Usamah F. Alfarhan and Samir Al-Busaidi
The purpose of this paper is to explain prevalent earnings differentials in Gulf Cooperation Council’s (GCC’s) private sectors between skilled local and migrant labor and provide…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explain prevalent earnings differentials in Gulf Cooperation Council’s (GCC’s) private sectors between skilled local and migrant labor and provide estimates of potential price distortions to underlie future market-based corrective policies that increase participation of locals in private employment.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper uses an individual-level data set on workers’ earnings and productivity-related characteristics to decompose estimated earnings differentials at the mean level and at various percentiles of the earnings distribution via well-established decomposition approaches.
Findings
Results show that the real earnings differential between locals and Asians decreases at higher earnings, while that between locals and non-GCC Arabs are relatively stable. Both are characterized by overpayment of locals, that is, self-inflicted by current nationalization policies. Higher earnings of Westerners are due to their superior productivity-related characteristics.
Research limitations/implications
Due to the lack of official individual-level data on workers’ productivity-related characteristics, this paper is compelled to utilize an open-source primary data set. Despite the data set’s ability to reproduce officially published aggregates and produce sound econometric results, findings are not entirely proof against sampling bias.
Practical implications
The paper demonstrates that the failure of GCC’s nationalization policies is self-inflicted by the current quota system and by the lack of legislative frameworks that ensure equal pay for equal work. Effective nationalization ought to be market based, rather than by fiat.
Originality/value
The paper is the first to analyze GCC’s private earnings differentials at the individual level and provides micro-econometric evidence on existing price distortions.
Details
Keywords
Moon Fai Chan, Nasser Al-Sibani, Salim Al-Huseini, Alkhatib Al-Saadi, Saoud Al-Busaidi, Jawaher Al Kharusi, Nutaila Al Kharusi, Gilles J. Guillemin, Mohammed Al-Abri and Samir Al-Adawi
The phenomenon of social withdrawal, known as the hikikomori-like idiom of distress (HLID), has been reported in many countries. This study aimed to explore profiles of Omanis who…
Abstract
Purpose
The phenomenon of social withdrawal, known as the hikikomori-like idiom of distress (HLID), has been reported in many countries. This study aimed to explore profiles of Omanis who have HLID.
Design/methodology/approach
A cross-sectional online survey of 673 out of 1,529 Omanis identified with HLID using the Hikikomori Questionnaire (HQ-25) score of 42+.
Findings
Two profile groups were determined through cluster analysis according to socio-demographic and HQ-25 outcomes. Subjects in cluster 1 (n = 168, 24.9%) are significantly younger (p < 0.001) and more educated (p = 0.019), spend more time online (p < 0.001) and are living alone (p < 0.001) than subjects in cluster 2 (n = 505, 75.1%). More subjects in cluster 1 had a past mental illness (p = 0.037) but less previous childhood physical/emotional abuse (p = 0.029) than subjects in cluster 2. In contrast, subjects in cluster 2 had a low lack of socialization (p < 0.001), less active isolation (p < 0.001) and total HQ-25 scores (p < 0.001) than cluster 1. Subjects in Cluster 1 have more serious social withdrawal issues than those in Cluster 2, especially on a lack of socialization and isolation.
Research limitations/implications
One limitation that might influence the results of this online study was that information was collected via self-report, and a cross-sectional design limits its results because it cannot assess causal inference. This study has contributed valuably to exploring different profile groups of HDLD, especially in the Arabian Gulf. The authors’ findings facilitate the development by creating innovative interventions strategically tackling different hikikomori groups.
Originality/value
While social withdrawal characterized by HLID has been reported proliferating in different parts of the world, little research has been forthcoming from Arabian Gulf countries. These findings suggest that there are two orthogonal clusters of HLID among Omanis. This study provides a foundation for further research on HLID, which has recently been reported in different parts of the world.