Ezhar Tamam

Examining Chen and Starosta's Model of Intercultural Sensitivity in a Multiracial Collectivistic Country

This study examines the applicability of Chen and Starostas model of intercultural sensitivity in Malaysian culture using university student samples. A total of 447 randomly selected undergraduate students of a multicultural public university completed self-administered questionnaires. The study could not reproduce the five-factor structure formulated by Chen and Starosta. Instead, a three-factor structure (interaction attentiveness and respect, interaction openness, and interaction confidence) is devised from 21 items of Chen and Starostas instrument for further theoretical and measurement validation.

Online Media and Political Participation: The Case of Malaysia

This study is based on a survey of 526 adult Malaysians who were interviewed shortly before the 2008 national election about online media use, levels of political participation, and voting intentions. The goal was to document the role of online media in a society that controls political information in traditional media and, in turn, compels citizens to seek alternative news sources online. As predicted, the findings indicated that online media use was positively associated with higher levels of political participation among Malaysian voters. The use of and exposure to social networking sites, political blogs, political online videos, party websites, and political ads on cell phones showed strong associations with political activism. However, the use of political online media did not predict voters’ likelihood of voting.

Media Use, Anti-Americanism and International Support for the Iraq War:

This study investigates the impact of pre-war news coverage on international support for President Bushs decision to invade Iraq in 2003. The study is based on a survey conducted one week prior to the start of the Iraq War among 1787 university students from six countries in Europe, Asia and the Middle East. The findings indicate that exposure to pre-war news coverage was associated with more positive attitudes toward Iraq and higher levels of fear related to the possible consequences of a war. Stronger international support for a US invasion correlated with more positive attitudes toward Iraq, less fear about a possible war and lower levels of anti-Americanism.

Exploring Professionalism among Youth Work Practitioners in Malaysia: A Measurement Development Study

Despite the concerns about professionalism among youth work practitioners in Malaysia, valid and reliable instruments to measure the construct are lacking. This article reviews the psychometric development and initial exploration of a professionalism measure applicable for use with direct-service youth work practitioners. Results were based on a sampling of 813 government and non-government youth work practitioners throughout Malaysia. Exploratory factor analysis resulted in a 6-factor solution that was used as the basis for the subscales of the instrument. Comparison of means tests indicated higher mean scores according to academic qualification, age, income, gender, marital status and certification and years of involvement in youth work. Limitations and recommendations for further development of the professionalism scale are discussed.

Youth hedonistic behaviour: moderating role of peer attachment on the effect of religiosity and worldview

This study was carried out on the moderating effect of peer attachment on the relationships between religiosity and worldview, and on how hedonistic behaviour among Malaysian undergraduate students is shaped by such influences. With regard to peer attachment, the study focused on the influences of communication, trust and alienation among youth. Bronfenbrenners theory of human ecology and Armsden and Greenbergs attachment model were used as the framework. Drawing on a quantitative survey of 394 Malaysian university students (M age = 21.0, SD = 0.40), structural equation modelling and path analysis revealed a significant relationship between worldview and hedonistic behaviour. Peer attachment moderated the relationships between religiosity and religious worldview. The results further showed that the unique moderating effect of the lower level of attachment with peers is positively related to the hedonistic behaviour. Implications from the findings are discussed.

Predicting interethnic bridging social capital in youth ethnic-diversity engagement: the role of interethnic interaction and intercultural sensitivity

In this study, the authors examined the relationships between interethnic interaction, intercultural sensitivity and interethnic bridging social capital among students of different ethnicities at a Malaysian public university. Results of the regression analysis on data from 447 self-administered questionnaires revealed that while interethnic interaction and intercultural sensitivity are significantly correlated with interethnic bridging social capital at the bivariate level, only intercultural sensitivity has a direct relationship and significantly predicts interethnic bridging social capital. The finding underscores the role of intercultural sensitivity on interethnic bridging social capital development through ethnic diversity engagement.

Factors affecting Malaysian university students’ purchase intention in social networking sites

Abstract This study applied the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology 2 to examine acceptance and use of social networking sites in a marketing setting. This study uses 370 regular higher education students in Malaysia as respondents. Quantitative method is used. The findings revealed that performance expectancy (PE) and hedonic motivation were the main factors that influence users’ online purchase intention (PI) through social networking sites (SNSs) in Malaysia. As for moderating influences of gender and age, the results showed that gender significantly moderated purposed association between these four elements and the online PI, while the moderating effect of age was only recognized in PE. Findings of this research offer practitioners with better insights that would aid them in developing effective online marketing strategies to attract online purchasing users through SNSs.

Malaysian journalists’ perceptions on the role of the media

Abstract In this study, the authors examined the perception of Malaysian journalists with regard to the role of the media in Malaysian civil society. A total of 182 journalists participated in the study via self-administered survey questionnaires. Results revealed that Malaysian journalists have mixed views on the role of the media in the Malaysian media environment, which is highly regulated by the government. They are highly supportive of the role of the media as “interpreter”, “disseminator”, “analytical-objective”, “mobilizer” compared to the role of media as “watchdog”, in support of the argument that the countrys socio-political environment shapes media environment, which in turn influences how journalists conceive their roles. Education and training background and years in journalism have no significant influence on their views concerning the importance of the role of the media. Implications of these findings are discussed in this study.

A Review of New Media in Malaysia: Issues Affecting Society

Growth of new media plays a great role in society and political landscape in Malaysia. Thus, it is imperative to understand the main issues arising from development of new media, which affects the society. This paper therefore aims to explain how issues pertaining to new media has affected Malaysia. Three key issues will be discussed, namely, credibility, influence in the political landscape, and effectiveness in providing information to the public. Review of past literature and studies showed that credibility of online news is crucial whereby demand for reliable information is rising to compete with traditional media, which has been proven to be a credible source many decades ago. Moreover, in recent years, new media through online news has been influencing the political discourse in Malaysia with the help of many interesting features offered by that medium.

Adaptation and Psychometric Evaluation of a Core Competencies Measure for Malaysian Youth Workers

Core competencies in youth work refer to demonstrated capacities of quality performance that allow youth development workers to be resources for the young people, organizations and communities with whom they work. While a number of practice frameworks based on core competencies have been developed, few validated assessment measures exist to help identify professional development needs for youth workers. This article describes the adaptation and psychometric validation of a core competency assessment tool for youth work practitioners in Malaysia. A quantitative study was undertaken to validate an adapted core competency measure with a sample of 300 Malaysian youth workers. Psychometric validation included both internal consistency and construct, convergent and discriminant validity tests. Confirmatory factor analysis yielded 12 core competency sub-scales. Adequate internal consistency was achieved for each subscale along with the full measure. The findings support the validity and reliability of the core competency measure. Recommendations for application and further research are discussed.