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The thesis presents rich empirical analysis of the role of public relations in facilitating participation in social change in the Arab Gulf. The focus is on what public communication approaches are used and how they are regarded from the perspectives of the key social actors. It presents an historical and sociological background of public communication and media in the Arab Gulf. Moreover, it provides in-depth analysis of two empirical case studies in the Arab Gulf: Ghiras, the national drugs prevention programme in Kuwait, and Be Free, the voluntary anti-child abuse programme in Bahrain. This thesis relates the practice of public communication in the Arab Gulf society to Arabic culture and ethics. The thesis uses a qualitative constructivist paradigm to “re-construct” the multiple realities initially constructed by social actors in the cases to provide original insights on the role of public communication and public relations in social change in the Arab Gulf. It presents a new perspective of 'social change' in the two cases that is tied to Islamic ethics. Besides, it re-constructs original Arabic-oriented understanding of 'relational' and 'persuasion' approaches, which differs from the Western paradigm. One of the key contributions of the thesis is its adaptation of relevant Western communication models to the empirical Arab Gulf cases to identify some of the crucial factors of the practice and role of public communication in the Arab Gulf. The unique contribution of this thesis is that it develops a greater understanding of alternative cultural context that might contribute to the adaptations of existing theory and therefore a first step towards new models. It introduces a theoretical framework for other scholars to develop an Arabic public communication ethics theory and to build up a cultural model of the practice of public communication and public relations in the Arab Gulf. The thesis generates key theoretical implications that contribute to the theoretical discussion on the value and role of media, public relations, social marketing, and public communication in the Arab Gulf society at the age of globalisation.

The First Gulf War that took place in Kuwait in 1991 resulted in one of the worst environmental disasters in the history of mankind. Extreme pollution affected the soil, waters, and the air in Kuwait. In this research I try to look into how the Kuwaiti government reacted to those disasters policy wise since the end of the war. To assess the reaction of the Kuwaiti government I applied the concept of sustainable governance for its comprehensive nature that captures the complexity of environmental problems. The concept of sustainable governance has four objectives: Social objectives that aim at investing in human capitol and social capitol, Economic objectives that aim at forming economic policies in an environmentally friendly way, Environmental objectives that aim at implementing policies to protect the environment, and institutional objectives that aim at ensuring equality in government institutions. After surveying policies from the past 20 years, I conclude that the number of policies that were adopted by the Kuwaiti government to serve the 4 objectives of sustainable governance is small in size and substance. The Kuwaiti government failed to establish a policy regime to put Kuwait on a sustainable trajectory. / Graduation date: 2012

Doctorat en sciences sociales, politiques et économiques / info:eu-repo/semantics/nonPublished

Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited. / The Persian Gulf region is, in all likelihood, going to remain crucial to American interests through the next several decades. The world depends on the petroleum reserves of the Gulf region to fuel its economic engine. The recent history of the region has been rife with conflict, and the U.S. has had to intervene militarily on several occasions to ensure its vital interests were protected. This thesis examines the strategic circumstances in the Gulf region and ways in which American political, diplomatic, and military policy can help shape the environment to conform to its interests. Several scenarios are developed which attempt to forecast the results of different environments on regional stability. The thesis reaches the conclusion that the United States must take a proactive role if its short- and long-term interests are to be protected. The short-term goal of U.S. policy must be to maintain a balance of power and regional correlation of forces which serves to deter any would-be aggressor nations. In the long run, the United States must seek a comprehensive regional peace. Various methods of achieving these goals are examined. / http://archive.org/details/strategicplanfor00ward / Lieutenant Commander, United States Navy

The unusual way in which Britain's empire in Arabia was connected politically and constitutionally to the metropole, and the perceived – in some instances exaggerated – view of its strategic and economic importance, created both an opportunity and a justification for the British disengagement from the region to happen differently than in most of the rest of the empire. Strong personalities – in the metropole, amongst the men on the spot, and among local elites – played a crucial role in decision-making, and this thesis argues that informal networks from among these three constituencies worked in parallel to the established formal channels, impacting policy and driving the decision-making process. These networks initially contributed to a break in the political consensus within the metropole, but eventually also helped to restore it. The manipulation of local elites was the tool of choice, used by Britain (under both Conservative and Labour Governments) and its "men on the spot", in their endeavour to secure a lasting privileged position in Arabia. How key actors adapted to change, both in their own societies and in the international system, often determined the success or otherwise of their endeavours. This tangled tale of Britain’s last imperial stand in Arabia is far from being a unique case of how modern empires have handled unusual episodes of imperial retreat. The story has echoes in two other imperial exits of the late 20^th century – the French disengagement from Algeria from 1954 to 1962, and Russian efforts to maintain a privileged position in Georgia, immediately before and after the collapse of the USSR in 1991, and since. Even if it is too early to draw firm conclusions, similar patterns – as the ones discussed in this thesis with regards to the end of the British Empire in Arabia – can also be observed in the other two cases, allowing us to draw some observations and lessons.

Avec la mondialisation, le Maghreb a connu, ces dernières années, de nombreux bouleversements dans les grandes villes. Les médinas et centres anciens ne sont plus au centre des débats comparativement aux morceaux de villes internationales, réalisés par des mécanismes d'investissement ou de partenariat entre les gouvernements maghrébins et les investisseurs originaires des pays arabes du Golfe Persique.Ces nouveaux projets urbains, localisés principalement dans les sites offrant un grand potentiel touristique –tel les fronts d'eau- témoignent d'une part, de l'ampleur des opérations, de leurs implications, et d'autre part, indiquent des changements profonds qui interrogent le chercheur dans de multiples directions : sociale, économique, architecturale, urbanistique...En effet, et en dépit du fait que les avantages de ce genre d'opérations sont multiples, la projection au sein des capitales maghrébines d'une architecture de haut-standing importée des pays émiratis, donne naissance à ce que les spécialistes de l'urbain appellent «des greffes urbaines» qui marquent profondément les espaces urbains concernés.La présente recherche tente de cerner les différentes dynamiques urbaines, nées de l'ouverture des territoires urbains maghrébins à l'investissement étranger et d'étudier le passage des façons de faire la ville dites locales, à une nouvelle fabrique de la ville, importée d'ailleurs. Il s'agit de mesurer les impacts sur la ville-hôte et son système de gestion et d'interroger les changements introduits du point de vue social et économique tout en l'inscrivant dans les politiques de développement durable. / Since the opening of the Maghreb to the world, many changes were recorded in large cities. Many big urban projects, whose realization is provided by investors from Arab countries of the Persian Gulf and located in sites with great potential like waterfronts, are carried out like in international cities.Those projects demonstrate the originality of the operations, their implications and indicate profound changes.Despite the fact that the benefits of such operations are manifold, the projection of architecture imported from Persian Golf countries in the capitals of the Maghreb, give rise to what town planners call "urban transplants".This research will identify the different urban dynamics, born after the opening of the territories and especially strategic sites of the region to foreign investment.In a nutshell, this research identifies the impacts of projects on the city and its management system, and examine changes relative to the concept of sustainable development.

Thesis (M.A.)--University of Central Florida, 2009. / Adviser: Terri Fine. Includes bibliographical references (p. 120-123).

Thesis (M.A.A.S.) -- Air University, 2004. / Title from PDF title page (viewed on April 24, 2009). "June 2004." Includes abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 85-91).

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Georgetown University, 2008. / Includes bibliographical references.