Shahar Gindi and Rakefet Erlich Ron
Attitudes toward minority employees are hard to predict, and there is no enough information about the variables that are associated with increased and decreased prejudice toward…
Abstract
Purpose
Attitudes toward minority employees are hard to predict, and there is no enough information about the variables that are associated with increased and decreased prejudice toward them. The Jewish and Arab education systems in Israel are, for the most part, segregated, which may potentially contribute to prejudice and alienation between the two populations. The integration of Israeli–Arab teachers in Jewish schools has been suggested to reduce prejudice. The current study sought to examine Israeli teachers' attitudes toward the inclusion of Arab teachers in Jewish schools (AJ) and its relation to degree of religiosity, minority status and demographic variables.
Design/methodology/approach
A total of 1,644 teachers completed an online 22-item questionnaire that surveyed background variables such as gender, mother tongue, seniority and degree of religiosity, the two independent variables, religiosity and minority status, and the dependent variable, attitude toward the inclusion of AJ.
Findings
Overall, teachers exhibited positive attitudes toward the integration of AJ. Multiple linear regression indicated that among Jewish teachers, the degree of religiosity was the strongest predictor of the teachers' attitudes toward inclusion but was a poor predictor among Arabs. Conversely, minority status was the strongest predictor among Arab teachers but was a poor predictor among Israeli Jews. Not only did religiosity differ in its prediction of attitudes among Arabs and Jews but also the patterns of religiosity were quite different among these two groups.
Research limitations/implications
While the overall sample was wide, the specific minority groups that were examined were small and did not allow deep exploration of minority nuances. The study's generalizability is hampered by the given exceptionality of the Israeli context, where “Church” and State are not separated. Religiosity was examined in a unidimensional way and failed to explore other related factors that may be relevant, such as political inclination.
Practical implications
The study further refutes the notion of commonality among minorities. It proposes to place more emphasis on religion's role in attitudes toward minority employees. Further research into the role of religiosity in Israeli Jews' attitudes toward Arabs is needed.
Social implications
The findings suggest that the degree of religiosity might be a central factor in Israeli Jews' attitudes toward the Arab minority in general.
Originality/value
The research calls attention to the association of Judaism and nationalism as well as segregation, contributing to negative attitudes and prejudice toward the Arab minority. Unlike previous research using contact theory, the authors call attention to the importance of examining willingness to make contact prior to examining the impact of contact itself.
Details
Keywords
Shahar Gindi, Yitzhak Gilat and Rachel Sagee
Minority teachers is a growing phenomenon that is encouraged as part of a quest to diversify teaching staff. Among minority teachers, there exists a group of boundary-crossing…
Abstract
Purpose
Minority teachers is a growing phenomenon that is encouraged as part of a quest to diversify teaching staff. Among minority teachers, there exists a group of boundary-crossing teachers whose “otherness” contrasts with the different student population and/or staffroom composition. The study aims to examine parent, teacher and student attitudes toward teachers crossing two types of “borders” that are central to Israeli society: the Jewish-Arab rift and the religious-secular rift.
Design/methodology/approach
A representative sample of 182 Jewish Israeli parents, 201 Jewish Israeli students grades 10–12 and 101 Jewish Israeli teachers completed questionnaires regarding their attitudes toward boundary-crossing teachers.
Findings
The overall attitudes toward cross-boundary teaching were positive. Attitudes were found to be associated with political affiliation, religiosity and age. The more left-wing participants were, the less religious and older the more they supported boundary-crossing teaching. Students were significantly less supportive of teachers crossing the Jewish-Arab divide compared with adults. The attitudes toward boundary-crossing ultra-orthodox teachers in a secular school showed a distinct pattern, as it received support from all divides of the research participants.
Social implications
The findings point to the vicious cycle of segregation in Israeli society whereby the lack of contact between Jews and Arabs leads to intergroup anxiety which in turns leads to less support in further contact through boundary-crossing teaching, especially among high school students.
Originality/value
The minority teachers’ literature often refers to the need to diversify the teaching staff or examines teachers and their relations with students. This study if the first to examine how other stakeholders’ view the idea of minority teachers.
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Michael Naor, Gavriel David Pinto, Amir Israel Hakakian and Akiva Jacobs
This study aims to investigate whether the shift to teleworking during COVID-19 pandemic is going to diminish the need to procure/rent extensive office space and how this emerging…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to investigate whether the shift to teleworking during COVID-19 pandemic is going to diminish the need to procure/rent extensive office space and how this emerging trend impacts the real-estate market in Israel.
Design/methodology/approach
The methodologies used in this study include triangulation of Google search engine, survey and post hoc case study analysis.
Findings
The analysis indicates a decline both in procuring office space and its price per square meter. Employee productivity while teleworking remains relatively high despite home distractions. Interestingly, the survey results forecast a continuous shift to hybrid work mode after the pandemic.
Practical implications
The study introduces the development of numerous innovative Israeli technologies to allow a gradual return to work in public places.
Social implications
As the coronavirus outburst, business sectors were forced by government regulations to change the way of employment extensively, specifically, teleworking has become an integral part of the routine to accommodate social distance. The study provides insights into the impact of teleworking on gender and ethnic diversity in the Israeli workplace.
Originality/value
Israel provides a unique bedrock for investigation because of its status as a start-up nation with both high skilled workforce and advanced information technology infrastructure. The study enlightens an Israeli perspective on how a small size country with a high-density population succeeds to deal with coronavirus by teleworking coupled with strict government enforcement of social distance.
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Suvarna Hiremath, Ansumalini Panda, Prashantha C. and Srinivas Subbarao Pasumarti
Food and grocery, which accounts for around 60% of the overall retail market in India, is the most promising area for launching a retail firm. The objective of this research paper…
Abstract
Purpose
Food and grocery, which accounts for around 60% of the overall retail market in India, is the most promising area for launching a retail firm. The objective of this research paper is to conduct a thorough investigation of the impact of customers’ geographic, demographic and psychographic characteristics on the selection of retail store format choice behavior in the quickly growing Indian food and grocery retail industry, also to analyze the mediating role of store image on the store choice behavior.
Design/methodology/approach
A descriptive research design is used to collect data using the survey method and a structured questionnaire. The data collected from more than 400 food and grocery retail customers from neighborhood Kirana stores, supermarkets and hypermarkets in Karnataka, India, would be analyzed using both descriptive (mean and standard deviation) and Structural equation modeling (SEM) techniques. SEM techniques are used for validation of the model with independent constructs namely Demographics factors, Socio-Economic factors, Geographic factors, Lifestyle and Shopping Motives, a Mediating variable Store Image, and a dependent variable Store choice behavior. Partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) is used to examine the suggested theoretical framework.
Findings
The model is tested to reveal the impact of shoppers’ age, gender, occupation, education, monthly household income, family size, and distance traveled to the store, which all play a role in their retail format choice. Also, the socio economic and life style factors of shoppers influence their purchasing decisions as well; store image partially mediates between customer characteristics and store choice behavior.
Implications
The study has practical implications for food and grocery retailer in understanding customer behavior in the context of changing customer demographic and psychographic features in the Indian retailing sector. The findings aid retail merchants, allowing them to develop more successful retail marketing strategies and gain a competitive advantage.
Originality
This study could serve as a springboard for future research in this field. Retail marketers will benefit from the findings in terms of format creation and reorientation of marketing strategies in the shortest time.