Institutional Instability and Methodological Stagnation in National Social Observatories: Evidence from the Omani Social Observatory

Kaltham Almaqbali; Ahmed Shehata; Faten Hamad

doi:10.48161/qaj.v6n3a2604

Authors

Kalthoom Hamood Al Maqbali Department of Information Studies, College of Arts and Social Sciences, Sultan Qaboos University, Muscat 311, Oman. https://orcid.org/0009-0000-6872-5030
Ahmed Shehata Department of Information Studies, College of Arts and Social Sciences, Sultan Qaboos University, Muscat 311, Oman. https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5447-5867
Faten Hamad Department of Information Studies, College of Arts and Social Sciences, Sultan Qaboos University, Muscat 311, Oman. https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7548-0529

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.48161/qaj.v6n3a2604

Keywords:

Social observatory, Institutional governance, Evidence-informed policymaking, Indicator systems, Data governance, Oman vision 2040, Qualitative research, Gulf cooperation council.

Abstract

Social observatories are widely recognized as critical infrastructure for evidence-based policymaking, yet research on their institutional sustainability and methodological adaptability remains limited. This study examines why the Omani Social Observatory, established in 2014 under the Scientific Research Council with a 138-indicator framework, has remained largely inactive and methodologically stagnant despite substantial national change. Using a qualitative interpretivist case study design, the study employs semi-structured interviews with ten purposively sampled founding experts and reflexive thematic analysis through hybrid inductive-deductive coding in MAXQDA. Six themes emerged: institutional instability and ownership fragmentation; funding insecurity and weak human-resource capacity; indicator obsolescence and methodological rigidity; data fragmentation and access barriers; mutually reinforcing institutional-methodological constraints; and expert recommendations for reform. Findings reveal that the Observatory’s ineffectiveness stems from persistent governance failure rather than initial technical limitations. The study proposes a reform framework aligned with Oman Vision 2040 and the Sustainable Development Goals.

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