WASTA in Arab Societies: Optimizing or Worsening Quality of Life? The Role of Religiosity

Ibrahim A. Elsaher ()
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Ibrahim A. Elsaher: Management Department, College of Business Administration, King Faisal University, Hofuf 31982, Saudi Arabia

Societies, 2024, vol. 14, issue 7, 1-16

Abstract: WASTA, a word widely used in Arab society, implies using people’s connections to generate mutual advantages. WASTA is rooted deeply in the culture of Arab societies and has a double effect that stimulates a continuous argument. On one hand, WASTA is considered a valuable social practice that optimizes social bonds and dual support to improve the overall quality of life (QoL) for all parties. In contrast, WASTA is regularly criticized for extending inequality and corruption in the community, which might worsen QoL, taking into consideration the mediating impacts of religiosity. This paper investigated the dual effects of WASTA on QoL and the mediating role of religiosity in Arab societies. Three hundred and ninety small- and medium-sized enterprises’ (SMEs’) owners in Saudi Arabia participated in a self-structured questionnaire that was analyzed using PLS-SEM. The results showed that the appearance of some dimensions of WASTA in Arab societies can optimize QoL. At the same time, other elements can worsen the QoL of the participating parties, but the adverse effect can be mitigated when religiosity is a mediator. These results suggest that WASTA can act as a positive connection method in Arab societies when accompanied by religiosity but can accelerate corruption in its absence; several practical and theoretical implications were discussed and elaborated.

Keywords: WASTA; cultural; Arab societies; quality of life; religiosity; SMEs (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: A13 A14 P P0 P1 P2 P3 P4 P5 Z1 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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