درخت حوزه‌های تخصصی

Purpose- The inefficiency of rural development policy as a multidimensional phenomenon is due to various factors and causes. It has adverse outcomes in rural areas and in different dimensions of the territorial (spatial), organizational and intersectoral activities. Since the present study has practical purposes, the analysis of the effective factors, and analysis of the effects of each factor in the process of inefficiency of rural spatial policies in rural areas are considered. Design/Methodology/Approach - The strategic question is: “What are the factors affecting the ineffectiveness of the planning policy for rural development in Iran?” To answer the question, an analytical methodology based on Delphi tool and interpretive structural modeling have been used. In this regard, a library method (research background) and questionnaires and interviews (experts’ opinions of the National Planning and Budget Organization, and the Provincial Management and Planning Organization- 20 people) were used to collect information. Factors contributing to the inefficiency of planning policy for rural development in Iran were determined. In the next step, using Interpretative Structural Modeling (ISM), the relationships between the factors affecting the ineffectiveness of the planning policy for rural development in Iran were specified and analyzed in a unified manner. Finally, using the MICMAC analysis, the types of variables are clustered according to the reciprocal influence on other variables . Findings- The results show that the factors of over-dependence on oil revenues, unstable rural development policy and centralized policy-making system, planning and decision making with the driving power of 16 have had the greatest influence and acts like the base of the model. In order to start and reform the structure of the rural development policy system in the country, it should be emphasized first. The factor of diversity, plurality, dispersion and underdevelopment of rural settlements with the driving power of 1 has the least influence.

Purpose- Social responsibility for environmental protection at all levels and strata of society is an issue that is explicitly emphasized in paragraph 14 of the General Environmental Policy of the Islamic Republic of Iran and the villagers as the main users of environmental resources are expected to take environmental responsibility without exception. The purpose of this study was to investigate and identify level of responsibility of environmental behaviors of villagers and determine social factors affecting it. Design/methodology/approach- In this research, the framework of social psychology was used and the research method was survey and cross-sectional. The unit of analysis is the rural individuals. The statistical population of the study is all residents of rural areas of Mazandaran province in 1398/2019. The sampling method of multi-stage cluster sampling was used. The number of study villages surveyed was 30 villages and the sample size was 536 people. The data required for the research were collected through a researcher-made questionnaire. Finding- The results showed that the level of responsible environmental behavior of villagers is at a moderate level. In addition, the results of multivariate analyzes indicate that there is a significant relationship between social psychological factors (religious beliefs, environmental values and environmental knowledge) and responsible behaviors towards the environment. In the final evaluation, it can be said that the modified model of social psychological factors seems a suitable model for studying factors affecting environmental behaviors in rural communities and can be useful as a model for conducting similar research in other rural areas of the country.

Purpose - The present study aims to examine the challenges and opportunities for local stakeholders' empowerment related to rural planning in Iran. In general, the current approach of planning process from making decision to implementation and monitoring is based on instrumental rationalism approach, irrespective of the villagers’ viewpoints. Urban – Rural divided planning has created some challenges for sustainable rural development and opportunities for improving environmental-ecological and socio-economic indicators, which have been ignored . Design/Methodology/Approach- Less attention has been paid to local stakeholders' empowerment in planning methods and procedures, which is regarded as an obstacle for the promotion of the indicators related to sustainable rural development. The present study was based on a descriptive – analytical method. Correlation test and multivariate regression were used to provide a meaningful framework. Library and field studies were used for data collection. Library method was used to understand the impact of policy implementation and planning approach on the socio-economic empowerment of local stakeholders for their socio-economic participation in sustainable rural development and the study of previous research experiences and other countries on appropriate planning. The statistical population of the study is 124 villages in south and southeast of Tehran. Random sample size for completing the questionnaire of local authorities at village level, using Cochran formula and its adjustment formula for small statistical population, with 95% confidence level and probability of 0.05 and prediction of variance S2 0.25 = sample size of 54 villages was achieved. In these 54 villages, 450 questionnaires were completed according to size by specifying sample size in each village .The validity of the research questionnaire was conducted by experts in organizations. The reliability of the questionnaire through Cronbach's alpha was 0.801. Findings- The results indicated that local stakeholder's generative empowerment is important although unproductive empowerment is increasingly overcoming. In addition, the possible effects of this process have been identified. Thus, problem-oriented planning is necessary for formulating a community-based approach optimally and strengthening social capital, which is not based on current instrumental rationalism approach. Thus, for the best planning with a community-based approach and the reinforcement of social capital, the group to convene is needed in the process and problem-oriented planning is important. This is inconsistent with the techno centrism rationalism approach.

Purpose- The aim of this study was to investigate the role of tourism development in the promotion of social welfare in rural East Azerbaijan province. Design/methodology/approach- The research paper is based on analytical-explanatory technique; it was carried out through a survey. The research population comprises the residents of the tourist villages. Five hundred (500) participants were selected as the sample size based on Cochran formula. Experts confirmed the face validity of the questionnaire. They performed a pilot study on 60 questionnaires within the same region. The applied questionnaire was 0.885 to 0.894 reliable based on the obtained data using Cronbach alpha. Finding- Spearman’s correlation test revealed that all research variables were positively and significantly related to tourism except sense of safety and security as well as improvement of consumption patterns. In addition, results of Mann-Whitney test showed that tourism and social welfare were more associated with tourist villages of East Azerbaijan than that of other non-tourist villages. In addition, the results of regression analysis revealed that 9 variables out of 11 obtained 89% of the variations. Accordingly, the variables of quality of life, occupation, and future expectancy have been more effective. Research limitations/implications- The recommendations in this research paper can be used in different areas of tourism management and development of villages in this region.

Purpose- To identify and prioritize factors influencing the creation of rural entrepreneurship opportunities in Iran Design/methodology/approach- A deductive approach was adopted. In this applied research, a mixed method was employed, which consisted of a descriptive-analytical method and a survey. The main data gathering tool was questionnaire. The research population comprised of university professors specialized in the field of rural entrepreneurship, rural entrepreneurs, rural managers and rural experts (n=30). In the first step, based on a review of literature, indicators influencing the creation of entrepreneurial opportunities were identified, and then the ANP-DEMATEL was used for evaluation and prioritization of the indicators. Findings- Based on cause-effect chart, the economic and infrastructural factors were assigned to the category of causes and individual, socio-cultural and political factors to the category of effects. On the other hand, the economic and political factors had the highest and lowest interaction with other factors, respectively. The results of the integrated analytical network process (ANP) and DEMATEL method showed that the economic factor had the greatest effect followed by infrastructural, sociocultural and individual components (with slight weight difference). The political component with the value of 0.1253 not only had the lowest importance, but was significantly different from other factors in terms of weight values. Research limitations/implications- Measuring the effects of factors influencing the creation of entrepreneurial opportunities along with their interrelation and mutual impact using a system approach or ISM technique. Practical implications- Given the myriad of problems affecting rural areas, such as unemployment, migration of rural labor to urban areas and diminished sense of belonging, among other things, it is essential to pay greater attention to entrepreneurship and its implementation to achieve sustainable rural development. Besides, by identifying the root causes and factors influencing rural entrepreneurship, it is possible to offer solutions for organizing entrepreneurship. If policy makers, planners, and rural managers adopt these strategies, sustainable rural development could be reinforced. Originality/value- Providing the most important indicators influencing the creation of rural entrepreneurship opportunities, prioritizing and measuring the impact of those factors on each other using ANP-DEMATEL method. In particular, the results of this research can benefit managers and decision makers in the field of rural entrepreneurship. The results can also be beneficial to universities, higher education institutions and students.

Purpose- Place attachment is not just dependent on the place of birth and, as phenomenologists have acknowledged, "experience," is the most significant element of the perception of concepts and meaning of a place; accordingly, meaning in a place is directly related to the way of human perception and its related categories. The main objective of the present study is to investigate and analyze the spatial-geographic factors affecting place attachment of the Kurdish immigrants in Rudbar, Guilan province. Design/methodology/approach- This study is quantitative in terms of the nature of the research and is descriptive-analytical in terms of data analysis. Data collection was done using library and documentary as well as field and survey methods. The statistical population of the study consisted of the Kurdish villages of Guilan province in Rudbar with 12 villages and a total population of 2,955 people. Using Morgan's table, the number of samples was determined as 340 people. To increase the level of confidence and reduce the error in data, the number of samples was increased and 355 questionnaires were finally completed. The validity of the questionnaire was confirmed by a number of professors in the geography department of Guilan University. Moreover, to determine the reliability of the questionnaire, Cronbach's alpha was run. The value of 0.874 was obtained for the coefficient. Findings- The results of the study showed that there was a negative relationship between the location of the villages and the level of education and place attachment of the villagers in the way that the more the distance between the villages and districts, towns, and cities, the lower the sense of place attachment of the villagers would be. Based on the coefficient of determination (R2), 4.5% of the variance of place in the rural households under study was explained by these indicators. Also, with the increase in the education level of the villagers, place attachment is reduced. On the other hand, there was a direct and positive relationship between the duration of residence in the village and place attachment to the village, which means that people who had lived longer in the village had also more sense of place. The obtained results showed the effect of spatial-geographic factors on place attachment of rural households. Based on the coefficient of determination (R2), 99.1% of the variance of place attachment was explained by spatial, economic, and socio-political factors. Research limitations/implications- A limitation of this study was the lack of easy access to the Kurdish villagers in the above-mentioned villages. Originality/value- By providing the ideal conditions for living in different spatial (geographical) dimensions, one can strengthen place attachment in the villagers and significantly reduce its harmful consequences. For instance, despite the great ethnic and cultural differences with the host society within a long period of residence, the immigrant Kurds in Rudbar have been able to have pleasant feelings towards their place of life and somehow attach to it due to the existence of certain desirable spatial, social, and economic features and potentials such as proper and safe physical environment, intergroup and intragroup interactions, as well as desirable areas for earning money and employment.

Purpose- Over the past few decades, tourism has played an important role in revitalizing the nature, creating employment and income, preserving natural, historical and cultural heritage, and ultimately sustainable development by utilizing the natural and cultural capacities of the region. Since tourism has different economic, social, cultural, and environmental impacts on host communities, awareness of the attitude of the host community as a tourism product provider is of great importance. The main objective of the study is to investigate the local residents' attitude toward mass tourism effects in Boyer-Ahmad County. Design/methodology/approach- The present study is descriptive-analytical in nature. It takes an empirical approach. The research instrument was a questionnaire with 82 items that gathered the information needed for the research. The sample size was calculated to be 195 individuals using PASS software at 95% of confidence level. One-sample t-test, ANOVA, Friedman, and Scheffe post-hoc tests were used to analyze and respond to research hypotheses in SPSS software. Finding- The results of t-test considering the significance level of the test and the high and low levels of confidence indicated the impact of tourism in the environmental, economic, social, and fundamental dimensions, while the results of ANOVA test showed that the average of each dimension was different. The results of Friedman test with a significant level of 0.00 have assigned the highest rank to the fundamental dimension.

Purpose - Rural production cooperatives (RPCs) play an important role in sustainable development in rural areas by considering three principles: domination, possession, and agency in the agriculture sector. The purposes of this study are to measure the stability of RPCs and presenting effective strategies to achieve it from the managers’ view point. Design/methodology/approach - The present study is a mixed-research method using analytic-descriptive method, including two different questionnaires. One questionnaire aiming at prioritizing and measuring the stability of the RPCs was prepared and presented to the members of RPCs. Stability was measured with 24 indices in three economic, social, and environmental dimensions using Shannon Entropy technique, according which the cooperatives were prioritized. The other questionnaire was prepared to present the best approach to achieve sustainable development from the view point of the managing directors and the board of directors. The best strategy was adopted using SWOT and ANP analysis. Findings - Regarding the sustainable development, the findings of the study indicated that among rural production cooperatives in Isfahan, 12 cooperatives were unstable, 8 cooperatives were semi-stable, and 8 cooperatives were stable; this type of farming system is semi-stable. Developmental strategy (SO) was adopted as the best strategy to achieve sustainability, and the focus was on endogenous development through reinforcing internal strengths to obtain external opportunities. It includes promoting self-reliance through increasing members’ participation in cooperative, empowering the staff and members (i.e. the experienced managing director and the staff with required specialty and expert holding promotional classes), using multilevel, multi-sectorial, multi-cluster, collaborative, and holistic approaches to manage the RPCs, and promoting systems based on collaborative team work. Practical Implications - In rural sustainable development planning, sustainable farming systems must be considered as the focal core of any development plan. Since a big part of farming system in rural areas is devoted to smallholdings, promoting cooperation culture by the rural development planners can prepare the ground for empowering the villagers to obtain sustainable development. Originally/value: For the first time in Iran, the current research attempted to present functional strategies for RPCs development using a mixed-method design.