Document Type : Science - Research (Islamic Banking)

Authors

• Ali Elyasi ¹
• Gholam Hasan Taghi Nataj Malekshah ²
• Mohammd Solgi ³

¹ M.A in Financial Management, Department of Islamic Financial Management, Faculty of Management and Economics, Imam Hussein University, Tehran, Iran

² Faculty Member, Faculty of Management, Faculty of Accounting and Financial Sciences, Tehran, Iran

³ Faculty Member, Islamic Financial Management Department, Faculty of Management, Imam Hussein University, Tehran, Iran

Abstract

1. Introduction and Objective
The loan has always been used as one of the financing tools to provide the resources needed by the borrower, while at the same time, the payment of loans in the form of qard al-hasana has been greatly encouraged and usury condemned. Therefore, attention to Islamic banking in Islamic countries is of utmost importance. Qard al-hasana banks are currently a symbol of the focus on Islamic banking in the country. Qard al-hasana banks are one of the types of banks integrated within the monetary system of Iran, operating like other banks based on the monetary and banking law, the law of banking operations without usury, and the directives issued by the Central Bank of the Islamic Republic of Iran. Qard al-hasana deposits, as one of the important mechanisms for operationalizing the usury-free banking system, have faced numerous challenges in recent years. One of the most significant of these challenges is the gradual reduction in the share of these deposits, and consequently, the decrease in the allocation of qard al-hasana facilities by banks. The low ratio of qard al-hasana deposits to total deposits underscores the importance of understanding the mental models of qard al-hasana stakeholders to address this issue. The success of Islamic banking and qard al-hasana banks is largely dependent on the community's view of investing in qard al-hasana banks, which makes identifying the mental models of stakeholders significant for creating a positive perspective in society. This study was conducted with the aim of identifying the mental models of qard al-hasana stakeholders at the Qard al-hasana Mehr Bank of Iran.
2. Methods and Materials
The research was applied in nature, and it used a mixed exploratory method. To identify discourse space phrases, semi-structured interviews (qualitative) were conducted, and for identifying patterns, factor analysis and the Q method (quantitative) were used. Additionally, the research was descriptive in nature and data collection was conducted through surveys, interviews, and questionnaires. Given that the goal of this research is to understand the mental models of stakeholders regarding Qarz al-Hasanah Mehr Iran, the Q method was employed. The statistical population of this research consisted of all stakeholders of Qarz al-Hasanah Mehr Iran in the city of Qom, from which 50 individuals were selected through availability for semi-structured interviews created by the researcher. Multiple sources such as articles, books, and websites were utilized in the library section, and interviews were used in the field section. The questionnaire used included 4 general questions and 12 questions to identify the components of the mental model, where the questions were elaborated to collect the opinions of stakeholders and their mental models. After collecting the interviews, the data were reread multiple times by the researcher, and then each sentence that appeared useful and relevant to the study was noted separately. In the next stage, the meaning of each sentence was extracted by the researcher, resulting in 45 propositions from the interview texts. Then, through further review and refinement of the concepts, efforts were made to ensure the concepts were sufficiently specific, distinct, and non-repetitive, leading to the extraction of 37 concepts from the interview texts, which were utilized in the Q option set.
3. Research Findings
The analysis of the results indicates that the stakeholders of Qarz-al-Hassaneh Mehr Iran had 7 different mental models, which are quality orientation, recommendation orientation, innovation, habit orientation, trust orientation, spiritual inclination, and perceived value. Only one of these mental models, namely spiritual inclination, aligned with the main goal of this bank, which is to expand Qarz-al-Hassaneh services. According to the results, only 10% of stakeholders
had a mental model of spiritual inclinations, which is a very low percentage and caused this model to rank last among the mental models. Based on the obtained results, perceived value was the most important factor driving stakeholders to open accounts at this bank. In fact, most depositors invest in order to earn points and receive Qarz-al-Hassaneh loans from this bank, which constitutes the mental model of 20% of stakeholders. Additionally, the second most common mental model was innovation. Innovation was one of the most important reasons for stakeholders' inclination towards Qarz-al-Hassaneh Mehr Bank. Innovation, along with quality orientation and trust orientation, formed the mental model of over 48% of the stakeholders of this bank.
4.  Discussion and Conclusion
The analysis of the results indicates that the stakeholders of Qarz-al-Hassaneh Mehr Iran had 7 different mental models, which are quality orientation, recommendation orientation, innovation, habit orientation, trust orientation, spiritual inclination, and perceived value. Only one of these mental models, namely spiritual inclination, aligned with the main goal of this bank, which is to expand Qarz-al-Hassaneh services. According to the results, only 10% of stakeholders had a mental model of spiritual inclinations, which is a very low percentage and caused this model to rank last among the mental models. Based on the obtained results, perceived value was the most important factor driving stakeholders to open accounts at this bank. In fact, most depositors invest in order to earn points and receive Qarz-al-Hassaneh loans from this bank, which constitutes the mental model of 20% of stakeholders. Additionally, the second most common mental model was innovation. Innovation was one of the most important reasons for stakeholders' inclination towards Qarz-al-Hassaneh Mehr Bank. Innovation, along with quality orientation and trust orientation, formed the mental model of over 48% of the stakeholders of this bank.
5. Acknowledgments and Funding
The authors express their sincere gratitude to all participants for their contributions to this research. This research received no financial support.
JEL Classification: C15, D81, G21.

Keywords

• Mental Models
• Bank Stakeholders
• Qarz-ol-Hasanah
• Qarz-ol-Hasanah Mehr Iran Bank
• Q method

Main Subjects

• Science - Research (Islamic Banking)