0000000000014236
AUTHOR
Roya Gholami
Do Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) and Trade Openness Explain the Disparity in ICT Diffusion between Asia-Pacific and the Islamic Middle Eastern Countries?
This study investigates the impact of FDI and trade openness on ICT diffusion in the Asia-Pacific and Middle East regions from 1996-2005. The results indicate that while dissimilarities exist between the economies included in this study in terms of their level of socio-economic and political development, education and the growth of GDP have had a positive impact on ICT diffusion in both regions. However, while FDI has generally had a positive and significant impact on ICT diffusion in Asia-Pacific economies, its impact on Middle Eastern economies has been detrimental. The results of this study also show that trade-openness has had, in general, a positive and significant impact on ICT diffus…
ICT Diffusion and Foreign Direct Investment
This chapter investigates the impact of inward and outward FDI on ICT diffusion in the Asia-Pacific and Middle East regions for the period 1996-2008. The results indicate that while inward FDI has generally had a positive and significant impact on ICT diffusion in Asia-Pacific economies, its impact on the Middle Eastern countries has been detrimental. In contrast, the results of this study also show that outward FDI has had, in general, the inverse effect, it has been in general positive and significant for the Middle East countries but insignificant for Asia-Pacific economies.
Hospital performance: Efficiency or quality? Can we have both with IT?
This paper explores influence of IT investment on hospital efficiency and quality.There is a direct effect of IT investment on service quality in hospitals.There is a moderating effect of quality on operational efficiency in hospitals.There is a U-shaped relationship between IT investments and operational efficiency.IT investments have diminishing returns beyond a certain point. The influence of IT investment on hospital efficiency and quality are of great interest to healthcare executives as well as insurers. Few studies have examined how IT investments influence both efficiency and quality or whether there is an optimal IT investment level that influences both in the desired direction. De…
The impact of information and communication technology (ICT), education and regulation on economic freedom in Islamic Middle Eastern countries
Our study investigated the impact of ICT expansion on economic freedom in the Middle East (Bahrain, Iran, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, United Arab Emirates, and Yemen). Our empirical analysis used archival data from 1995 to 2005; it showed that ICT expansion in the Middle East has been effective both in bridging the digital divide and also in promoting economic freedom in a region that was vulnerable to political, social, and global conflict. However, differences between countries, such as the educational attainment of their citizens and institutional resistance to technology acceptance, both enhanced and restricted the relationship between ICT and economic fre…
Sustainable Farming Practices, Awareness, and Behavior in Small Farms in Brazil
This paper investigates the relationship between the use of digital and non-digital sources of information on sustainable farming practices, institutional pressure and adoption of such practices by farmers in Brazilian semi-arid lands. The research uses a model based on the theory of reasoned action (TRA) and the institutional theory. Our results for a sample of 100 Brazilian farmers show that non-digital sources of information and ‘Coercive’ and ‘Normative’ pressures have a positive impact on farmers’ attitude towards and actual adoption of sustainable farming practices. However, digital sources of information such as TV and Radio do not play a significant role. In addition, pro-environmen…
Is ICT the Key to Development?
Using panel data for 52 developed and developing countries over the period 1998-2006, this article examines the links between information and communication technology diffusion and human development. We conducted a panel regression analysis of the investments per capita in healthcare, education and information and communication technology against human development index scores. Using a quantile regression approach, our findings suggest that changes in healthcare, education and information and communication technology provision have a stronger impact on human development index scores for less developed than for highly developed countries. Furthermore, at lower levels of development education…