Communicative ecology of hajj pilgrims and its impact on perceived satisfaction with the services provided by the Saudi government

Fazal Rahim Khan

Abstract

This study has examined the problems’ related to communicative ecology of pilgrim sojourners in Saudi Arabia and its impact on the levels of their satisfaction with the services provided in a probability sample of 439 Pakistani pilgrims. The sojourners’ communication ecology in problem situations comprises eleven communication sources. Of these, contacts with family/friends and co-pilgrims made top of the list followed by such community organization sources like information counters, tour operators, and the Pakistani Hajj mission officials. The mediated sources of contacts with the ethnic newspaper (the Urdu language newspaper), and the mainstream Saudi mass media ranked the 3rd and the 4th. The Internet and the digital billboards were each cited in less than 10 percent of the responses. Stepwise multiple regressions revealed that the most important sources of impact on satisfaction were: contact with community organizations, family/friends and co-pilgrims, the ethnic newspaper, and the digital screens. Implications of the impact on satisfaction are discussed for communicating with the pilgrims.

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