Islamic Entrepreneurship

Perceived differences between Western and Islamic values prompt Kayed (Arab American U., Palestine) and Hassan (U. of New Orleans, US) to explore the possibility of a specifically Islamic entrepreneurship that is free of interest, greed, speculation, exploitation, and a singular focus on the profit motive, and therefore in harmony with Islamic religious tenets on economic activity. Writing with a specific focus on the Saudi Arabian rentier-state context, they seek to establish a systematic understanding of how Islamic entrepreneurship would differ from Western entrepreneurship, examine Saudi perceptions of the different principles of Western and Islamic entrepreneurship and how that impacts entrepreneurship activity in Saudi Arabia, explore the attitudes and commitment towards Islamic entrepreneurship among Saudi policy-makers, consider current realities of entrepreneurship in Saudi Arabia, and to explore the implications of Islamic entrepreneurship for development theory and development studies in general. Annotation c2012 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

Rasem N. Kayed is an Assistant Professor at the Arab American University, Palestine. He has over 20 years experience both in the commercial and the academic world in the USA, New Zealand, Saudi Arabia and Palestine. M. Kabir Hassan is a Professor at the University of New Orleans, USA. He is editor of the Journal of Islamic Economics, Banking and Finance, and his publications include (as co-editor) Handbook of Islamic Banking and Islamic Finance, and Islamic Capital Market: Products and Strategies.