URBAN STUDIES
Year:2012 | Volume:2 | Issue:4|Papers Count:8

Migration in itself is not a social problem but it is an action that occurs in social space, but when and where it becomes problematic, it is because of the conditions in which this social action takes place and/or also because there is a disharmony between social action and social space. In this research the trend in migration in Iran during the last few decades will be studied. Theoretical framework of this research is the paradigm of the link between agency and structure. Drawing on the ideas of Bourdieu with regard to the relations between structure or field and agency or habitus, the out – migration of villagers from their birth places and the consequent problems of it on rural and urban spaces will be assessed. At the end, it is concluded that although Bourdieu's approach is an appropriate framework for such a research but for a comprehensive analysis of this issue, we need to get help from other perspectives too.

The aim of this study is to investigate students' level of knowledge about citizenship rights and their attitudes toward it in the city of Tehran. Drawing on the ideas of T.H. Marshal, Bryan S. Turner and Carl Kuhn, fourteen hypotheses were tested in this regard. This is a survey research and the research population consisted of all the students of the science and research branch of Islamic Azad University in the city of Tehran. The sample was drawn from undergraduate and graduate students of the college of Engineering and the college of Humanities and Social Sciences. The independent variables included level of education, field of study, places of birth and residence, gender, employment status, religion, and social-economic status. The dependent variables were knowledge of and attitude toward citizenship rights. The results showed that level of education and field of study were positively and significantly related to both knowledge of and attitude toward citizenship rights. Religion was significantly related to knowledge of citizenship rights but not to attitude towards it. Place of birth and place of residence were only significantly related to knowledge of citizenship rights, that is, there was a difference between those who were born and raised in Tehran, on the one hand, and those who were born in another city but had moved to Tehran to further their education. Gender, employment, and social and economic status were not significantly related to either knowledge of or attitude toward citizenship rights.

Studying the distribution of social activities in time and space is of fundamental importance for the analysis of human interactions and understanding basic aspects of social life. Any interaction has a distinctive situation (special place) and a special range of time. All daily behaviors and activities can be classified on the basis of the variables of time and place. The dispersion of these behaviors and activities shows the movement and mobility of society’s members. These movements may lead to multiple difficulties, taking into account the increasing process of urbanization and the formation of mass populations in a specific territory. Traffic problems are created by such a context. Traffic problems in city life are created by an imbalance between and the inappropriate relationship between the three elements of human, nature, and technology. Drawing on some sociological perspectives and views on traffic problems, this article is going to study social dimensions of this social issue. First we study social aspects of traffic problems and then by the use of a field study in an Iranian metropolis, namely Mashad, then go on to study people's attitudes towards this issue. Base on Cochran formula, a sample of 600 individuals were randomly selected for this study. The results showed that people are aware of traffic problems, consider it to be an important issue, and are ready to pay some of the necessary ‘price’ to solve it. Of the three components (humans, technology, and nature) involved in traffic problems, people consider the human element as the most important one.

This research aims to study some social and personal factors that affect women’s feeling of safety in public places in the city of Bandar Abbas. The research population included all the women of Bandar abbas in the age range of 15-65. This study was of descriptive-survey one which used a questionnaire containing 5-item Likert type questions. A sample of 384 people was obtained by using Cochran method. Data analysis was done utilizing SPSS software along with 2-variable analysis tests, Pearson correlation test, and regression test. The results showed there was a relationship between feelings of safety and awareness of crime and news (R2=20), public trust (R2=29), organizational trust (R2=33), views about police performance (R2=36), type of clothing (R2=38), city environment (R2=40), and the experience of being victimized (R2=42). Except for the experience of being victimized, the results showed a significant relation among other mentioned variables and safety feeling. Altogether, 42% of feeling of safety (dependant variable) was correlated with independent variables and the rest was related to other factors.

Cultural development is one of the basic elements of the process of development as it lays the appropriate grounds for development. Cultural development is cause and effect of development and the main goal in cultural development is the growth of humanity. Today one of the most controversial arguments particularly in developing countries, is the question of culture and urban development and in such a situation, development is considered to be a multi-dimensional phenomenon, seeking better humanistic material and non material life and culture is a foundation of the intellectual life of the society. The interaction between these two may attribute to the growth of human abilities. In this essay, after the presentation of various theories and approaches of cultural development, urban cultural development will be explicated in detail, and finally on the basis of the two approaches of smart thinking and building a cultural capacity for urban cultural development, an indigenized model is presented.

Of the major changes that have occurred in Iran in recent years, urbanization has been the most prominent and dominant one. Fast-paced social and economic changes, and the rapid urbanization that they have brought, has caused massive migrations toward big cities which have not been able to provide for all the needs and demands of these newcomers. Therefore, many of these migrants have been attracted to shanty towns which are really sub-standard in terms of the facilities that they have. Hence efforts should be made to find solutions to the special problems that the residents of these places have. Isfahan as the third megalopolis of the country confronts some these problems. Therefore, the present research focuses on the residents of district 14 which houses a considerable number of these migrants in dilapidated residences. This is a survey research which uses a questionnaire to gather needed data. The research population consisted of all the residents of district 14 of which, using Cochran formula, 350 individuals were selected as the sample. Excel and SPSS software were used to process the data. Research results showed that access to facilities and services (r= 0.61), and empowerment and participation of residents (r= 0.69) were significantly related to tendency toward urban rehabilitation.

This paper aims to study social factors that influence law abiding behavior of Ardebili residents. The ideas of Merton, Luedtke and Schwartz, Sutherland and Crassey, and the theory of needs were used as the theoretical framework of this study. This is a correlation study that utilized a 31-items questionnaire to collect needed data from a 383-individual sample that was selected using a stratified random sampling technique. Conformity to the law was the dependent variable and the independent variables were: age, gender, education, social status, individualism, the satisfaction of material needs, social surveillance, encouragement (or reward) and association with non-law abiding persons. The results showed 8.6 percent of the residents were low law-abiding, 55.1 percent were medium law-abiding, and 36.3 percent were high law-abiding. Of the independent variables, individualism, social surveillance, gender, and having the right means for achieving an end were significantly related to conformity to law.

This essay attempts to answer two basic questions: what is the status of citizens’ participation of urban affairs? and what are the social factors that affect participation of citizens in the management of urban affairs? To answer the first question, the participation of urban residents was studied from a subjective point of view. In this part, change of attitudes, beliefs and perspectives of people has been considered. To answering the second question, the actual behavior of participation in cultural and social areas was studied. This study is a survey research. The required data were collected through questionnaires. The research sample consisted of 1330 citizens of Tehran that were randomly selected. The results of this study showed that participation of citizens in management of urban affairs should be voluntary and goal oriented. Urban planners at first should emphasize on subjective participation and change the beliefs and attitudes of citizens. participatory behavior in urban planning should consist of two phases: the first phase should identify factors that influence citizens participation. During the second phase, an attempt should be made to encourage and maintain participation in projects that have been carried out. The encouragement of the participation of women, youth, the retired, and to determine the mechanisms of their participation in urban social – cultural activities, can enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of urban management.