ERPBSS 2015

Middlesex University Dubai Organizes Third International Conference on Emerging Research Paradigms in Business and Social Science (ERPBSS) 2015

Supporting the development of innovative research is not only a core value of Middlesex University Dubai but also provided a key focal point for attendees at its third International Conference on Emerging Research Paradigms in Business and Social Sciences.

Building on the success of the previous two conferences, more than 200 delegates representing more than 100 international institutions were given the opportunity for inter-disciplinary dialogue that transcended subject specific boundaries. The overall theme of ‘What’s next?” proved a fitting question for a research conference held in Dubai during the UAE’s Week of Innovation.  

Dr. Cody Morris Paris, Deputy Director at Middlesex University Dubai said:

Our conference provided a forum for innovative research to be shared, facilitated collaborations for new ideas to emerge, and embraced ideas and knowledge that transcended traditional disciplinary and geographic boundaries.

The ERPBSS conference included a diverse range of topics emerging from the fields of business, education, economics, law, technology, tourism, media, and psychology.  More than 125 academic papers were presented across thirty one parallel sessions by academics representing more than sixty leading national, regional, and international institutions of higher education.

A review of the programme illustrates the range of innovative research presentations and discussions that took place in the track sessions with titles including: ‘ICT as an Enabler’, ‘Forging new pathways in psychology’, ‘Contemporary issues in foreign policy, international relations, and security’, ‘International business paradigms’, and ‘Engaging students the Smart way’.  These sessions included a range of interesting studies from around the world, presented by post-graduate students, academic faculty, and government and private sector leaders. A large number of studies also illustrated the wide range of high quality research emerging from post graduate students and research faculty at Universities in the UAE. 

For example, Adamu Aliyu, a post-graduate student at Middlesex University Dubai presented on “The smart city initiative for Dubai: An exploratory study to assess the readiness and challenges”. Also, a study titled, “Attracting and Retaining Emirati Jobseekers in the UAE’s Cultural Tourism Sector” was presented by H.E. Yousif Abdallah Alobaidli, UAEU and Director General of Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque Center with his PhD supervisor Dr. Emilie Rutledge, UAEU.

In addition to individual papers, several organized symposium were convened during the conference. In one example, Dr. Linzi Kemp, American University of Sharjah, assembled a series of papers that have been developed as part of an on-going collaborative project titled “Women in Leadership: Leadership theory to Powerful Practice”, which examines conditions needed to support Emirati and expatriate women to succeed in economy and leadership positions.

This complete programme was also complemented by two eminent Keynote Speakers. Professor Dimitrios Buhalis, Director of the eTourism lab at Bournemouth University, UK, delivered a talk on Tuesday November 24th entitled“Smartness, Big Data, and CoCreating Value”. In his talk he noted that,

Smartness is fostered by open innovation, supported by investments in human and social capital, and sustained by participatory governance…Interoperability and ubiquitous computing ensure that everybody is interconnected and processes are integrated towards generating value, through dynamic co-creation, sustainable resources and dynamic personalisation and adaptation to context. All suppliers and intermediaries, the public sector, as well as consumers and various interested parties are networked, dynamically co-producing value for everybody interconnected in the ecosystem.”

On Wednesday November 25th, Dr. Ayoub Kazim, Managing Director of Dubai International Academic City (DIAC) gave a talk entitled ‘Towards an Innovation Driven Economy- Human Capital Creation and Development in Fulfilling UAE’s Leadership vision’. 

“Embracing innovation is the only way to ensure that future generations will overcome the many challenges that come their way. Conferences such as Middlesex University’s provide a much needed platform to promote an environment where fresh, innovative ways of thinking can be championed. Only by nurturing talent and unlocking potential can we encourage critical thinking and promote entrepreneurship, all with the goal of supporting the UAE’s development and fuelling the growth of the economy”

said Dr. Kazim.