University of Isfahan Journal of Applied Sociology 2008-5745 34 1 2023 03 21 Modeling the Factors Related to Investors’ Levels of Satisfaction with the Police: A Case Study of East Azerbaijan Province Modeling the Factors Related to Investors’ Levels of Satisfaction with the Police: A Case Study of East Azerbaijan Province 1 30 27238 10.22108/jas.2023.129668.2145 FA Kamal Koohi Associate Professor, Department of Social Sciences, Faculty of Law and Social Sciences, University of Tabriz, Tabriz, Iran Journal Article 2021 10 20 Introduction One of the main factors of the development of a society is its economic elites and investors. One of the major duties of any society is ensuring its investors’ safety and capitals, especially those related to the police. Therefore, security is inevitable for economic elites’ investments and the development of the society. Undoubtedly, providing a safe environment for economic activities is the key factor for ensuring investment. Improving the investors’ social security by reducing insecure factors can increase the amount of investment. Accordingly, one of the basic requirements for investment is the existence of security. Instable societies are not suitable places for investment; investors stay away from such societies and tend to invest in relatively stable societies. This, investment depends on security and stability. Investing in societies provides the basis for their progress and developments. Therefore, providing social security in this field plays a very important role in economic prosperity. In this regard, the present article was conducted with the aim of examining the investors’ level of satisfaction with the police and modeling the factors related to it. Material & Methods Investigating social phenomena in social sciences is done through different methods. Considering the topic of the current research, a quantitative method based on a survey technique was used. The statistical population consisted of all the investors, who had invested in different parts of East Azerbaijan Province and maintained active industrial, service, and agricultural units. According to the announcement of the commander of the police forces in East Azerbaijan Province, the investors were 8794 people. Cochran's formula was used to calculate the sample size. The sample size for the intended research population was calculated to be 368 people, but it was increased to 390 people to enhance its accuracy. In this research, a proportional stratified sampling method combined with simple random sampling was utilized. The data collection tool was a questionnaire. The face validity technique (by referring to the experts) and Cronbach's alpha were applied to check the validity and reliability of the variables, respectively. Based on the experts’ final evaluation results, the questions had sufficient validity. Also, the results of the reliability analysis by using Cronbach's alpha showed that the reliability of all the variables was at a high and acceptable level. The data were analyzed by applying SPSS and LIZREL software. Discussion of Results & Conclusion The results of the data analysis were as follows: 1) The average level of the investors’ satisfaction with the police was estimated at 57.16 out of 100. This value indicated that the investors had a moderate to high level of satisfaction with the police; 2) The average feeling of security among the investors was estimated to be approximately 54% based on the raw spectral score of 32.32 out of 60. Accordingly, it could be said that the feeling of security among the investors was at a medium to high level; 3) The average value for the variable of trust in the police was 40.48 out of 72 (56.22%). This amount showed that the investors’ trust in the police was also at a medium to high level; 4) The average value obtained according to the raw score of the procedural justice scale was equal to 14.99 out of 36 and its average percentage was 41.64%; hence, it could be said that the feeling of procedural justice was at a low level from the investors’ points of view; 5) The average value achieved based on the information justice scale was 11.44 out of 24 (47.67%); therefore, according to the investors, the sense of information justice in the society was at a medium to low level. The findings revealed that the final structural model fitted by the research data could support the theories. Thus, the research had been done at an appropriate level and its achieved model could be considered a suitable model for explaining the investors' levels of satisfaction with the police. Since firstly, the chi-square model was not significant and the value of RMSEA was close to zero and secondly, the AIC and CAIC of the model had lower values than those of the independent and saturated models, it could be said that the fitted structural equation model obtained in this investigation was a suitable model for explaining changes in the investors' satisfaction with the police. This model was able to significantly explain 53% of its changes. The most direct and indirect effects in the final model belonged to the variables of psychological security and procedural justice. Also, the greatest impacts were assigned to the variables of information justice and psychological security. Introduction One of the main factors of the development of a society is its economic elites and investors. One of the major duties of any society is ensuring its investors’ safety and capitals, especially those related to the police. Therefore, security is inevitable for economic elites’ investments and the development of the society. Undoubtedly, providing a safe environment for economic activities is the key factor for ensuring investment. Improving the investors’ social security by reducing insecure factors can increase the amount of investment. Accordingly, one of the basic requirements for investment is the existence of security. Instable societies are not suitable places for investment; investors stay away from such societies and tend to invest in relatively stable societies. This, investment depends on security and stability. Investing in societies provides the basis for their progress and developments. Therefore, providing social security in this field plays a very important role in economic prosperity. In this regard, the present article was conducted with the aim of examining the investors’ level of satisfaction with the police and modeling the factors related to it. Material & Methods Investigating social phenomena in social sciences is done through different methods. Considering the topic of the current research, a quantitative method based on a survey technique was used. The statistical population consisted of all the investors, who had invested in different parts of East Azerbaijan Province and maintained active industrial, service, and agricultural units. According to the announcement of the commander of the police forces in East Azerbaijan Province, the investors were 8794 people. Cochran's formula was used to calculate the sample size. The sample size for the intended research population was calculated to be 368 people, but it was increased to 390 people to enhance its accuracy. In this research, a proportional stratified sampling method combined with simple random sampling was utilized. The data collection tool was a questionnaire. The face validity technique (by referring to the experts) and Cronbach's alpha were applied to check the validity and reliability of the variables, respectively. Based on the experts’ final evaluation results, the questions had sufficient validity. Also, the results of the reliability analysis by using Cronbach's alpha showed that the reliability of all the variables was at a high and acceptable level. The data were analyzed by applying SPSS and LIZREL software. Discussion of Results & Conclusion The results of the data analysis were as follows: 1) The average level of the investors’ satisfaction with the police was estimated at 57.16 out of 100. This value indicated that the investors had a moderate to high level of satisfaction with the police; 2) The average feeling of security among the investors was estimated to be approximately 54% based on the raw spectral score of 32.32 out of 60. Accordingly, it could be said that the feeling of security among the investors was at a medium to high level; 3) The average value for the variable of trust in the police was 40.48 out of 72 (56.22%). This amount showed that the investors’ trust in the police was also at a medium to high level; 4) The average value obtained according to the raw score of the procedural justice scale was equal to 14.99 out of 36 and its average percentage was 41.64%; hence, it could be said that the feeling of procedural justice was at a low level from the investors’ points of view; 5) The average value achieved based on the information justice scale was 11.44 out of 24 (47.67%); therefore, according to the investors, the sense of information justice in the society was at a medium to low level. The findings revealed that the final structural model fitted by the research data could support the theories. Thus, the research had been done at an appropriate level and its achieved model could be considered a suitable model for explaining the investors' levels of satisfaction with the police. Since firstly, the chi-square model was not significant and the value of RMSEA was close to zero and secondly, the AIC and CAIC of the model had lower values than those of the independent and saturated models, it could be said that the fitted structural equation model obtained in this investigation was a suitable model for explaining changes in the investors' satisfaction with the police. This model was able to significantly explain 53% of its changes. The most direct and indirect effects in the final model belonged to the variables of psychological security and procedural justice. Also, the greatest impacts were assigned to the variables of information justice and psychological security.

https://jas.ui.ac.ir/article_27238_9532fab5ae91d153c767d340ba1a7688.pdf

University of Isfahan Journal of Applied Sociology 2008-5745 34 1 2023 03 21 Reasons for Delayed Marriage and Its Determinants in Iran Reasons for Delayed Marriage and Its Determinants in Iran 31 50 27076 10.22108/jas.2022.134561.2312 FA Milad Bagi Assistant Professor of Demography, Department of Social Sciences, Faculty of Economics and Social Sciences, Bu-Ali Sina University, Hamedan, Iran Journal Article 2022 07 31 Introduction Postponement of marriage is a global phenomenon. On average, the mean age at first marriage has increased for both genders by about two years during the first two decades of the 21st century (UN Population Division, 2016). The age at first marriage has sharply risen in the United States and advanced parts of Europe since the 1960s, and in southern Europe and Ireland since the 1970s and 1980s. The upward trend in these countries has reached that of the former communist eastern European countries in the 1990s (Jelnov, 2019; Jones, 2007). Additionally, several East and Southeast Asian countries have experienced this trend since the mid-1980s (Leete, 1994). Although marriage holds a high social status and remains common in Iran, its patterns have changed. Despite various programs and policies implemented in the last decade to reduce the age of marriage, the Singulate Mean Age at Marriage (SMAM) continues to increase consistently. It has risen consistently over the past four decades (Torabi and Mesgarzadeh, 2017). Generational patterns of marriage have also shifted, with younger generations tending to marry at older ages (Bagi, 2022). In fact, marriage rates have decreased (Abbasi et al., 2018), and permanent celibacy has increased (Beladi Mousavi, 2017). Understanding the reasons behind the delay in marriage or the decision to remain unmarried is a question that has intrigued demographers and social researchers. This study aims to investigate the reasons for the delay in marriage among recently married couples in Iran and explore its determinants. It seeks to address the following questions: What are the SMAM and ideal age of marriage based on individual characteristics? Is there a difference between the actual and ideal ages of marriage? And what are the most significant reasons for delayed marriage and its determinants? Material & Methods This study is based on the secondary analysis of quantitative data obtained from the National Marriage Survey, excluding data from Tehran Province due to lack of cooperation. The statistical population consists of men and women who underwent premarital tests at medical laboratories. Only individuals experiencing their first marriage were included in the analysis, resulting in a total of 8,349 participants. Two variables were utilized to assess the delay in marriage: "age at first marriage" and "ideal age of marriage." The former was determined by the actual date of marriage, while the latter was established through the question, "At what age is marriage considered ideal?" Individuals who married later than their ideal age were categorized as having a delayed marriage. Discussion of Results & Conclusion The average age of marriage was 24.5 years, and the average ideal age was 21.4 years. The study revealed that the participants, on average, got married 3.1 years later than their perceived ideal age for marriage. The singulate mean ages at marriage for men and women in the study were 23.6 and 27.4 years, respectively, while their mean ideal ages for marriage were 23 and 26 years, respectively. The singulate mean age at marriage (SMAM) was found to be higher among Shiites, city dwellers, employed individuals, illiterate individuals, and the Gilak and Mazandarani ethnic groups. Overall, approximately 40% of the participants tended to marry later than their ideal age for marriage. Among males, economic problems were identified as the primary reason for the delay in marriage, with 35.9% citing "financial problems" and 12.6% citing "job problems and unemployment" as major factors. Other reasons mentioned included "not finding the right person," "pursuing education," "military service," and "lack of housing." Iranian families are structured around a male-breadwinner model, which explains the norm of men experiencing delayed marriage due to economic constraints. The labor market in Iran is characterized by inflexibility, leading to high rates of youth unemployment. Additionally, it typically takes an average of three years for a university graduate to secure employment. Consequently, individuals who face concerns regarding various socio-economic aspects of marriage tend to postpone their nuptials, as highlighted by Becker (1981). "Not finding the right person" was cited as the main reason for the delay in marriage among women, accounting for 31% of the responses. Financial problems were mentioned by only 7.3% of the women. Another significant factor was "studying." Cultural issues were predominantly mentioned by women compared to men. For instance, the issue of "not being interested in marriage" was highlighted by a higher percentage of women (3%) compared to men (1.7%). Our results indicate that approximately 60% of the women who reported not finding the right partner had obtained tertiary education, and of these, 36% were employed. This observation can be attributed to Becker's theory on the marriage market, which suggests that women may face a success gap or marriage squeeze. The pursuit of higher education and the high expectations of this group of women may contribute to difficulties in finding a suitable partner. Women with higher education often face a marriage squeeze because many men prefer to marry women with lower levels of education. Consequently, highly educated and employed women tend to seek partners who are at least on par with their educational achievements. Furthermore, as highlighted by McDonald (2008), women's perspectives on gender equality tend to evolve as their educational levels increase. For highly educated women, marriage may not be a top priority, as they may prefer to pursue careers in the labor market. However, it is important to note that female economic participation in Iran remains relatively low, with a high unemployment rate among women. Additionally, a gender wage gap persists. Unexpectedly, delayed marriage was higher among Baluch, Arab, and Kurdish men compared to Persian men. Economic challenges and unemployment were the main reasons for their delays, which is consistent with the low levels of economic development in the areas where these ethnicities reside. The delay in marriage caused by economic problems has revealed that the majority of policy measures designed and implemented to impact marriage have been ineffective and require evaluation and review. From 2004 to 2016, a total of 5 laws, 2 papers, 1 bill, and 3 policy cases were introduced to promote marriage. However, during this period, there was an increase in the average age of marriage and a decrease in the number of marriages. This suggests that the failure of these policies can be attributed to the fact that they were based on the personal ideals of politicians, rather than being grounded in research findings that reflect the realities of society. Introduction Postponement of marriage is a global phenomenon. On average, the mean age at first marriage has increased for both genders by about two years during the first two decades of the 21st century (UN Population Division, 2016). The age at first marriage has sharply risen in the United States and advanced parts of Europe since the 1960s, and in southern Europe and Ireland since the 1970s and 1980s. The upward trend in these countries has reached that of the former communist eastern European countries in the 1990s (Jelnov, 2019; Jones, 2007). Additionally, several East and Southeast Asian countries have experienced this trend since the mid-1980s (Leete, 1994). Although marriage holds a high social status and remains common in Iran, its patterns have changed. Despite various programs and policies implemented in the last decade to reduce the age of marriage, the Singulate Mean Age at Marriage (SMAM) continues to increase consistently. It has risen consistently over the past four decades (Torabi and Mesgarzadeh, 2017). Generational patterns of marriage have also shifted, with younger generations tending to marry at older ages (Bagi, 2022). In fact, marriage rates have decreased (Abbasi et al., 2018), and permanent celibacy has increased (Beladi Mousavi, 2017). Understanding the reasons behind the delay in marriage or the decision to remain unmarried is a question that has intrigued demographers and social researchers. This study aims to investigate the reasons for the delay in marriage among recently married couples in Iran and explore its determinants. It seeks to address the following questions: What are the SMAM and ideal age of marriage based on individual characteristics? Is there a difference between the actual and ideal ages of marriage? And what are the most significant reasons for delayed marriage and its determinants? Material & Methods This study is based on the secondary analysis of quantitative data obtained from the National Marriage Survey, excluding data from Tehran Province due to lack of cooperation. The statistical population consists of men and women who underwent premarital tests at medical laboratories. Only individuals experiencing their first marriage were included in the analysis, resulting in a total of 8,349 participants. Two variables were utilized to assess the delay in marriage: "age at first marriage" and "ideal age of marriage." The former was determined by the actual date of marriage, while the latter was established through the question, "At what age is marriage considered ideal?" Individuals who married later than their ideal age were categorized as having a delayed marriage. Discussion of Results & Conclusion The average age of marriage was 24.5 years, and the average ideal age was 21.4 years. The study revealed that the participants, on average, got married 3.1 years later than their perceived ideal age for marriage. The singulate mean ages at marriage for men and women in the study were 23.6 and 27.4 years, respectively, while their mean ideal ages for marriage were 23 and 26 years, respectively. The singulate mean age at marriage (SMAM) was found to be higher among Shiites, city dwellers, employed individuals, illiterate individuals, and the Gilak and Mazandarani ethnic groups. Overall, approximately 40% of the participants tended to marry later than their ideal age for marriage. Among males, economic problems were identified as the primary reason for the delay in marriage, with 35.9% citing "financial problems" and 12.6% citing "job problems and unemployment" as major factors. Other reasons mentioned included "not finding the right person," "pursuing education," "military service," and "lack of housing." Iranian families are structured around a male-breadwinner model, which explains the norm of men experiencing delayed marriage due to economic constraints. The labor market in Iran is characterized by inflexibility, leading to high rates of youth unemployment. Additionally, it typically takes an average of three years for a university graduate to secure employment. Consequently, individuals who face concerns regarding various socio-economic aspects of marriage tend to postpone their nuptials, as highlighted by Becker (1981). "Not finding the right person" was cited as the main reason for the delay in marriage among women, accounting for 31% of the responses. Financial problems were mentioned by only 7.3% of the women. Another significant factor was "studying." Cultural issues were predominantly mentioned by women compared to men. For instance, the issue of "not being interested in marriage" was highlighted by a higher percentage of women (3%) compared to men (1.7%). Our results indicate that approximately 60% of the women who reported not finding the right partner had obtained tertiary education, and of these, 36% were employed. This observation can be attributed to Becker's theory on the marriage market, which suggests that women may face a success gap or marriage squeeze. The pursuit of higher education and the high expectations of this group of women may contribute to difficulties in finding a suitable partner. Women with higher education often face a marriage squeeze because many men prefer to marry women with lower levels of education. Consequently, highly educated and employed women tend to seek partners who are at least on par with their educational achievements. Furthermore, as highlighted by McDonald (2008), women's perspectives on gender equality tend to evolve as their educational levels increase. For highly educated women, marriage may not be a top priority, as they may prefer to pursue careers in the labor market. However, it is important to note that female economic participation in Iran remains relatively low, with a high unemployment rate among women. Additionally, a gender wage gap persists. Unexpectedly, delayed marriage was higher among Baluch, Arab, and Kurdish men compared to Persian men. Economic challenges and unemployment were the main reasons for their delays, which is consistent with the low levels of economic development in the areas where these ethnicities reside. The delay in marriage caused by economic problems has revealed that the majority of policy measures designed and implemented to impact marriage have been ineffective and require evaluation and review. From 2004 to 2016, a total of 5 laws, 2 papers, 1 bill, and 3 policy cases were introduced to promote marriage. However, during this period, there was an increase in the average age of marriage and a decrease in the number of marriages. This suggests that the failure of these policies can be attributed to the fact that they were based on the personal ideals of politicians, rather than being grounded in research findings that reflect the realities of society.

https://jas.ui.ac.ir/article_27076_a625005bab5c8c0bf45d33cf1af7c3e6.pdf

University of Isfahan Journal of Applied Sociology 2008-5745 34 1 2023 03 21 Explaining Civic Activism for Biodiversity Conservation with the Mechanism of Social Dialogue Explaining Civic Activism for Biodiversity Conservation with the Mechanism of Social Dialogue 51 66 27188 10.22108/jas.2023.135191.2329 FA Mahdi Malmir Assistant Professor of Sociology, Department of Social Sciences, Faculty of Letters and Human Sciences, Shahid Beheshti University, Tehran, Iran Aida Esmaeilzadeh Seilabi Assistant Professor, Department of Horticultural Science, Faculty of Agriculture Science and Engineering, College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, University of Tehran, Theran, Iran Amir Semiari Assistant Professor of Landscape Architecture, Department of Landscape Architecture, Faculty of Architecture and Urban Planning, Shahid Behashti University, Tehran, Iran Journal Article 2022 09 21 Introduction Based on the definition provided by the European Biodiversity Information System, biodiversity includes richness of life and diversity of patterns on 3 levels: 1) ecosystems and habitats; 2) species; and 3) genetic resources. According to this definition, comprehensive understanding of the concept of biodiversity involves recognition of threats, such as climate change, invasive species, fragmentation and land use change, pollution, and overuse of effective resources. On the other hand, the loss of biodiversity with all its unfortunate consequences is a global phenomenon that is still under threat despite the efforts made to protect it. This lack of success is largely due to underestimating people’s power in this process. The study of developing countries shows that local people’s short-term economic benefits from the exploitation of nature and their lack of awareness of its long-term effects are important obstacles to the protection of nature. Considering the extent of damage to the environment and ineffectiveness of governance, the most available option to reduce destruction is increasing people's awareness and encouraging their participations. At the same time, changing people's behaviors is a challenging issue. People’ desire to actively and committedly participate in the protection of nature is influenced by several factors. Behavioral change, conscious act, and voluntary participation in environmental activities can be influenced by internal factors (self-worth and individual motivation) (Molinario, et al., 2020) and external factors (economic interest and social and civic values and norms) (Li, Zhao, Ma, Shao, & Zhang, 2019). The social and civil factors affecting pro-environmental behaviors in developing countries, including Iran, have been given less attention, while the civilizing process can provide an important framework for predicting committed activities to protect biodiversity (Baynham-Herd, Amano, Sutherland, & Donald, 2018; Kashwan, 2017). In the current situation of Iran, it is very important to educate people and encourage them to participate in the process of biodiversity preservation by taking voluntary and committed actions. However, the evidence shows that there is a kind of passivity and indifference to environmental contributions. Thus, the following question is raised: What are the factors and components that explain cooperative behaviors of biodiversity and how important and effective are they? The innovation of this article was combination of the theoretical model of "planned behavior" and the theory of new civil actions. According to the current conditions of the Iranian society, the studied students' civic actions for protecting the environment were affected by their interactions and levels of network relationships. Their memberships and amounts of co-presence in virtual social networks by increasing their opportunities to talk could enhance their knowledge of biodiversity and augment civic activism. Therefore, the chain of knowledge-value-action showed itself more where it was possible to discuss the issue. Accordingly, an extended model was presented in this article, which put more emphasis on the variables of social and institutional structures of the society and thereby placed individual actions in its cultural, social, and institutional contexts. In this model, the development of a virtual public space and the possibility of discussing issues and problems as a determining variable in strengthening the knowledge of biodiversity and evoking environmental values were added to the variables related to the previous theories. A collective discussion about the topic could play an important role in the construction and evolution of the society (Inglehart, 1990). Material & Methods A survey of attitudes towards biodiversity was conducted among Shahid Beheshti University students in 2019. Using the stratified sample size method, the statistical population of 20,000 students was divided based on the 4 fields of humanities and social sciences, technical sciences and engineering, natural sciences, and architecture and art. To obtain the sample volume, Cochran's formula was applied. Since the method of collecting information was designed through a structured internet questionnaire on the Google Doc platform, the number of samples increased to about 500 people. Then, the questionnaire was sent to the sample students and 420 questionnaires were returned. Finally, after reviewing and refining the questionnaires and discarding the defective and incomplete items, 393 questionnaires remained. Also, a structured questionnaire and a 5-point Likert scale were employed to measure the research variables. In the extended model, the variable of dialogue feasibility (D) referred to the possibility and extent of discussion about environmental issues and the issue of biodiversity through dialogue networking. The problematic variable of biodiversity (R) referred to the knowledge of biodiversity and awareness of the risks and consequences of its destruction. To measure the environmental values based on Schwartz’s method (2012) with the help of factor analysis, two types of value biases towards the issue of biodiversity were identified: Instrumental Value (IV) and Egocentric Value (EV). Although two types of moral and legal obligations might be created depending on the value bias, this set of norms was considered as Biodiversity Norms (BN) in this research since no significant distinction between the two was empirically recognized. Also, environmental activism was measured based on the two main types of civil action (CPA) and individual action (PBA). Discussion of Results & Conclusion The purpose of the current research was to expand the model of "planned behavior" (Ajzen, 1985; Schwartz, 1992; Stern, Dietz, Abel, Guagnano, & Kalof, 1999) and explain "pro-biodiversity" behaviors among the students based on the possibility of forming dialogue circles. While it was expected that environmental civic activism be more common among university-educated people, the scope of such a behavior was limited according to the results of this research. Only 15% of the studied population expressed that they had civic environmental activities. This finding confirmed the results of Shafiei & Malek Saeidi (2020) and Veisi et al. (2019), who showed that environmental civil actions in the Iranian society had a low range and no significant difference in civil activism could be seen between the male and female students and the students of various degrees. Yet, the results of this research showed that environmental civic activities among the students were different based on the study field type and the students’ presence in nature (Shafiei & Maleksaeidi, 2020; Veisi, Lacy, Mafakheri, & Razaghi, 2019). In addition, as Reis, Lindenmeier, and Schild suggested, the effects of institutional and legal conditions on environmental civic activism were of importance (Lindenmeier, 2008; Reis, 2020; Schild, 2018). The results of this study revealed that civic activism could be enhanced when the law, formal norms, and regulations were perceived ineffective in supporting biodiversity in the eye of the public. The belief in the ineffectiveness of the existing laws and regulations in preserving nature in Iran and the belief in individual effectiveness drove the concerned activists towards voluntary activities in order to offset the weakness and inefficiency of public organization and government. Also, the active memberships in the environmental civic associations could lead to the promotion of group-based pro-environmental behaviors and moral responsibility towards the environment and biodiversity (Schmitt, Mackay, Droogendyk, & Payne, 2019; Liobikienė & Poškus, 2019) According to the findings of this research, the most important conditions for the development of civic activism at both institutional and cultural levels were creating a dialogue-oriented public atmosphere and a universal value system. This meant that civic activism required the development of a culture of dialogue in the public sphere. Public sphere means a place where it is possible to create a free conversation without threats, which can include both the real and cyber public realms. The results showed that in the current conditions of the Iranian society, the cyber public space could make it possible to increase the knowledge of biodiversity by creating a context for interactions and dialogue. In other words, as Leventon and his colleagues found (Leventon, Duşe, & Horcea-Milcu, 2021), although expanding public space did not provide a sufficient condition, it was a necessary condition for environmental civic activities. As long as collectivist and universal value biases were able to appear in social networks, they could form self-reinforcing circles that both strengthened the universal value system and facilitated pro-biodiversity civic activism. Introduction Based on the definition provided by the European Biodiversity Information System, biodiversity includes richness of life and diversity of patterns on 3 levels: 1) ecosystems and habitats; 2) species; and 3) genetic resources. According to this definition, comprehensive understanding of the concept of biodiversity involves recognition of threats, such as climate change, invasive species, fragmentation and land use change, pollution, and overuse of effective resources. On the other hand, the loss of biodiversity with all its unfortunate consequences is a global phenomenon that is still under threat despite the efforts made to protect it. This lack of success is largely due to underestimating people’s power in this process. The study of developing countries shows that local people’s short-term economic benefits from the exploitation of nature and their lack of awareness of its long-term effects are important obstacles to the protection of nature. Considering the extent of damage to the environment and ineffectiveness of governance, the most available option to reduce destruction is increasing people's awareness and encouraging their participations. At the same time, changing people's behaviors is a challenging issue. People’ desire to actively and committedly participate in the protection of nature is influenced by several factors. Behavioral change, conscious act, and voluntary participation in environmental activities can be influenced by internal factors (self-worth and individual motivation) (Molinario, et al., 2020) and external factors (economic interest and social and civic values and norms) (Li, Zhao, Ma, Shao, & Zhang, 2019). The social and civil factors affecting pro-environmental behaviors in developing countries, including Iran, have been given less attention, while the civilizing process can provide an important framework for predicting committed activities to protect biodiversity (Baynham-Herd, Amano, Sutherland, & Donald, 2018; Kashwan, 2017). In the current situation of Iran, it is very important to educate people and encourage them to participate in the process of biodiversity preservation by taking voluntary and committed actions. However, the evidence shows that there is a kind of passivity and indifference to environmental contributions. Thus, the following question is raised: What are the factors and components that explain cooperative behaviors of biodiversity and how important and effective are they? The innovation of this article was combination of the theoretical model of "planned behavior" and the theory of new civil actions. According to the current conditions of the Iranian society, the studied students' civic actions for protecting the environment were affected by their interactions and levels of network relationships. Their memberships and amounts of co-presence in virtual social networks by increasing their opportunities to talk could enhance their knowledge of biodiversity and augment civic activism. Therefore, the chain of knowledge-value-action showed itself more where it was possible to discuss the issue. Accordingly, an extended model was presented in this article, which put more emphasis on the variables of social and institutional structures of the society and thereby placed individual actions in its cultural, social, and institutional contexts. In this model, the development of a virtual public space and the possibility of discussing issues and problems as a determining variable in strengthening the knowledge of biodiversity and evoking environmental values were added to the variables related to the previous theories. A collective discussion about the topic could play an important role in the construction and evolution of the society (Inglehart, 1990). Material & Methods A survey of attitudes towards biodiversity was conducted among Shahid Beheshti University students in 2019. Using the stratified sample size method, the statistical population of 20,000 students was divided based on the 4 fields of humanities and social sciences, technical sciences and engineering, natural sciences, and architecture and art. To obtain the sample volume, Cochran's formula was applied. Since the method of collecting information was designed through a structured internet questionnaire on the Google Doc platform, the number of samples increased to about 500 people. Then, the questionnaire was sent to the sample students and 420 questionnaires were returned. Finally, after reviewing and refining the questionnaires and discarding the defective and incomplete items, 393 questionnaires remained. Also, a structured questionnaire and a 5-point Likert scale were employed to measure the research variables. In the extended model, the variable of dialogue feasibility (D) referred to the possibility and extent of discussion about environmental issues and the issue of biodiversity through dialogue networking. The problematic variable of biodiversity (R) referred to the knowledge of biodiversity and awareness of the risks and consequences of its destruction. To measure the environmental values based on Schwartz’s method (2012) with the help of factor analysis, two types of value biases towards the issue of biodiversity were identified: Instrumental Value (IV) and Egocentric Value (EV). Although two types of moral and legal obligations might be created depending on the value bias, this set of norms was considered as Biodiversity Norms (BN) in this research since no significant distinction between the two was empirically recognized. Also, environmental activism was measured based on the two main types of civil action (CPA) and individual action (PBA). Discussion of Results & Conclusion The purpose of the current research was to expand the model of "planned behavior" (Ajzen, 1985; Schwartz, 1992; Stern, Dietz, Abel, Guagnano, & Kalof, 1999) and explain "pro-biodiversity" behaviors among the students based on the possibility of forming dialogue circles. While it was expected that environmental civic activism be more common among university-educated people, the scope of such a behavior was limited according to the results of this research. Only 15% of the studied population expressed that they had civic environmental activities. This finding confirmed the results of Shafiei & Malek Saeidi (2020) and Veisi et al. (2019), who showed that environmental civil actions in the Iranian society had a low range and no significant difference in civil activism could be seen between the male and female students and the students of various degrees. Yet, the results of this research showed that environmental civic activities among the students were different based on the study field type and the students’ presence in nature (Shafiei & Maleksaeidi, 2020; Veisi, Lacy, Mafakheri, & Razaghi, 2019). In addition, as Reis, Lindenmeier, and Schild suggested, the effects of institutional and legal conditions on environmental civic activism were of importance (Lindenmeier, 2008; Reis, 2020; Schild, 2018). The results of this study revealed that civic activism could be enhanced when the law, formal norms, and regulations were perceived ineffective in supporting biodiversity in the eye of the public. The belief in the ineffectiveness of the existing laws and regulations in preserving nature in Iran and the belief in individual effectiveness drove the concerned activists towards voluntary activities in order to offset the weakness and inefficiency of public organization and government. Also, the active memberships in the environmental civic associations could lead to the promotion of group-based pro-environmental behaviors and moral responsibility towards the environment and biodiversity (Schmitt, Mackay, Droogendyk, & Payne, 2019; Liobikienė & Poškus, 2019) According to the findings of this research, the most important conditions for the development of civic activism at both institutional and cultural levels were creating a dialogue-oriented public atmosphere and a universal value system. This meant that civic activism required the development of a culture of dialogue in the public sphere. Public sphere means a place where it is possible to create a free conversation without threats, which can include both the real and cyber public realms. The results showed that in the current conditions of the Iranian society, the cyber public space could make it possible to increase the knowledge of biodiversity by creating a context for interactions and dialogue. In other words, as Leventon and his colleagues found (Leventon, Duşe, & Horcea-Milcu, 2021), although expanding public space did not provide a sufficient condition, it was a necessary condition for environmental civic activities. As long as collectivist and universal value biases were able to appear in social networks, they could form self-reinforcing circles that both strengthened the universal value system and facilitated pro-biodiversity civic activism.

https://jas.ui.ac.ir/article_27188_a0d0331decb7aeeddc5bbc8d3407819c.pdf

University of Isfahan Journal of Applied Sociology 2008-5745 34 1 2023 03 21 Contextual Exploration of Processes Leading to Profit Orientation through Social Media Marketing Contextual Exploration of Processes Leading to Profit Orientation through Social Media Marketing 67 88 27309 10.22108/jas.2023.135477.2334 FA Neda Rezaei Ph.D. Student, Department of Media Management, Faculty of Humanities, Yazd Branch, Islamic Azad University of Yazd, Yazd, Iran Hossein Eslami Assistant Professor, Department of Governmental Management, Faculty of Humanities, Yazd Branch, Islamic Azad University of Yazd, Yazd, Iran SeyedAlireza Afshani Professor, Department of Cooperation and Social Welfare, Faculty of Social Sciences, Yazd University, Yazd, Iran Journal Article 2022 10 21 Introduction According to the existing definition of social media, it should be said that the expansion of these media has changed the interaction pattern of companies, brands, and reaching customers and at the same time provided unique opportunities to create brand awareness and ultimately influence people's purchasing decisions. For this reason, sites and social media, such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Instagram, etc. have had a very important place in entrepreneurship, business, and marketing. In this sense, it should be said that marketing is not dependent on being present in the real world, while a large part of this marketing takes place in the heart of the media. The important point is that companies in this field do not limit their goals to geographical frameworks and have an opinion on a wider space that the media have made possible with their trans-spatial features. For this reason, it is important to discover and analyze the ways of managing and implementing marketing through the media by different companies and organizations. In fact, knowing their processes requires a deep investigation. For this reason, an attempt was made in this research to analyze the dynamics and internal processes governing them by focusing on the category of marketing and expanding this concept to the media space besides answering the question of what processes in the profit-oriented environment of media prevail and organize and direct social media marketing. Material and Methods According to its purpose, this research used qualitative methodology and the strategy of grounded theory with Strauss and Corbin’s systematic approach. Besides, theoretical sampling was used and continued until theoretical saturation so as to obtain the final theory. Theoretical saturation was achieved after in-depth interviews with 15 marketing managers of companies and business owners in social networks. The data collected in this research were analyzed by using the 3 stages of open, central, and selective coding in a timely and coherent process. During this research, it was tried to pay attention to ethical considerations, such as detailed explanation of the research objective, method of publishing the results, participants’ informed consent, respect for privacy, and maintenance of anonymity and confidentiality. Reliability of the research findings was achieved by using strategies, such as long-term participation in the research field, member review, colleague review, and rich description. The research reliability was confirmed by following the principles and points of the interviews, as well as accurate recording of the events and their implementations. Discussion of Results and Conclusion The results of this research were presented in the forms of 11 main categories and 1 core category along with a paradigm model, story line, and theoretical model. The findings indicated that "transnational market development" as the final phenomenon was the center of gravity for marketing activities through social media. This phenomenon included both economic dynamics within the companies and social relations between the companies and customers. The possibility of considering network markets in this article was based on the efforts of the companies to distribute products and not limit their customers to a single geographical location, which required using social media for introducing their products. Building this type of market in the heart of social networks always requires strategies that will bring up results after applying those strategies. Finally, it should be stated that profit-based motives that companies and businesses try to achieve through media marketing cause the dynamics governing the network market. In this sense, it should be said that their actions and reactions are purposefully focused on profit. These goal-oriented rational actions exist in all stages including assessment of social needs, production, advertisement, distribution, competition, branding, and social interactions with customers. Introduction According to the existing definition of social media, it should be said that the expansion of these media has changed the interaction pattern of companies, brands, and reaching customers and at the same time provided unique opportunities to create brand awareness and ultimately influence people's purchasing decisions. For this reason, sites and social media, such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Instagram, etc. have had a very important place in entrepreneurship, business, and marketing. In this sense, it should be said that marketing is not dependent on being present in the real world, while a large part of this marketing takes place in the heart of the media. The important point is that companies in this field do not limit their goals to geographical frameworks and have an opinion on a wider space that the media have made possible with their trans-spatial features. For this reason, it is important to discover and analyze the ways of managing and implementing marketing through the media by different companies and organizations. In fact, knowing their processes requires a deep investigation. For this reason, an attempt was made in this research to analyze the dynamics and internal processes governing them by focusing on the category of marketing and expanding this concept to the media space besides answering the question of what processes in the profit-oriented environment of media prevail and organize and direct social media marketing. Material and Methods According to its purpose, this research used qualitative methodology and the strategy of grounded theory with Strauss and Corbin’s systematic approach. Besides, theoretical sampling was used and continued until theoretical saturation so as to obtain the final theory. Theoretical saturation was achieved after in-depth interviews with 15 marketing managers of companies and business owners in social networks. The data collected in this research were analyzed by using the 3 stages of open, central, and selective coding in a timely and coherent process. During this research, it was tried to pay attention to ethical considerations, such as detailed explanation of the research objective, method of publishing the results, participants’ informed consent, respect for privacy, and maintenance of anonymity and confidentiality. Reliability of the research findings was achieved by using strategies, such as long-term participation in the research field, member review, colleague review, and rich description. The research reliability was confirmed by following the principles and points of the interviews, as well as accurate recording of the events and their implementations. Discussion of Results and Conclusion The results of this research were presented in the forms of 11 main categories and 1 core category along with a paradigm model, story line, and theoretical model. The findings indicated that "transnational market development" as the final phenomenon was the center of gravity for marketing activities through social media. This phenomenon included both economic dynamics within the companies and social relations between the companies and customers. The possibility of considering network markets in this article was based on the efforts of the companies to distribute products and not limit their customers to a single geographical location, which required using social media for introducing their products. Building this type of market in the heart of social networks always requires strategies that will bring up results after applying those strategies. Finally, it should be stated that profit-based motives that companies and businesses try to achieve through media marketing cause the dynamics governing the network market. In this sense, it should be said that their actions and reactions are purposefully focused on profit. These goal-oriented rational actions exist in all stages including assessment of social needs, production, advertisement, distribution, competition, branding, and social interactions with customers.

https://jas.ui.ac.ir/article_27309_d3f02f0c5ed0064eb7b789bf0f1472eb.pdf

University of Isfahan Journal of Applied Sociology 2008-5745 34 1 2023 03 21 Sociological Study of Influencing Factors in the Tendency of Divorced Women to Remarry (Case Study of Isfahan City) Sociological Study of Influencing Factors in the Tendency of Divorced Women to Remarry (Case Study of Isfahan City) 89 112 27374 10.22108/jas.2023.132909.2277 FA Ali Ghanbari Barzain Assistant Professor, Department of Social Sciences, Faculty of Literature and Humanities, University of Isfahan, Isfahan, Iran Ali Hashemianfar Associate Professor, Department of Social Sciences, Faculty of Literature and Humanities, University of Isfahan, Isfahan, Iran Baegat Davoodi Master's degree in Women's Studies, University of Isfahan, Isfahan, Iran Journal Article 2022 04 20 Introduction The phenomenon of divorce in Iran has been growing despite all social and cultural policies and plans during the last two decades. It has gone beyond the amount predicted in the 5th and 6th development plans and the plans of the policy-making institutions. Controling and reducing this phenomenon have not been very successful. The two events of increasing age of marriage and decreasing age of divorce in Iranian society have caused some sociologists and family activists to talk about the occurrence of the two phenomena of "late marriage" and "early separation". As one of the main points of population concentration in the country, Isfahan Province is considered as one of the most significant areas prone to social and cultural changes. Like other large cities of Iran, it has not been spared from damage in the family and interpersonal relationships. Various researches have shown the high rate of divorce, relationships before marriage, lack of commitment in relationships, and personal and family anomalies in this city (Qolizadeh et al., 2014: 40; Zarandi et al., 2016: 129). The meta-analyses of the researches that have been conducted in this field show the upward trend of reluctance of more than 60% of the divorced women to remarry in the society (Nasseri et al., 2018, 58) (Akbarzadeh and Hashemianfar, 1398: 179). Since there is always a part of changes in the field of marriage related to people, who have already had marriage experience, this article waas done with the aim of studying the sociological factors and sources that were effective in the divorced women’s tendency to remarry in the city of Isfahan. Materials and Methods The current research was a quantitative study in terms of nature and a survey type in terms of methodology. All the divorced women, who had a maximum age of 45 years, a divorce period of less than 10 years, and lived in Areas 15, 8, and 5 of Isfahan City constituted the statistical population of this research. From among the estimated 4265 women, 356 samples were selected by referring to family courts, welfare organizations, Imam Khomeini Relief Committee, as well as beauty salons and sports clubs based on the available sampling methods. Discussion of Results and Conclusion: The theoretical analysis of the data showed that the demographic changes of Iranian families were moving in the direction of increasing individualism. Such changes as rationality, individualism, cultural micro-systems in the field of marriage values, and criticism of traditions had taken place in the Iranian families. The iranian women had less emphasis on traditional values and functions of marriage. The results of this research were theoretically more in line with the theories of egalitarian values, Parsonsian social support theory, and Long and Young's theory of changing roles. The data analysis revealed that the divorced women's feeling of lack of support from their families and social structures. In fact, lack of relevant institutions and social structures were the most important variables and factors that played the biggest roles in explaining and predicting the women’s lack of tendency to remarry. Also, there was a social capital erosion and the divorced women had a widespread mistrust and cynicism towards the unmarried men and the society in the same way as the unmarried men had towards the divorced women, which had resulted in the fear of accepting obligations and responsibilities in life. Moreover, there were negative attitudes towards women and uninterested beliefs in the cultural stereotypes of the society. Not having a spouse had the greatest impact on the divorced women’s reluctance to remarry. According to the results of this research, cultural changes and growths of egalitarian and individualistic values of independence and self-reliance based on financial and personal aspects had reduced the women’s tendency to remarry. These factors could be mentioned as the influencing factors in remarriage among the studied women. Introduction The phenomenon of divorce in Iran has been growing despite all social and cultural policies and plans during the last two decades. It has gone beyond the amount predicted in the 5th and 6th development plans and the plans of the policy-making institutions. Controling and reducing this phenomenon have not been very successful. The two events of increasing age of marriage and decreasing age of divorce in Iranian society have caused some sociologists and family activists to talk about the occurrence of the two phenomena of "late marriage" and "early separation". As one of the main points of population concentration in the country, Isfahan Province is considered as one of the most significant areas prone to social and cultural changes. Like other large cities of Iran, it has not been spared from damage in the family and interpersonal relationships. Various researches have shown the high rate of divorce, relationships before marriage, lack of commitment in relationships, and personal and family anomalies in this city (Qolizadeh et al., 2014: 40; Zarandi et al., 2016: 129). The meta-analyses of the researches that have been conducted in this field show the upward trend of reluctance of more than 60% of the divorced women to remarry in the society (Nasseri et al., 2018, 58) (Akbarzadeh and Hashemianfar, 1398: 179). Since there is always a part of changes in the field of marriage related to people, who have already had marriage experience, this article waas done with the aim of studying the sociological factors and sources that were effective in the divorced women’s tendency to remarry in the city of Isfahan. Materials and Methods The current research was a quantitative study in terms of nature and a survey type in terms of methodology. All the divorced women, who had a maximum age of 45 years, a divorce period of less than 10 years, and lived in Areas 15, 8, and 5 of Isfahan City constituted the statistical population of this research. From among the estimated 4265 women, 356 samples were selected by referring to family courts, welfare organizations, Imam Khomeini Relief Committee, as well as beauty salons and sports clubs based on the available sampling methods. Discussion of Results and Conclusion: The theoretical analysis of the data showed that the demographic changes of Iranian families were moving in the direction of increasing individualism. Such changes as rationality, individualism, cultural micro-systems in the field of marriage values, and criticism of traditions had taken place in the Iranian families. The iranian women had less emphasis on traditional values and functions of marriage. The results of this research were theoretically more in line with the theories of egalitarian values, Parsonsian social support theory, and Long and Young's theory of changing roles. The data analysis revealed that the divorced women's feeling of lack of support from their families and social structures. In fact, lack of relevant institutions and social structures were the most important variables and factors that played the biggest roles in explaining and predicting the women’s lack of tendency to remarry. Also, there was a social capital erosion and the divorced women had a widespread mistrust and cynicism towards the unmarried men and the society in the same way as the unmarried men had towards the divorced women, which had resulted in the fear of accepting obligations and responsibilities in life. Moreover, there were negative attitudes towards women and uninterested beliefs in the cultural stereotypes of the society. Not having a spouse had the greatest impact on the divorced women’s reluctance to remarry. According to the results of this research, cultural changes and growths of egalitarian and individualistic values of independence and self-reliance based on financial and personal aspects had reduced the women’s tendency to remarry. These factors could be mentioned as the influencing factors in remarriage among the studied women.

https://jas.ui.ac.ir/article_27374_2c13fcd722b7c4fb260a642afc9faf9f.pdf

University of Isfahan Journal of Applied Sociology 2008-5745 34 1 2023 03 21 Phenomenology of the Consequences of Women Heads of households' Perceptions of Social Support Phenomenology of the Consequences of Women Heads of households' Perceptions of Social Support 113 138 27180 10.22108/jas.2022.133767.2294 FA Golamreza Tabrizikahou Ph.D. Student in Counseling, Department of Psychology and Counseling, Aras International Campus, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran Keyvan Salehi Associate Professor, Division of Research and Assessment, Faculty of Psychology & Education, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran 0000-0001-8673-4248 Hossein Keshavarz Afshar Assistant Professor, Department of Psychology and Counseling, Faculty of Psychology & Education, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran Yaser Madani Assistant Professor, Department of Psychology and Counseling, Faculty of Psychology & Education, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran Journal Article 2022 05 26 Introduction Today, the number of female heads of households is increasing all over the world, especially in Iran, while everyone agrees that they are a vulnerable group, which needs to be supported. This support is often provided by families and friends, as well as governmental and quasi-governmental institutions. However, it seems that their perceptions about these supports are more important than the supports themselves. This study was designed with the aim of investigating these women’s perceptions about social support. Materials and Methods In this research, which was conducted through the phenomenological method, 21 participants from among the women heads of households in Mashhad City were selected by using a targeted method in the fall of 2022. Then, the maximum distribution process was followed until the theoretical saturation was reached. The participants told their stories about the mentioned supports during a semi-structured interview. After the completion of the interview phase, all the narratives were carefully reviewed and coded to provide the necessary background for comparison, classification, and recognition of differences. Again, the extracted classes were examined to see if they had sufficient descriptive power and implications for the data. The process of modification and revision continued until it seemed that the modified classes were compatible with the interview data. Then, the above classes were examined with the aim of drawing the results Discussion of Results and Conclusion The findings showed that the women heads of households were basically supported by the three sources of family, friends, and governmental and semi-governmental institutions. These supports were provided in the forms of emotional, instrumental, informational, and financial supports based on proximity to the recipients. Families offered them emotional and economic supports, but opposed their presence in the public arena. Friends offered a wider range of support to these women, including emotional, advisory, economic, occupational, and spiritual supports. Also, government departments and non-governmental organizations helped to develop their professional skills by holding empowerment courses in addition to providing economic aids, while the economic assistance of these institutions, could provide reproduction of poverty and debt crisis for many of these women if it were not consistent with the perspective of poverty alleviation. The interviewees believed that the strangers’ supports would put them under suspicion, so they avoided being close to any sources of support that might harm them. Also, mistrust, instability, and poisoning of the atmosphere had cast a shadow on the lives of the majority of them. The majority of the female heads of households showed a priority to go to their families and friends to receive emotional supports and some of them turned to official institutions to receive economic supports. However, the cultural consequences of widowhood, divorce, or celibacy had caused most of their interactions with these women. Almost all of them did not trust men and wanted their temporary presence while "living apart" just to meet their needs in most cases. Therefore, the mistrust, instability, and poisonous nature of the relationships, especially relationship with the opposite sex, cast a shadow on their request for support from all the three sources of family, friends, and governmental institutions, which provided the basis for appearance of contradictory perceptions of these supports. The two main axes of "trying to distance" and "rethinking a relationship" covered their perceptions of receiving supports. Due to lack of trust, some of them tried to distance themselves from others and minimize their levels of communication in this plagued atmosphere, while some others had created a kind of rethinking in receiving social support, ignoring the people’s judgments around them, and looking to meet their needs. On the other hand, the majority of the female heads of households had transferred their links to some groups in cyberspace; yet, the concerns of the real world were still there for them, except that the virtual space had increased their powers of bargaining and choosing. At the beginning of the loss of a spouse, the widows mostly needed an emotional support and as the mourning period passed, they showed their financial, instrumental, and informational needs. The divorced women also needed more emotional support at the beginning of separation and then they craved for other supports. This was while the single women prioritized financial, instrumental, informational, and finally emotional independence, respectively. The results revealed that the society defined a new identity for the women, who had become the heads of households. Therefore, they defined their relations with the society in a special framework that they mostly did not benefit from. The feelings of rejection and isolation, pity, alienation, insecurity, and discomfort were among these consequences. In such an environment, these women tried to use various solutions, such as hiding their guardianship, returning to their paternal families, defining new relationships, distorting social relations, restoring their identities, and overcoming the anxiety and psychological disturbance caused by guardianship. Such a lived experience, on the one hand, isolated and rejected them from within their groups, but on the other hand forced them to expand the radius of their social relations to secure a living and establish new relationships outside their groups. Naturally, social class is a determining factor in obtaining the opportunities and facilities that people have and can be the source of different inequalities. Therefore, being in a social class is an inevitable part of people's identities. The meaning of social class penetrates deep into the psychological system and forms a part of how one feels about oneself and others. It seems that ever since the theories and literature related to women heads of households have been formed, examination of their perceptions in their social classes and the feelings that come along with them have been an omitted element. However, examining individuals in their social classes is important because they can be a source of inequality. In this direction and in the context of time, families, friends, and governments have tried to promote women heads of households, who are in lower classes, to higher classes with their supports. Many of these studies show that the dissolution of the marital relationship is basically a stressful stage in the life of every female head of household (Bastos, 2009), because when a woman takes charge of the family, she has to draw a new identity for herself and start "redefining the relationship with the world outside herself" and adapting to the new situation. Going towards her family, friends, and official and unofficial institutions and redefining the people she is used to hanging out with are among her new relationships. Even now her social relations expand towards an unreal world. Therefore, some of these women turn to activities in cyberspace, a space that is full of structural contradictions for them, just like the real world. The narratives of the studied women heads of households about social supports showed that they tended to be supported by their families and friends. This result confirmed Habermas’s idea in this field: “Basically, a distinction should be made between the rationality of the social system (official body) and the rationality of the life world (informal groups).” Introduction Today, the number of female heads of households is increasing all over the world, especially in Iran, while everyone agrees that they are a vulnerable group, which needs to be supported. This support is often provided by families and friends, as well as governmental and quasi-governmental institutions. However, it seems that their perceptions about these supports are more important than the supports themselves. This study was designed with the aim of investigating these women’s perceptions about social support. Materials and Methods In this research, which was conducted through the phenomenological method, 21 participants from among the women heads of households in Mashhad City were selected by using a targeted method in the fall of 2022. Then, the maximum distribution process was followed until the theoretical saturation was reached. The participants told their stories about the mentioned supports during a semi-structured interview. After the completion of the interview phase, all the narratives were carefully reviewed and coded to provide the necessary background for comparison, classification, and recognition of differences. Again, the extracted classes were examined to see if they had sufficient descriptive power and implications for the data. The process of modification and revision continued until it seemed that the modified classes were compatible with the interview data. Then, the above classes were examined with the aim of drawing the results Discussion of Results and Conclusion The findings showed that the women heads of households were basically supported by the three sources of family, friends, and governmental and semi-governmental institutions. These supports were provided in the forms of emotional, instrumental, informational, and financial supports based on proximity to the recipients. Families offered them emotional and economic supports, but opposed their presence in the public arena. Friends offered a wider range of support to these women, including emotional, advisory, economic, occupational, and spiritual supports. Also, government departments and non-governmental organizations helped to develop their professional skills by holding empowerment courses in addition to providing economic aids, while the economic assistance of these institutions, could provide reproduction of poverty and debt crisis for many of these women if it were not consistent with the perspective of poverty alleviation. The interviewees believed that the strangers’ supports would put them under suspicion, so they avoided being close to any sources of support that might harm them. Also, mistrust, instability, and poisoning of the atmosphere had cast a shadow on the lives of the majority of them. The majority of the female heads of households showed a priority to go to their families and friends to receive emotional supports and some of them turned to official institutions to receive economic supports. However, the cultural consequences of widowhood, divorce, or celibacy had caused most of their interactions with these women. Almost all of them did not trust men and wanted their temporary presence while "living apart" just to meet their needs in most cases. Therefore, the mistrust, instability, and poisonous nature of the relationships, especially relationship with the opposite sex, cast a shadow on their request for support from all the three sources of family, friends, and governmental institutions, which provided the basis for appearance of contradictory perceptions of these supports. The two main axes of "trying to distance" and "rethinking a relationship" covered their perceptions of receiving supports. Due to lack of trust, some of them tried to distance themselves from others and minimize their levels of communication in this plagued atmosphere, while some others had created a kind of rethinking in receiving social support, ignoring the people’s judgments around them, and looking to meet their needs. On the other hand, the majority of the female heads of households had transferred their links to some groups in cyberspace; yet, the concerns of the real world were still there for them, except that the virtual space had increased their powers of bargaining and choosing. At the beginning of the loss of a spouse, the widows mostly needed an emotional support and as the mourning period passed, they showed their financial, instrumental, and informational needs. The divorced women also needed more emotional support at the beginning of separation and then they craved for other supports. This was while the single women prioritized financial, instrumental, informational, and finally emotional independence, respectively. The results revealed that the society defined a new identity for the women, who had become the heads of households. Therefore, they defined their relations with the society in a special framework that they mostly did not benefit from. The feelings of rejection and isolation, pity, alienation, insecurity, and discomfort were among these consequences. In such an environment, these women tried to use various solutions, such as hiding their guardianship, returning to their paternal families, defining new relationships, distorting social relations, restoring their identities, and overcoming the anxiety and psychological disturbance caused by guardianship. Such a lived experience, on the one hand, isolated and rejected them from within their groups, but on the other hand forced them to expand the radius of their social relations to secure a living and establish new relationships outside their groups. Naturally, social class is a determining factor in obtaining the opportunities and facilities that people have and can be the source of different inequalities. Therefore, being in a social class is an inevitable part of people's identities. The meaning of social class penetrates deep into the psychological system and forms a part of how one feels about oneself and others. It seems that ever since the theories and literature related to women heads of households have been formed, examination of their perceptions in their social classes and the feelings that come along with them have been an omitted element. However, examining individuals in their social classes is important because they can be a source of inequality. In this direction and in the context of time, families, friends, and governments have tried to promote women heads of households, who are in lower classes, to higher classes with their supports. Many of these studies show that the dissolution of the marital relationship is basically a stressful stage in the life of every female head of household (Bastos, 2009), because when a woman takes charge of the family, she has to draw a new identity for herself and start "redefining the relationship with the world outside herself" and adapting to the new situation. Going towards her family, friends, and official and unofficial institutions and redefining the people she is used to hanging out with are among her new relationships. Even now her social relations expand towards an unreal world. Therefore, some of these women turn to activities in cyberspace, a space that is full of structural contradictions for them, just like the real world. The narratives of the studied women heads of households about social supports showed that they tended to be supported by their families and friends. This result confirmed Habermas’s idea in this field: “Basically, a distinction should be made between the rationality of the social system (official body) and the rationality of the life world (informal groups).”

https://jas.ui.ac.ir/article_27180_dd3289ab937f26be43a69e6abde108c6.pdf