URBAN STUDIES
Year:2013 | Volume:3 | Issue:7|Papers Count:7

Mass media have assumed great importance in the lives of contemporary human so much so that it is impossible to deny their influence. All social groups compete to get ever more access to this means of power. One area in which the media can have enormous impact, due to their widespread usage, is the area of fear of crime. Therefore, the present paper, using a survey design, aims to assess the influence of the media on the fear of crime in the city of Karaj. The research population consisted of all Karaji residents who were above 18 years of age, of which 405 individuals were chosen using a multi-stage cluster sampling design. A questionnaire was used to collect the necessary data. The results showed that there was a direct and positive relation fear of crime and watching domestic television (r=0.105), watching foreign television channels (r=0.111), and reading printed media (r=0.213). It was also shown that Internet usage and listening to domestic radio was not statistically related to fear of crime. Of the different variables, reading printed media had the largest impact (Beta=0.182) on fear of crime.

The present study assesses the level of satisfaction of migrants’ families to the city of Tehran. It aims to study the effects of social, cultural, life-facility, and attitudinal factors on their levels of satisfaction. In this regard, functional and classical theories of migration were utilized as the theoretical framework of the study. The research population consisted of families who had migrated to Tehran of which 200 migrant families residing in districts three, six, and twelve who had children above ten years of age were studied. Needed data were collected via a questionnaire which had face validity and its reliability was assessed via Cronbach’s Alpha. Pearson correlation coefficients and structural equation modeling were used to analyze the data. The results showed that there was a statistically significant relation between satisfaction of migration and usage of life-facilities (r=0.289) and also between satisfaction of migration and the status of children (r=0.235), meaning that to the extent that migrants could make use of urban facilities and to the extent that the situation of their children had improved, their satisfaction of their decision to come to Tehran was higher.

Urban areas have assumed enormous importance in recent years and are increasingly influencing the lives of many people. The issue of how living in cities affects the social relations of their residents has been an important sociological issue for many years. This paper aims to present a comparative study of social relations in urban and rural areas to assess the impact of urbanization on social relations. The theories of Louis Wirth, Herbert Gans, and Claud Fischer have provided the theoretical framework of the study. This is a survey research that has used questionnaires to collect needed data. The research population consisted of all 20-60 year-old residents of the province of Semirom of which 385 individuals of two cities and ten villages were selected as the sample via quota sampling. The dependent variable was measured through relationships with the family, with friends, with neighbors, and with relatives. The research instrument had face validity and the Cronbach’s coefficient for reliability was 0.75. Pearson correlation coefficient, one-way analysis of variance, and the t-test were used to test relationships between variables. The results showed that the level social relations was at the medium level (3.22 of 5), social trust was, also at the medium level (3.29 of 5), religious beliefs was above medium (3.63 of 5), and socio-economic status was below the medium level (2.68 of 5). Statistical tests showed no significant associations between the place of residence and social relations. Gender also was not significantly related to social relations. Marital status, education, and religiosity were significantly related to social relation.

The concept of ecological footprint, as a basis for measuring the difference between that which the nature offers us to use and that which we actually use in our lives, has been recognized as a new planning criterion in the assessment of individual and collective behaviors for the preservation of the environment. Controlling the amount and type of consumption can reduce the level of ecological footprint. This, of course, necessitates being knowledgeable in this area. The research population of this study consists of all Tabrizi residents who were between the ages of 15 and 75, of which, using a cluster sampling technique, 443 individuals were selected as the sample. Questionnaires and personal interviews were used to collect the necessary data. Factor analysis and the computation of KMO were used to assess the validity of the research instrument and Cronbach’s AlPha was use for reliability. The results showed that the level of ecological knowledge in residents is relatively low and therefore their ecological footprint is relatively high and the relationship between the two is statistically significant.

In the context of increasing international attention to the environment and life quality issues, the achievement of social stability in localities and neighborhoods becomes especially important. The localities, as socio-physical bases of a society can play an important role in social stability. The aim of this study was to investigate the factor affecting social stability in old and new neighborhoods in the city of Yazd. Research methodology in this study is survey and the data was collected with questionnaires. The research population consisted of all the residents of the city of yazd, of which on the basis of Cochran formula 400 individuals were chosen as sample via multi-step sampling. At first cluster sampling was used to select neighborhoods and then the individuals were selected through systematic sampling. Data analysis was done using the SPSS software. The research instrument had face validity and its reliability was assessed by Cronbach alpha. The results show that old neighborhoods had lower stability than the newer neighborhoods. the results of regression analysis indicated that of the eight independent variables that were entered into the regression equation, in the old quarters, four variables (satisfaction with the neighborhood, satisfaction with housing, social participation, and age) were significantly related to social sustainability, whereas in the new quarters, two variables (satisfaction with the neighborhood, satisfaction with housing,) were significant in explaining social sustainability.

Nowadays, social capital plays a more important role in human societies than physical and human capitals and the networks of collective relations functions as a cohesive force between people and organizations. Social development, cultural progress and economic growth become almost impossible without the existence of social capital. It appears that understanding the various dimensions of organizational performance of the municipality can enhance the promotion of social capital. In this regards, the present study aims to explain the effects of organizational performance of the municipality on residents’ levels of social capital in Tehran’s 15th district. Therefore, the research population consists of all the residents of that district, of which 447 individuals were chosen as the sample. A questionnaire was used to collect the necessary data. Correlation coefficients and structural equation modeling were used to analyze the data. The results showed that, in line with the main hypothesis of the paper, the organizational performance of the municipality does in fact have positive effects on residents’ levels of social capital. The results of structural equation modeling indicated that “socio-cultural performance”, “transportation and traffic performance”, “urban services performance”, and “technical-construction performance” had, respectively, the most impact on social capital. In the area of social capital, “internal trust”, “generalized trust”, “participation in voluntary activities”, “mutual social participation”, and “the feeling of identity” were of the most significance.

City as the urban context of human biology requires certain standards that can briefly be called quality of life standards. Quality of life is a multifaceted and complex concept that has been pondered about by social scientists including urban scholars. This paper aims to compare different areas of the city of Tabriz with regards to quality of life indices. Therefore, four neighborhoods (two in rural areas and two in newly designed areas) were compared. The research population included all adult individuals of these four neighborhoods.130 individuals were chosen from each of these neighborhoods through simple random sampling. One-way ANOVA and factor analysis were used to analyze the data. The results showed that the level of social satisfaction was higher in rural neighborhoods (13.61 percent) than it was in newly designed neighborhoods (12.99 percent), but spatial satisfaction and ecological dissatisfaction in newly designed neighborhoods (38.18 and 11.58 percent respectively) were higher than that in rural neighborhoods (spatial satisfaction=33.48 percent, and ecological dissatisfaction=18.37 percent). Factor analysis results showed that satisfaction with life facilities and the environment were higher in rural neighborhoods and that satisfaction with life facilities and with space were higher among the residents of newly designed areas.