The Public Sector as the Employer of Choice among Youth in Egypt: The Relevance of Public Service Motivation Theory

Young people in Egypt want to work in the public sector, even if they get less pay there than at the private sector. This article seeks to explain the attractiveness of public-sector jobs to this group, embedding this experience within the literature and theorization on public service motivation (PSM) and discussing its relevance. Issues of trust, respect, and social status are reflected in the discourse of interviewed youth about this job preference. A generation-held and culturally-ingrained appreciation among the educated to work in the public sector also contributes to this sector preference. Qualitative and quantitative data also show that extrinsic benefits of job security and stability are also pivotal to this preference. The analysis in the article suggests a holistic reading of motivational factors to join the public sector in contexts of job scarcity and labor surplus.     

The Epistle of Ya'qu¯b ibn Isha¯q al-Kindi¯ on the Device for Dispelling Sorrows

Although less technical philosophically than many of al-Kindi¯'s known treatises, this Epistle remains basic for understanding the spirit that underlies his thinking. Socratic, yet very Kindian in spirit, this Epistle displays its author's tendency to harmonize Greek philosophy and Islam, particularly as this relates to ethics, and his belief in man's free will and reason. To him, sorrows may be caused either by our own actions or by the actions of others. It is up to us to choose to do or not to do what saddens us. Through reason we can eliminate some of the causes of sorrow when we perceive the intellectual world, and derive from it things desired. Though this Epistle has a significant share of the linguistic and stylistic complexities characteristic of al-Kindi¯'s writing, it is hoped that the present translation will facilitate its comprehension. Its title in Arabic is Risa¯ la Ya'qub b. Isha¯ q al-Kindi¯Fi¯al-Hi¯la li-Daf' al-Ahza¯n.