I'm an expat currently living in Amman.
The Jordanian leadership is in a very tough position. They need to simultaneously support U.S. and their own security interests, they need to appeal to the international community to deal with the enormous number of refugees (1 million +), and at the same time they need to appeal to the Islamist tribes that basically keep the King in power.
I could practically write a book about it, but to boil it down: The King is bombing ISIS while his government and society simultaneously support harsh Islamic and antidemocratic rules and norms.
Jordan has very little free speech and society mostly operates on a system where there is little economic mobility. The economy is not doing well and the media is blaming the million Syrian refugees rather than their own policies.
On top of that, Jordan is a country that is currently bombing ISIS for being extremist. Yet, in 95% of rapes that went to court last year, the victim ended up marrying her attacker(source). Being gay here often means that you need to flee the country. Women are almost entirely excluded from the work force.
Speaking of bombing ISIS, Jordan is actually the country that produces the most Al Qaeda and ISIS fighters per capita in the world (source). The great irony is that these bombings in retaliation against ISIS are almost certainly killing Jordanians who are just on the wrong side of the conflict.
The thing is, a lot of these societal issues are not a result of government policy, but they are just cultural norms. The King, who grew up in the U.S., probably wants to nudge his country in a more progressive direction, but doing so too vigorously would endanger support of his monarchy.
Despite all of this, Jordanians are generally pretty supportive of the monarchy, but they have to say that because bad mouthing the King will get you thrown in prison.
EDIT: Last year the government cancelled Halloween celebrations and threatened to arrest anyone wearing a costume. The Atlantic has a good write up on why the government did this, and how it plays into the current political situation in Jordan.
EDIT 2: I thought this post on /r/jordan was pretty revealing. Despite the governments best efforts to try and prevent radicalization, it's an uphill battle.
EDIT 3: I get the feeling that this post is going to get some traction. I would like to add that there is a lot I like about living in Jordan, despite the very difficult situation it is in. People in general are extremely hospitable and friendly. Crime is actually quite low, so its a very safe country to travel in. The food is also wonderful. There are a ton of nice things to see in Jordan. Petra and Wadi Rum in particular are mind blowing. The views near the Dead Sea and into the valleys are great. It's definitely worth visiting.
EDIT 4: I heard fighter jets about 2 hours ago. I thought it might have been just a show of support like the fly-by I heard yesterday. Nope. News reports are now saying they were hitting ISIS targets in Syria. There has definitely been a big shift in public opinion the last few days since the Jordanian pilot was gruesomely killed. Sure, the King is mostly doing a PR move here, but it's in a bid build local support for more airstrikes against ISIS. It will hopefully also slow the tide of Jordanian fighters heading to Iraq and Syria.
