (2008). Introduction to Statistical Mediation Analysis. New York: Lawrence

Erlbaum Associates.

Mohamed, A. A., & Mohamad, M. S. (2011). The effect of wasta on perceived competence and
morality in Egypt. Cross Cultural Management, 18(4), 412-425.

Nyborg, V., & Curry, J. (2003). Perceived racism and psychological well-being in African
American boys. Journal of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology, 32, 258-266.

Olyan, M., & Qalhot, E. (2005, January). Psychological needs of deaf children in Gaza’s
provinces under the light of some variables. Paper presented at the Palestinian Child
between Reality Challenges and Aspirations of the Future Conference. Islamic University,
Gaza, Palestine.

Pascoe, E. A., & Richman, L. S. (2009). Perceived discrimination and health: A meta-analytic
review. Psychological Bulletin, 135(4), 531-554.

Piliavin, J. A., & Siegl, E. (2007). Health benefits of volunteering in the Wisconsin longitudinal
study. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 48(4), 450-464.

Reis, H. T., Sheldon, K. M., Gable, S. L., Roscoe, J., & Ryan, R. M. (2000). Daily well-being:
The role of autonomy, competence, and relatedness. Personality and Social Psychology
Bulletin, 26(4), 419-435.

Rivas-Drake, D., Hughes, D., & Way, N. (2009). Public ethnic regard and perceived
socioeconomic stratification: Associations with well-being among Dominican and black
American youth. The Journal of Early Adolescence, 29(1), 122-141.

Ryan, R. M. (1991). The nature of the self in autonomy and relatedness. In J. Strauss & G. R.
Goethals (Eds.), The self: Interdisciplinary approaches (pp 208- 238). New York:
Springer.

Ryan, R. M., & Connell, J. P. (1989). Perceived locus of causality and internalization: Examining
reasons for acting in two domains. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 57(5),
749-761.

Ryan, R. M., & Deci, E. L. (2001). On happiness and human potentials: A review of research on
hedonic and eudaimonic well-being. Annual Review of Psychology, 52, 141-166.

Ryff, C. D., Magee, W. J., Kling, K. C., & Wing, E. H. (1999). Forging macro- micro linkages in
the study of psychological well-being. In C. D. Ryff & V. W. Marshall (Eds.), The self
and society in aging processes (pp.247- 278). New York: Springer.
   52

Sadozai, A., M., Zaman, H. M. F., Marri, M. Y. K., & Ramay, M.., (2012). Impact of favoritism,
nepotism and cronyism on job satisfaction a study from public sector of Pakistan.
Interdisciplinary Journal of Contemporary Research in Business, 4(6), 760-771.

Sharma, A. (2012) Well-being of youth: Impact of unemployment. World Science Publisher:

Advances in Asian Social Science, 4(2) 539-544.

Sheldon, K. M. & Filak, V. (2008). Manipulating autonomy, competence, and relatedness in a

game-learning context: New evidence that all three needs matter. British Journal of Social
Psychology, 47(2), 267-283.

Sheldon, K.M., Ryan, R.M., & Reis, H.R. (1996). What makes for a good day? Competence and
autonomy in the day and in the person. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 22,
1270-1279.

Sims, R. L., Gong, B., & Ruppel, C. P. (2012). A contingency theory of corruption: The effect of
human development and national culture. The Social Science Journal, 49(1), 90-97.

Taha, R. (2011, October). The role of supreme audits in preventing and investigating fraud and
corruption in the government units- an analytical study of the audit bureau in Jordan.
Paper presented at the First Scientific Conference: Distinct Organizations in Multi-
environments, Jadara University, Jordan.

Taouk, M., Lovibond, P.F. ,& Laube, R. (2001). Psychometric properties of a Chinese version of
the short Depression Anxiety Stress Scales (DASS21). Sydney, Australia: New South
Wales Transcultural Mental Health Centre, Cumberland Hospital. Retrieved from
http://www2.psy.unsw.edu.au/dass/Chinese/Chinese%20DASS21%20Paper.pdf

Taylor, J., & Turner, R. J. (2002). Perceived discrimination, social stress, and depression in the
transition to adulthood: Racial contrasts. Social Psychology Quarterly, 65(3), 213-225.

Weinstein, N., & Ryan, R. M. (2010). When helping helps: Autonomous motivation for prosocial
behavior and its influence on well-being for the helper and recipient. Journal of
Personality and Social Psychology, 98(2), 222-244.

Williams, D. R., Yu, Y., Jackson, J. S., & Anderson, N. B. (1997). Racial differences in physical
and mental health: Socio-economic status, stress and discrimination. Journal of Health
Psychology, 2(3), 335-351.

Yaghi, M., A. (1991). Measuring managers’ attitude for some non-behavioral aspects: Empirical
study. Business of Administration, King Saud University Journal, 3(2) 241-279.

Zhao, X., Lynch, J. G., & Chen, Q. (2010). Reconsidering Baron and Kenny: Myths and truths
about mediation analysis. Journal of consumer research, 37(2), 197-206.

Zick, A., Pettigrew, T. F., & Wagner, U. (2008). Ethnic prejudice and discrimination in Europe.
Journal of Social Issues, 64(2), 233-251.    
   53

Appendix A

Letter from Ministry of Education

   54

Appendix B
Recruitment Letter
   55
   56

Appendix C

  Not at all A little Somewhat Quite a bit Very Much Extremely

I feel like I am free to decide for myself O O O O O O

how to life my life
I really like the people I interact with O O O O O O
I do not feel very competent O O O O O O
I feel pressured in my life O O O O O O
People I know tell me I am good at what I O O O O O O
do
I get along with people I come into O O O O O O
contact with
I pretty much keep to myself and don’t O O O O O O
have a lot of social contacts
I generally feel free to express my ideas O O O O O O
and opinion
I consider the people I regularly interact O O O O O O
with to be my friends
I have been able to learn interesting new O O O O O O
skills recently
In my daily life, I frequently have to do O O O O O O
what I am told
People in my life care about me O O O O O O
Most days I feel a sense of O O O O O O
accomplishment from what I do
People I interact with on daily basis tend O O O O O O
to take my feeling into consideration
In my life I do not get much of a chance O O O O O O
to show how capable I am
There are not many people that I am close O O O O O O
to
I feel like I can pretty much be myself in O O O O O O
my daily situations
I feel isolated from the people I interact O O O O O O
with
I often do NOT feel capable to do what I O O O O O O
have to do
There is not much opportunity for me to O O O O O O
decide for myself how to do things in my
daily life
The people I interact with regularly do O O O O O O
not seem to like me much
I often do not feel very capable O O O O O O
There is not much opportunity that are O O O O O O
given to me to decide what to do in my
life
People are generally pretty friendly O O O O O O
toward me
   57

  Not at all A little Somewhat Quite a bit Very Much Extremely

I benefit from wasta in my academic life O O O O O O

(e.g., school and college admissions)
I benefit from wasta in my professional O O O O O O
life (e.g., getting particularly good jobs,
good schedule)
I benefit from wasta in my family life O O O O O O
I benefit from wasta in my social life O O O O O O
I benefit from wasta in my personal life O O O O O O
I have wasta in most of the important O O O O O O
areas of my life
Wasta has really made my life easier in O O O O O O
many important ways
I have very little wasta in any areas of my O O O O O O
life
I have almost never benefited from wasta O O O O O O
I have no wasta O O O O O O
My family has a lot of wasta O O O O O O
I get a lot of things done through my O O O O O O
connections
I usually have more wasta than the people O O O O O O
around me
I have enough wasta to get things done O O O O O O
My family status allows me extra O O O O O O
opportunities

How often do you use your connections to provide wasta to-----

Family’s members (immediate family) O O O O O O

Friends O O O O O O
Colleagues O O O O O O
Relative (extended family) O O O O O O
   58

  Not at all A little Somewhat Quite a bit Very Much Extremely

I found it hard to wind down O O O O O O

I was aware of dryness of my mouth O O O O O O
I couldn't seem to experience any O O O O O O
positive feeling at all
I experienced breathing difficulty (e.g., O O O O O O
excessively rapid breathing,
breathlessness in the absence of physical
exertion)
I found it difficult to work up the O O O O O O
initiative to do things
I tended to over-react to situations O O O O O O
I experienced trembling (e.g., in the O O O O O O
hands)
I felt that I was using a lot of nervous O O O O O O
energy
I was worried about situations in which I O O O O O O
might panic and make a fool of myself
I felt that I had nothing to look forward to O O O O O O
I found myself getting agitated O O O O O O
I found it difficult to relax O O O O O O
I felt down-hearted and blue O O O O O O
I was intolerant of anything that kept me O O O O O O
from getting on with what I was doing
I felt I was close to panic O O O O O O
I was unable to become enthusiastic about O O O O O O
anything
I felt I wasn't worth much as a person O O O O O O
I felt that I was rather touchy O O O O O O
I was aware of the action of my heart in O O O O O O
the absence of physical exertion (e.g.,
sense of heart rate increase, heart missing
a beat)
I felt scared without any good reason O O O O O O
I felt that life was meaningless O O O O O O
   59

  Not at all A little Somewhat Quite a bit Very Much Extremely

I enjoy working as a teacher O O O O O O

Working as a teacher is not the job that I O O O O O O
dreamed of
I prefer to work in another field O O O O O O
Every morning, I'm enthusiastic to go to O O O O O O
work
I wish I did not work for the education O O O O O O
sector
I am proud to be working as a teacher O O O O O O
Working for the education sector has O O O O O O
reduced my chances to build connections
I feel good about my job as a teacher O O O O O O
My work as a teacher brings me a distinct O O O O O O
social status
My job provides me with opportunities to O O O O O O
develop my qualifications
My job provides me with opportunities to O O O O O O
develop professional skills
My job as a teacher has social value in O O O O O O
community
My job provides me with opportunities to O O O O O O
invest my energies and my abilities
I feel appreciated by my students O O O O O O
I feel appreciated by my students’ parents O O O O O O
I feel appreciated by my school’s O O O O O O
principal
I feel secure about my job O O O O O O
   60

General Information

Are you Male Female

O O

How old are you?

(23-29) (30-36) (37-41) (42-47) (48-53) (54-59)
O O O O O O

Are you Saudi? You teach at

Yes No Public school Private school
O O O O

Do you have children?

Yes No
O O

What is your highest qualification?

O 2-year College O Bachelor O Master’s degree O Doctorate

Are you .. O Married You teach as a O general education teacher

O Engaged O special education teacher
O Divorced
O Widowed
O Single

How long have you been working in your current job?

(35|40) (28|34) (21|27) (14|20) (7|13) ( 1|6) You teach at Elementary Middle High
  school school school

O O O O O O O O O

What is your monthly income:

O RS3,000 to RS4,999 O RS5,000 to RS7,499 O RS7,500 to RS9,999
O RS10,000 to RS14,999 O RS15,000 to RS19,999 O RS20,000 to RS24,999
What is your duty?
O Teacher O Student Supervisor O Teacher Supervisor
O Principal O Vice Principal O Resources Specialist
O Administrator