An analysis of research productivity in Saudi Arabia and Iran

Mushtaq Ahmed, Younus Ahmed and Mohamad Diah, Nurazzura (2019) An analysis of research productivity in Saudi Arabia and Iran. Journal for the Study of Postsecondary and Tertiary Education, 4. pp. 197-208. ISSN 2378-5497

Preview

PDF - Published Version Download (415kB) | Preview

Abstract

Aim/Purpose Education is vital as it is a major investment in human capital. Tertiary education, in particular, contributes to the growth of knowledge and advances skills, which helps in the development of a country. This paper aims to look at the research and technological output at the tertiary level in Saudi Arabia and Iran. Background Saudi Arabia and Iran have an aspiration for leadership in the Islamic world and have been fighting for regional domination. Providing an overview of their tertiary education in these countries could be used to understand where the countries stand in their social and economic aspirations, especially when their economies move from oil to knowledge-based. Methodology To achieve the objective of the study, qualitative thematic analysis was done on secondary data extracted from the official websites of Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), the World Bank and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). Contribution The data suggest that Iran has a higher research output and development at the tertiary level than Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia needs to focus on its research output to achieve its social and economic aspiration to move to a knowledge economy. Findings The findings reveal that while Iran has a much larger tertiary system than Saudi Arabia, Saudi Arabia spends a higher percentage of its GDP on education (5.14%) than Iran (2.92%) and has a higher student-instructor ratio (19.85%) than Iran (15.26%). Despite less investment in education, Iran has published more articles (38,299) and filed more patents (14,279) than Saudi Arabia, which has fewer published articles (15,509) and patents filed (2406).

Item Type:	Article (Journal)
Additional Information:	2612/75149
Uncontrolled Keywords:	academia, Iran, R&D, research output, Saudi Arabia, tertiary education
Subjects:	H Social Sciences > HM Sociology > HM621 Culture H Social Sciences > HM Sociology > HM701 Social systems H Social Sciences > HM Sociology > HM826 Social institutions H Social Sciences > HM Sociology > HM831 Social change L Education > LB Theory and practice of education > LB2300 Higher Education
Kulliyyahs/Centres/Divisions/Institutes (Can select more than one option. Press CONTROL button):	Kulliyyah of Islamic Revealed Knowledge and Human Sciences > Department of Sociology & Anthropology Kulliyyah of Islamic Revealed Knowledge and Human Sciences
Depositing User:	DR NURAZZURA MOHAMAD DIAH
Date Deposited:	30 Oct 2019 10:59
Last Modified:	30 Oct 2019 10:59
URI:	http://irep.iium.edu.my/id/eprint/75149

Actions (login required)

View Item