published_or_final_version / Transport Policy and Planning / Master / Master of Arts in Transport Policy and Planning

Expatriates and tourists both represent transient markets who travel to destinations and, to differing degrees, look to understand their host destination. To date, the overlap between tourism and expatriation has received scant analysis and yet could offer useful synergies. With this premise in mind, a two-stage, mixed methods study analysed the connection between tourists and expatriates in Dubai, UAE. The results from 36 face-to-face interviews and 439 questionnaires suggested that tourism practices do benefit expatriate adjustment by providing opportunities to expatriates and nationals to meet, interact, and learn from one another. The results offered the five Arenas of adjustment – the Individual, the Destination, Exposure opportunities, the Company, and the Host – that facilitate adjustment within the expatriate. Tourism is directly referred to in the Exposure Arena, reflecting a qualitative effect of tourism in adjustment. It was through such opportunities that tourism was found to encourage expatriate adjustment by either directly teaching expatriates and nationals about one another, or providing the opportunity for them to meet, interact, and learn.

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Inledning Ett ökat intresse för globalisering har gjort att företag söker sig till nya marknader kontinuerligt, svenska företag utgör inget undantag. En mycket aktuell marknad för utlandsetablering är Dubai. Från att ha varit ett litet fisk- och pärlsamhälle är det idag ett globalt center för affärer som attraherar aktörer från hela världen. Syfte Syftet med studien är att undersöka varför samt hur svenska företag väljer att etablera sig i Dubai. Metod Studien bygger på en kvalitativ metod som valts med hänsyn till den undersökning som genomförts. Genom semistrukturerade intervjuer med fem respondenter har information samlats in och bearbetats för att i slutändan uppfylla studiens syfte. Resultat Resultatet från studien visar att Dubai med sitt centrala läge i Mellanöstern är mycket intressant för svenska företag att göra affärer på. En viktig faktor är dess frizoner vilka möjliggör fullt ägande och enkelhet i etableringsprocessen. / Introduction An increased interest in globalization has meant that companies seek new markets continuously, Swedish companies are no exception. A topical market for oversea establishment is Dubai. From being a small fishing and pearl society, it is today a global center of business that attracts players from all over the world. Purpose The purpose of this study is to examine why and how Swedish companies choose to establish/locate their business in Dubai. Method The study is based on a qualitative approach which has been chosen with regard to the research that has been performed. Through semi-structured interviews with five respondents has information been collected and processed to finally meet the purpose of the study. Results The result shows that Dubai, with its central location in the Middle East, is very attractive for companies to do business in. An important factor is its free zones that allow full ownership and simplicity in the establishment process.

Stuttgart, Univ., Diplomarbeit, 2006.

Zugl.: Passau, Universiẗat, Zulassungsarb., 2009.

Thesis (MFamMed)--Stellenbosch University, 2015. / Background: An increased incidence of acute group A ß-hemolytic Streptococcal (GABHS) pharyngitis has been reported anecdotally at the Welcare Hospital in Dubai. Aim: To describe the outcomes of patients with acute GABHS pharyngitis who received standard therapy at the Welcare hospital emergency unit in Dubai. Objectives To determine the time elapsed before patients experience a clinically significant reduction in pain. To describe the side-effect profile of standard treatment received for acute GABHS pharyngitis. Methods: This is a cross-sectional study design. Consecutive sampling of 123 patients was done from December, 2013 to March, 2014. A questionnaire was used to record demographic data and severity of GABHS before patients received standard treatment. The Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) was used to measure pain severity at baseline and during follow-up. Adults diagnosed with GABHS pharyngitis who received dexamethasone as part of standard treatment offered were included. Results: Clinical pain relief, which was suggested as a VAS score of 4, was achieved by 5.7% of the patients at 12 hours. At 24 hours, 55.3% of the patients reported a VAS score of 4. The mean VAS score of the patients at this time was 4.12. A total of 99.2% of the patients reported a VAS score of 4 or lower at 36 and 48 hours. Paired t-test revealed statistically significant difference between the VAS scores at 12, 24, 36 and 48 hours and baseline (p=0.000). This suggests that clinical pain relief was achieved by 55.3% of the patients at 24 hours. At 48 hours, 21.1% of the patients reported a VAS score of 0. None of the patients reported any side effects associated with the one dose use of dexamethasone. Conclusion: The findings suggest that dexamethasone is safe and effective to use as adjuvant for management of pain associated with acute GABHS pharyngitis. Almost all patients experienced significant pain relief by 36 and 48 hours and no side-effects related to dexamethasone use were recorded. Further definitive randomised controlled trials are needed to establish these findings as evidence for practice. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Nie beskikbaar

RADAR is an excellence self-assessment tool which is commonly used to assess results and approaches in excellence models. It could also be used successfully in assessing the strategy formulation process in Dubai' s government. The Thesis is a qualitative research that deploys a case study approach to understand the role of RADAR techniques and practices, and how these can be used in assessing the Dubai Governement 's strategy formulation process, focusing on the justice and security sectors in general and the Dubai Police Force in particular. The researcher always attempts to answer particular questions about why and how RADAR informs and helps in assessing and controlling the strategy formulation process. The study obtained valid information from semi-structured interviews with 17 senior and middle government, security and Police staff members working in the Dubai Police Force, Civil Defense and Immigration Departments. Generally, the findings indicated that: Firstly, RADAR can be used successfully in these researched organisations and can be seen to be important in security assessment function when taking into consideration the cultural aspects of Dubai which are based on Arab and Islamic cultural values. Secondly, the strategy formulation process in Dubai Governement is affected widely by Islamic and Arab culture. Thirdly, the definition of 'citizen' is very complex as Dubai is a cosmopolitan city. This makes it difficult to cater to the stakeholders' needs in the strategy formulation process due to the diversity of the cultures of the different nationalities. Fourthly, the bureaucratic nature of managers in the public sector makes it difficult to deploy the excellence self-assessment tools as they tend to believe that assessment is merely criticism rather than that it supports continuous improvement. Finally, the leadership of Dubai Governement plays a crucial role in leading the strategic thinking and quality drive in both public and private sectors. The leadership vision is to cater to the cultural needs of the different nationalities living in Dubai and translate them into sound strategies.

This thesis provides a critical analysis of Dubai’s approach to economic development planning over the period covered by its first three formalized plans that is 1996 to 2010. Dubai experienced a period of very rapid economic growth in the ten years before the 2008 global financial crisis, despite being a small economy with little oil; oil revenues only accounted for 2% of GDP in 2011. This dissertation analyzes and evaluates how the nature of Dubai’s strategic planning changed over the period 1996 to 2010 and the factors underpinning those changes. The thesis also offers an assessment of the potential for Dubai to develop and maintain a sustainable competitive advantage in the future. To help evaluate Dubai’s first three formalized economic development plans, this thesis identifies and discusses a number of theoretical frameworks and concepts to identify key concepts and relationships between ideas and practice in the field of economic development planning. In particular, a comparison is drawn between corporate strategic planning and economic development planning approaches and their relevance to the Dubai context. Given the blurred boundaries between the state and commerce, both approaches have potential relevance, at least in part, to Dubai. Dubai’s economic development plans are set against the historical, political, economic, social and cultural and context of the Emirate. The plans are analyzed using computer-based text analytics and summarized in mindmap form. This allows the major themes of the plans to be compared and progression between the plans to be identified. The plans are analyzed from a number of perspectives including the role of government, the expected contribution of the private sector and the role of higher education and research in promoting development. However, the main area of analysis is the extent to which the plans successfully identify development paths which will result in sustainable competitive advantage for Dubai. The thesis also reports on the results of semi-structured interviews with prominent experts. The interviews provide an important source of evidence and opinions on the successes and shortcomings of Dubai’s planning and plans and the actions which need to be taken if Dubai is to achieve its long-term aim of becoming and innovation an innovation driven knowledge-based economy.

This study seeks to investigate the impact of architectural icons on the cities that they are built in, especially those in Dubai to understand the perceptions and associations of ordinary people with these icons, thus analysing their impact on the quality of life in the city. This is an important study with the advent of ‘iconism’ in architecture that has a growing acceptance and demand, wherein the status of a piece of architecture is predetermined as an icon by the media and not necessarily by the people. There is no denying that the fastest means of appearing on the world map is through icons, which Dubai evidently achieved, and there are many supporters of this phenomenon as a means of progress and development, the bonus being instant fame and status. But the symbolism employed in these icons, specifically for this part of the world, many argue may not be relevant to the people or the region, thus leading to a loss of identity and sense of belonging that is a vital component in the overall sense of pride. This study thus evaluates architecture as a service industry that is not only to satisfy the personal egos of the architects or the clients. It has an important role to leave a mark on the end users and not only on the glossy architectural journals. The study presents views on what really leaves a mark on the people’s memory, addressing the scale, the grandness, the location, the size, the technology and the materials that may or may not contribute to the iconic status of an architectural project from the people’s perspective. Further the study investigates if an icon is one that could be a forced landmark or it is one that people associate with, relate to and one that gives them the sense of belonging and pride, binding them together. The expressive iconic forms with the metaphors emerging, may or may not add to the quality of a place, create places of spaces or it may result in more of form accommodating functions.Thus it is imperative to understand that though today Dubai with its multiple icons that are jewels in the crown of Dubai, reflecting awe and splendor, what does this architecture do for the people and thus in leaving an imprint on the peoples mind collectively. The study analyzes the dimensions that make certain kind of architecture stand out. Some of these dimensions are physical and others are difficult to measure, thus it addresses the tangible and intangible factors that result in the icon and the associated symbolism with it. The relevance and meaning of these symbols will have to stand the test of time to leave an ever-lasting impression on generations to come. The literature review was the first part of the study and the theoretical studies were divided into three pivot areas in this thesis: evolution of architecture as signs and symbols, international iconic architecture and its impact, architecture as identity through symbolism. The study also focusses on Dubai as an emerging iconic city concentrating on the needs of people and impact of these icons on people specifically, further highlighting the issues of legibility, context and identity in Dubai. The empirical study examines this argument about iconic architecture through questionnaires and interviews. A comparison is drawn between different segments of people in the community, one set of samples being those who are closely associated with these icons through the process of decision making or building, the others who have very minimal knowledge and association with these icons. The findings thus indicate both the well-established criteria for awarding an iconic status and also the intangible often ignored aspects in iconic image building. Thus, the study suggests a paradigm that could provide more human based elements in the iconic architecture and the selected symbols in representing these icons. Certain recommendations supporting the perception of people towards icons, their needs and local considerations are further made to make cities more liveable and joyful for the people they are intended for.