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Safa'a AbuJarour

Photo: Jan Kopankiewicz
Photo: Jan Kopankiewicz

As a motivated researcher in the area of Social Networks and IT Usage and Socialization, Safa’a AbuJarour has started her PhD studies with Prof. Hanna Krasnova at the chair of Business and Public Sector Information at the University of Potsdam since January 2016, and has started her role as a Research Associate at the same chair since March 2016.  Before moving to the University of Potsdam, Safa’a has spent two year, 2014-2016, as a Research Associate at the ESCP Europe Business School in Berlin in the context of the EU Project: Open Educational Ideas and Innovation www.idea-space.eu. Together with the international project team, she dealt with new practices, services and learning technologies for Open Education. Safa’a AbuJarour obtained her Master’s degree from Humboldt University of Berlin in 2012. In the context of her Master's Thesis about “Investigating the Usage of Facebook by Arab People”, she investigated the use of Facebook by Arab people and compared the results with the results of prior similar studies done for Germany and USA by her supervisors: Prof. Oliver Günther and Dr. Hanna Krasnova. Safa’a journey started at the Arab American University in Jenin – Palestine, where she received her B.Sc. in the major of Management Information Systems in 2005. During her Master’s studies, she enriched her professional experience, where she worked as a Support Engineer at Meltwater News and as a Research Lab Manager at the ESMT - European School of Management and Technology in Berlin. In her latter role, she was responsible, in the period 2010-2012, for managing the activities in the research lab, where they run studies focusing on the areas of leadership, social responsibility, European competitiveness, and technology management.

In her current research topic on “The Role of Technology in Alleviating the Current Refugees’ Crisis”, she has been applying scientific research methods to the use of Social Networks by the refugees in Germany and how they use IT to survive their dangerous and long journey to Europe, in addition to increase their chances of getting integrated into the new society. In particular, her research evolves around the use of smartphones and Social Networks by refugees with the goal of utilizing them to get them integrated into the new hosting societies.

During her voluntary engagement with the refugees in Berlin, she created a Facebook group and then a website, place4refugees.de, that serves the needs of the volunteers and the refugees. During the previous months, she has been gathering many insights about how the refugees use their smartphones and Social Networks to deal with the new situation in Germany using qualitative research methods.

Safa’a believes that IT can play a crucial role in the integration process of the refugees, and she believes that the value of science and research is tackling current issues and coming up with innovative solutions to them following scientific methods. And this fits exactly to her background as a member of the German society with immigration background, who would like to bridge the gap between the two cultures and to employ research to come up with a scientific approach to interconnect the newcomers and German society and support the integration process.

Links

Research Interest and Expertise

  • Working from Home and the Future of Work 
  • Digitalization and Digital Work
  • Digital Learning/Education and Homeschooling during COVID-19
  • Digital Integration: The Use of Technology/ICT by Refugees and Migrants 
  • Information and Communication Technology for Development (ICT4D)
  • Social Inclusion/exclusion through ICT
  • Social Media Use and Research
  • Social Media Marketing/Social Media Campaigns
  • E-Learning and Open Education
  • Cultural Differences in the Digital Age
  • Grounded Theory and Qualitative Research Methods

Media Coverage

List of Publications

Journals

2021

  • Ajjan, H., AbuJarour, S., Fedorowicz, J., and Owens, D. “Work From Home Attitude and its Influence on Job Productivity During COVID19.” Information Technology & People. (R&R).
  • AbuJarour, S. (Forthcoming). “Integration Through Education: Using ICT in Education to Promote the Social Inclusion of Refugees in Germany.” Journal of Information Systems Education (JISE). (In Press).
  • AbuJarour, S., Ajjan, H., Fedorowicz, J., and Owens, D. (2021). “How Working From Home During COVID-19 Affects Academic Productivity.” Communications of the Association for Information Systems (CAIS). Volume 48, pp. 55-64. https://doi.org/10.17705/1CAIS.04808.
  • AbuJarour, S., Ajjan, H., Fedorowicz, J., and Köster, A. (2021). “ICT Support for Refugees and Undocumented Immigrants.” Communications of the Association for Information Systems (CAIS). Volume 48, pp. 456-475. https://doi.org/10.17705/1CAIS.04840.

2019

  • AbuJarour, S., Wiesche, M., Díaz Andrade, A., Fedorowicz, J., Krasnova, H., Olbrich, S., Tan, C.-W., Urquhart, C., Venkatesh, V. (2019). “ICT-Enabled Refugee Integration: A Research Agenda.” Communications of the Association for Information Systems (CAIS). Volume 44, pp. 874-891. https://doi.org/10.17705/1CAIS.04440.

Conference Proceedings

2021

  • Sabie, D., Talhouk, R., Dedeoglu, C. E., Maitland, C., Wulf, V., Yaf, E., Sabie, S., Almohamed, A., Abujarour, S., Le Louvier, K., Hussain, F., and Ahmed, S. I. (2021). “Migration and Mobility in HCI: Rethinking Boundaries, Methods, and Impact.” In CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems Extended Abstracts (CHI ’21 Extended Abstracts), May 8–13, 2021, Yokohama, Japan. ACM, New York, NY, USA, 6 pages. https://doi.org/10.1145/3411763.3441352. 
  • AbuJarour, S., Jaghjougha, L., and AbuJarour, M. (2021). “The Impact of Digitizing Social Networks on Refugee Decision Making – The Journey to Germany.” International Conference on Wirtschaftsinformatik (WI 2021), Duisburg-Essen, Germany.
  • AbuJarour, S., Köster, A., Krasnova, H., and Wiesche, M. (2021). “Technology as a Source of Power: Exploring How ICT Use Contributes to the Social Inclusion of Refugees in Germany.” Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences (HICSS 2021), Hawaii, USA.

2020

  • AbuJarour, S. and AbuJarour, M. (2020). “How Refugees Perceive Digital Learning Systems During the COVID-19 Lockdown.” MENA Chapter of Information Systems (MENACIS 2020), Morocco.
  • Ajjan, H., AbuJarour, S., Fedorowicz, J., and Owens, D. (2020). “Working from Home During the COVID-19 Crisis: A Closer Look at Gender Differences.” International Conference on Information Systems (ICIS 2020) at the AISWN International Research Workshop on Women, IS and Grand Challenges, India.
  • AbuJarour, S. (2020). “Social Inclusion of Refugees Through Digital Learning: Means, Needs, and Goals.” Pacific Asia Conference on Information Systems (PACIS2020), Dubai, UAE.
  • AbuJarour, S. and AbuJarour, M. (2020). “Connecting Human Potentials and Opportunities Through Technology: A Digital Integration Use Case.” Pacific Asia Conference on Information Systems (PACIS2020), Dubai, UAE.

2019

  • AbuJarour, S., Ajjan, H., Fedorowicz, J., Köster, A. (2019) "Turning the Dark Side of Social Media Bright! The Case of Immigration in the USA and Germany", Panel, 25th Americas Conference on Information Systems (AMCIS), Cancun, 2019.
  • AbuJarour, S., and Rabaiah, A. (2019) “Opening the Black-Box of Facebook Use in Palestine: An Empirical Study.” In the 3rd AFU International Conference: Towards Advanced Scientific Knowledge (TASK2019) in Business Sciences, Dubai, UAE.
  • AbuJarour, S. (2019) “Smartphone App Adoption at Home and on the Move: The Case of Syrians.” In the 3rd AFU International Conference: Towards Advanced Scientific Knowledge (TASK2019) in Business Sciences, Dubai, UAE.
  • AbuJarour, S., Bergert, C., Gundlach, J., Köster, A., Krasnova, H. (2019) "Your Home Screen is Worth a Thousand Words”: Investigating the Prevalence of Smartphone Apps among Refugees in Germany", 25th Americas Conference on Information Systems (AMCIS), Cancun, 2019.

2018

  • AbuJarour, S. (2018) Digital Integration: The Role of ICT in Social Inclusion of Refugees in Germany, Doctoral Consortium of the Twenty-Sixth European Conference on Information Systems (ECIS2018), Portsmouth, UK, 2018
  • AbuJarour, S., Krasnova, H. (2018) E-Learning as a Means of Social Inclusion: The Case of Syrian Refugees in Germany, Proceedings of the Americas Conference on Information Systems (AMCIS 2018), New Orleans, LA, August 16-18, 2018
  • AbuJarour, S., Krasnova, H., Hoffmeier, F. (2018) ICT as an Enabler: Understanding the Role of Online Communication in the Social Inclusion of Syrian Refugees in Germany, Twenty-Sixth European Conference on Information Systems (ECIS2018), Portsmouth, UK, 2018

2017

    • AbuJarour, S., Krasnova, H. (2017) “Understanding the Role of ICTs in Promoting Social Inclusion: The Case of Syrian Refugees in Germany”, European Conference on Information Systems (ECIS 2017), Guimarães, Portugal.
    • AbuJarour, S., Krasnova, H., Díaz Andrade, A., Olbrich, S., Tan, C.-W., Urquhart, C., Wiesche, M. (2017) "Empowering Refugees with Technology: Best Practices and Research Agenda”, Panel Proposal, European Conference on Information Systems (ECIS 2017), Guimarães, Portugal.

    2016

    • AbuJarour, S. Krasnova, H., Wenninger, H., Fedorowicz, J., Tan, C.-W., Urquhart, C., Venkatesh, V., (2016) “Leveraging Technology for Refugee Integration: How Can We Help?”, Panel Proposal, International Conference on Information Systems (ICIS 2016), Dublin, Ireland.

    2015

    • AbuJarour, S., Pawlowski, J., Bick M., Bagucanskyte, M., Frankenberg, A., Hudak, R., Makropoulos, C., Pappa, D., Pitsilis, V., Pirkkalainen, H., Tannhauser, A. C., Trepule, E., Vidalis, A. and Volungeviciene, A. (2015). Idea-Space: A Use Case of Collaborative Course Development in Higher Education. In Proceedings Wissensgemeinschaften 2015, Dresden: TUDpress, ISBN: 978-3-95908-010-1, S. 149-156
    • AbuJarour, S., Pirkkalainen, H., Pawlowski, J., Bick, M., Bagucanskyte, M., Frankenberg, A., Hudak, R., Makropoulos, C., Pappa, D., Pitsilis, V., Tannhauser, A., Trepule, E., Vidalis, A. and Volungeviciene, A. (2015). Design Principles for Collaboration Platforms for Open Education. In Proceedings of the 7th International Conference on Computer Supported Education, ISBN 978-989-758-107-6, pages 349-359. DOI: 10.5220/0005451003490359

    2014

    • AbuJarour, S., Bick, M., Pawlowski, J., Volungeviciene, A., Trepule, E., Bagucanskyte, M., Pirkkalainen, H., Ehlers, U. D., Hudak, R., Makropoulos, C., Pappa, D., Pitsilis, V., Vidalis, A. and Tannhauser, A. C. (2014). Enhancing the Experience of Online Users of Open Education. In Web and Open Access to Learning (ICWOAL), 2014 International Conference on, Dubai, pp. 1-6. DOI: 10.1109/ICWOAL.2014.7009217

    Other

    2016

    2012

    • AbuJarour, S. (2012) "Investigating the Use of Facebook by Arab People: An Empirical Approach", Master's Thesis, Humbold University of Berlin. Supervisors: Prof. Dr. Oliver Guenther, Prof. Dr. Hanna Krasnova.

    Honors and Awards

    • Winner of the AIS Doctoral Student Service Award, 2019 (https://aisnet.org/page/DocServiceAward)
    • Nominated for the AIS Early Career Award, 2019
    • Featured in the Business Informatics Info Magazine (WI | Info) https://lswi.de/assets/downloads/wi-info/Wi-info_29_DE_web.pdf (in German, page 5)
    • Selected as “PhD Representative at the AIS Women’s Network College” (2019-2021)  – Association of Information Systems
    • Featured in Potsdam University Magazine “Portal” for my work on “Integration 4.0” and the social inclusion of refugees in Germany
    • Selected Jury-Member of the Selection Committee for the Anawati Innovation Award 2017 at the Georges Anawati Foundation

    Presentations and Transfer

    • Presentation at the Weizenbaum Institute (The German Internet Institute) in Berlin during an International Journalist Delegation on the topic: Digital Integration in the Context of Migration.
    • Moderator and speaker of the panel discussion at the American Conference of Information Systems in Cancun, Mexico. Topic: Turning the Dark Side of Social Media Bright! The Case of Immigration in the USA and Germany.
    • Selected speaker at the Digital Future Summit 2019 at the ESMT Berlin on the topic: Societal Digital Integration: The Case of Refugees.
    • A keynote presentation on the topic “Digital Integration and ICT Use by Refugees in Germany” at the Workshop “Social Contact Metaketa”, organized by the Social Science Center-WZB Berlin
    • Guest talk about “Digital Integration” at a trans-disciplinary workshop organized by the Volksbühne Berlin
    • Interview at the Live Debate “Integration 4.0” by the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung in Berlin
    • Panelist at the panel discussion “Leveraging Technology for Refugee Integration: How Can We Help?” at the International Conference of Information Systems 2016 in Dublin, Ireland
    • Breakthrough “Breaking the Wall of Social Exclusion for Refugees” at the Falling Walls Lab organized by the annual science event Falling Walls in Berlin
    • Radio-Interview at the WDR - COSMO Al-Saut Al-Arabi on the Homeschooling of Refugees in Germany 
    • Invited speaker at the Digital Women Forum in Germany on Digital Learning in the Time of COVID-19

    Services for the Research Community

    ​​​​​​Conference Co-Chair

    • At the MENA Conference of Information Systems (MENACIS 2021) in Morocco

    Track Chair

    • At the European Conference on Information Systems (ECIS 2022) in Timișoara, Romania. Title: Digitization of Education, Private Industries, and Society
    • At the European Conference on Information Systems (ECIS 2021) in Marrakech, Morocco. Title: Digitization of Education, Private Industries, and Society
    • At the European Conference on Information Systems (ECIS 2020) in Marrakech, Morocco. Title: Digital Inclusion in Education, Work, and Society

    Mini-Track Chair

    • At the Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences (HICSS 2022) in Hawaii, USA. Title: Technological, Educational, and Organizational Impacts of Pandemics
    • At the American Conference on Information Systems (AMCIS 2021) in Montréal, Canada. Title: Towards an Inclusive Education
    • At the American Conference on Information Systems (AMCIS 2021) in Montréal, Canada. Title: Digital Learning Practices, Especially During COVID-19 

    Workshop Organizer 

    • At the Computer-Human Interaction Conference (CHI 2021) in Yokohama, Japan. Title: Migration and Mobility: Rethinking Boundaries, Methods, and Impact

    Publicity Chair

    • At 15th International Business Informatics Congress (WI 2020) in Potsdam, Germany

    Local Organizer

    • At the EduCamp-2015 conference on innovative topics on education, technology-enhanced learning, MOOCs, and open educational resources (EduCamp 2015) in Berlin, Germany

    Associate Editor

    • At the International Conference on Wirtschaftsinformatik (WI 2022) in Nürnberg, Germany
    • At the Pacific Asia Conference on Information Systems (PACIS 2020) in Dubai, UAE

    Program Committee Member

    • At the International Conference on Social Implications of Computers in Developing Countries (IFIP 94 2021) in Lima, Peru
    • At the International Conference on Advances in Computation, Communications and Services (ACCSE 2020) in Lisbon, Portugal
    • At the International Conference on Social Media Technologies, Communication, and Informatics (SOTICS 2019) in Valencia, Spain
    • At the International Conference: Towards Advanced Scientific Knowledge (TASK3-2019) in Business Sciences in Dubai, UAE
    • At the International Conference on Advances in Computation, Communications and Services (ACCSE 2019) in Nice, France

    Reviewer

    • Journals: ISJ, IT&P, CAIS, BISE, Journal of Information Systems Education, International Migration Journal, Electronic Journal of Information Systems in Developing Countries, International Journal of Information Systems and Project Management, Global Perspectives, American Behavioral Scientist Journal, Refuge: Canada’s Journal on Refugees
    • Conferences: ICIS, ECIS, PACIS, AMCIS, HICSS, IFIP, WI, MKWI, ACCSE, SOTICS, TASK3, MENACIS, ACM CHI

    Extra Roles and Memberships

    Executive Board Member

    • Executive Board Member and Communication Chair of the AIS Women’s Network College (AIS WN) (2021-2023)
    • Executive Board Member and Secretary of the AIS Special Interest Group of Social Inclusion (SIG SI) (2021-2023)
    • Executive Board Member and PhD Representative of the AIS Women’s Network College (AIS WN) (2019-2021)
    • Member of the NSF ADVANCE Grant: Increasing the Participation and AdvanCemenT of Women in Information Technology (ImPACT IT) - Best Practices Group (2020-2022)

    At the University of Potsdam – Faculty of Economics and Social Sciences

    • Representative member at the Faculty Council
    • Representative member at the PhD Examination Committee
    • Deputy member at the Student Commission
    • Member of the Professorship Selection Committee for Business Informatics

    Memberships:

    • The German Academic Association of Business Research (VHB)
    • Association for Information Systems (AIS)
    • AIS Chapter: Germany
    • AIS Chapter: Middle East and North Africa (MENA)
    • AIS College: AIS Women’s Network
    • AIS College: College of Academic Leadership
    • AIS College: Doctoral Student College
    • AIS SIG: Changing Nature of Work (SIG CNoW)
    • AIS SIG: Grounded Theory Methodology (SIG GTM)
    • AIS SIG: Social Inclusion (SIG SI)
    • AIS SIG: Education (SIG ED)
    • Association for Computing Machinery (ACM)

    Volunteer Work

    Since 2015, founder and chairwoman of the non-profit organization “Place4Refugees e.V.” in Berlin. 

    Website: