Methodology of Social Sciences
amirhasan rezagholigol; aboutorab talebi
Abstract
The aim is to understand the relationship between the sacred space and the religious experience and to examine the structural relationship between the two through the way religious experience is formed in the four religious fields of Qom. The question is, what are the differences in the religious experience ...
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The aim is to understand the relationship between the sacred space and the religious experience and to examine the structural relationship between the two through the way religious experience is formed in the four religious fields of Qom. The question is, what are the differences in the religious experience patterns of activists in the sacred spaces of Qom? What are the differences in the religious experience of people in each of these fields? In this qualitative research, the data were collected through 20 semi-structured interviews and observation and were analyzed and reported using thematic analysis technique. results show that the religious experience of the activists affected by the unity of sacred structures and spaces is not the same as the religious space, and they are not simply derived from religious traditions and teachings, people find an important part of their understanding of the sacred in the sacred spaces, which are part of the social and life contexts. It is their daily life, they shape it intersubjectively and differently; Therefore, there is not one form and format of religious experience in all sacred spaces, and interactions occur in each sacred space that lead to different and special forms of religious experience
Sociology
Somayeh Rahmani; aboutorab talebi; Mohammadsaeed Zokaei
Abstract
Subjectivity is the reflexive experience of awareness and individual agency in interaction with oneself and with others in the real, symbolic, and institutional realms. This study aims to comprehend the social and semantic complexities of the subjectivity of Kurdish women. The research employed ...
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Subjectivity is the reflexive experience of awareness and individual agency in interaction with oneself and with others in the real, symbolic, and institutional realms. This study aims to comprehend the social and semantic complexities of the subjectivity of Kurdish women. The research employed theoretical sampling and in-depth individual interviews with 43 Kurdish women, supplemented by the formation of a focus group consisting of six individuals, within the interpretive-constructivist approach and grounded theory method framework. The findings reveal that the subjectivity of Kurdish women can be grasped through the central phenomenon of suspension. This experience was categorized into four concepts: suspension of cognition and agency, suspension of lived experience, conscious suspension of fear, and suspension as a strategy. Contextual conditions and institutional relations encompass normative institutions, regulatory institutions, minority status, and economic status while intervening conditions include experiences of subjugation, social connections, and available resources. Three types of strategies emerged: protection strategy, resistance strategy, and negotiation. Ultimately, this study demonstrates the intricate nature of subjectivity in Kurdish women's experiences, depicting it as fluid, mixed, and multifaceted, and existing within three categories of female subjectivity, passive-unembodied-internal subjectivity vs. embodied/active subjectivity, and delocalized subjectivity.
Keywords: Subjectivity, Suspension Experience, Power Relations, Lived Experience, Gender.
Introduction
This study focuses on the subjectivity of Kurdish women in Iran This study focuses on the subjectivity of Kurdish women in Iran. There has been a noticeable shift in attitudes, roles, and gender relations within Iranian society, with women now taking a more prominent role in the public sphere and challenging traditional gender norms. The increasing utilization of transnational communication and social networks has reduced governmental control over social relations, leading to the emergence of new power dynamics and associated conflicts. The intricate intersection of gender, ethnicity, and politics poses a significant challenge in exploring the subjectivity of Kurdish women in Iran. This research aims to investigate how to comprehend, interpret, and transform the subjectivity of Kurdish women within a specific social context characterized by institutionalized social powers.
Theoretical Framework
This study relies theoretically and conceptually on social constructionism and interpretation. According to this perspective, subjectivity is socially constructed, dependent on time, text, and social context, and it continually evolves. It is intersubjective and closely linked to power dynamics and resistance to domination. Individuals actively interpret phenomena, assign meaning to them, and subsequently act based on this understanding. Concepts such as reflexive awareness, practical awareness, and rethinking in Anthony Giddens' theory, as well as concepts of capital, habitus, and social field in Pierre Bourdieu's theory, are instrumental in framing the concept of subjectivity. Additionally, from a perspective theory standpoint, women's subjectivity is constructed by their social and historical position. Those occupying marginal positions in society may offer unique insights into power relations and social structures. Finally, intersectionality theory offers valuable insights into the intricate dynamics of gender, power, and resistance within society. It underscores that women's experiences of hegemony and resistance are diverse and not uniform.
Materials and Methods
The methodology employed in this research is grounded theory, drawing from the constructivist approach outlined by Charms (1995). The primary focus of the inquiry is Kurdish women in Iran. Sample selection follows a theoretical and purposeful sampling method. Data collection comprised individual and focused interviews, supplemented in some cases by participant observation. The interviews were conducted in-depth and followed a semi-structured format. The final sample selection was based on the centrality of the recurring and pivotal phenomenon identified in this research, termed the "suspension experience." Subsequent analysis utilized open, focused, and theoretical coding techniques. The research's validity was ensured through triangulation, facilitating multiple perspectives, documenting interviewees' reactions, and reflections on initial interpretations. Care was taken to offer comprehensive explanations, incorporate quotations, highlight diverse viewpoints on topics, and meticulously attend to detail.
Results
Based on the findings of this research, Kurdish women's subjectivity can be comprehended through the lens of the suspension experience, which emerges as a central phenomenon. This experience is elucidated through four key concepts: suspension of cognition and agency, suspension of lived experience, conscious suspension of fear, and suspension as a strategic approach.
Contextual conditions encompass categories such as normative institutions, regulatory institutions, minority status, and economic status. Intervening conditions are factors that accelerate, facilitate, maintain, or alter subjectivity through the experience of suspension, which serves as the central category in this research. Here, four main theoretical categories were identified: institutional relations (including family, educational, and governmental institutions), experiences of subjugation and oppression (with an emphasis on violence and discrimination), social connections (with a focus on non-family interactions), and available resources (with an emphasis on cultural, social, and economic capital).
Strategies refer to the methods that Kurdish women use to cope with their suspension experiences and optimize their conditions. The strategies of women activists are divided into three components: protection strategies, resistance strategies, and negotiation strategies. Social frustration, empowerment, and a reduced sense of social belonging emerge as consequences of the suspension experience.
The characteristics resulting from the suspension experience are multifaceted and intertwined. Kurdish women's subjectivity is divided into three areas: female subjectivity, passive-unembodied-internal subjectivity vs. embodied/active subjectivity, and delocalized subjectivity. Delocalized subjectivity requires the integration of pre-existing structural and identity elements with a rethought understanding by Kurdish women.
Conclusion
Given the prevailing social atmosphere in Iranian society and Kurdish women's self-awareness of their position, they undergo a form of suspension, which appears as a gap between action and reality, despite often clear boundaries. This gap, delineated by the women themselves in their narratives, seems to be widening over time. Centering on the experience of suspension is crucial for gaining insights into aspects of latent subjectivity or how it remains concealed before emerging. The properties stemming from the suspension experience are fluid and multifaceted, enabling individuals to navigate between various bases and social situations, offering opportunities for resistance at the intersection of constraints.
Aboutorab Talebi; Morteza Rostami Ghezeldaragh
Abotorab Talebi; Sajad Alizadeh
Abstract
The situation of ethnic minorities in Iran in terms of ethnic discrimination and inequality has been the subject of concerns and public debates both inside and outside Iran for decades, but the actual and concrete experiences of the ethnic groups within the modern institutions of Iran has rarely been ...
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The situation of ethnic minorities in Iran in terms of ethnic discrimination and inequality has been the subject of concerns and public debates both inside and outside Iran for decades, but the actual and concrete experiences of the ethnic groups within the modern institutions of Iran has rarely been the subject of empirical studies. The study of lived experiences of the Turks and Kurds within an influential institution like the university can deepen our knowledge of the ethnic functions of modern institutions in Iran. Therefore, using the qualitative and phenomenological approach, this article studies the ethnic lived experiences of the Kurdish and Turkish students focusing on experiences of discrimination and inequality in four universities in Iran. For this purpose, semi-structured interviews conducted with 35 students. Data were analyzed using the thematic analysis technique that resulted in 3 main themes and 8 sub-themes. The findings show that the university experiences for the Kurdish and Turkish students especially for the latter includes significant aspects of the sense of ethnic discrimination and inequality occurring especially around two lines of language and religion.
Sociology
Sedigheh Ramezani; Abutorab Talebi; Bagher TalebiDarabi
Abstract
From the seventies onwards, Iran saw the emergence of New Sprituality and the increase in the tendency towards it, primarily confined to fringe groups which later on spread rapidly among different classes. The present study examines the causes and contexts of this tendency among different groups of citizens ...
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From the seventies onwards, Iran saw the emergence of New Sprituality and the increase in the tendency towards it, primarily confined to fringe groups which later on spread rapidly among different classes. The present study examines the causes and contexts of this tendency among different groups of citizens in Tehran by using the factors mentioned in various theoretical approaches. To achieve this goal, 23 semi-structured interviews were first conducted with New Spiritualists. Then, according to the results of the interviews, a questionnaire was designed and distributed among 600 citizens of Tehran. Sampling was done purposefully in the qualitative section and randomly from the blocks of Tehran in the quantitative section. The interviews were analyzed by the thematic analysis method, and the quantitative data were processed through the SPSS software and various tests such as Pearson correlation and linear regression. The results indicated a significant relationship between five factors and the tendency towards new spirituality. The ethical stress, emotionalism, access to new spirituality, and experiencing suffering had respectively the strongest to the weakest direct relationships and deprivation had a reverse relationship.
aboutorab talebi; mahdi Montazeri Moghadam
Abstract
چکیده: این نوشتار ضمن پذیرش بحرانی بودن وضعیت علوم اجتماعی/جامعهشناسیِ ایرانی براساس طرحی نظرورزانه و شناختشناسانه، بحران را در نحوهی مواجه، فهم و خوانش این حوزهی ...
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چکیده: این نوشتار ضمن پذیرش بحرانی بودن وضعیت علوم اجتماعی/جامعهشناسیِ ایرانی براساس طرحی نظرورزانه و شناختشناسانه، بحران را در نحوهی مواجه، فهم و خوانش این حوزهی معرفتی تشخیص داده است. به همین سبب در گام نخست، مروری اجمالی بر زمینههای متعّین تاریخی، معرفتشناسانه و هستیشناسانهی شکلدهندهی معرفت نوین علوم اجتماعی/جامعهشناسی در مغربزمین نموده است.آنگاه، تلاش کرده تا نشان دهد فقدان همین زمینههای متعّین تاریخی، معرفتشناسانه و هستیشناسانهی شکلدهنده، ایجاد علوم اجتماعی/جامعه شناسی در ایران با دشواری بسیار مواجه کرده است. از این رو، برای اثبات مدعای خود به بررسی نظریات سه تن از اساتید ایرانی (محمدعلی همایون کاتوزیان، سیدجواد طباطبایی و پرویز پیران) پرداختهایم، تا نشان دهیم که نظریات علوم اجتماعی/جامعهشناسی ایرانیِ اکنونی امکان لازم برای شناخت جامعهی ایرانی فراهم نمیکند. در این نوشتار برای فهم این مسئله از روش شک دکارتی تبعیت نمودهایم که روشی است مبتنی بر عقل سلیم. نتایج و یافتههای این مطالعه بیانگر آن است که: 1. علوم اجتماعی/جامعهشناسی در وضعیت حاضر امکانات معرفتی کافی در اختیار اندیشمندان علوم اجتماعی ایرانی برای شناخت هستیِ اجتماعیایِشان فراهم نمیکند. 2. جامعهشناس ایرانی نیز در صورت اصرار بر فهم هونی امکان لازم برای شناخت جامعهی ایرانی فراهم نمیکند. در این نوشتار برای فهم این مسئله از روش شک دکارتی تبعیت نمودهایم که روشی است مبتنی بر عقل سلیم. نتایج و یافتههای این مطالعه بیانگر آن است که: 1. علوم اجتماعی/جامعهشناسی در وضعیت حاضر امکانات معرفتی کافی در اختیار اندیشمندان علوم اجتماعی ایرانی برای شناخت هستیِ اجتماعیایِشان فراهم نمیکند. 2. جامعهشناس ایرانی نیز در صورت اصرار بر فهم هستی جامعهاش و نظریهسازی در این حوزه
aboutorab talebi
Abstract
This paper investigates an aspect of new sectarianism with special emphasis on New Spirituality in Iran. It uses the theory of subjectivism proposed by Canadian thinker, Charles Taylor, alongside Fairclough’s critical discourse analysis to analyze signs of new spiritualism. Data was collected through ...
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This paper investigates an aspect of new sectarianism with special emphasis on New Spirituality in Iran. It uses the theory of subjectivism proposed by Canadian thinker, Charles Taylor, alongside Fairclough’s critical discourse analysis to analyze signs of new spiritualism. Data was collected through examining available resources and through deep interviews with advocates of this discourse. Examining available resources revealed that the semantic system of spirituality is as a discourse based on a number of themes and signs, including: centrality of the self, i.e. a journey from a life in line with external demands to an authentic, original life in the inside, individualism, holistic attitude, hybridity, and using psychology and individuality. Empirical studies have proven that the formation of new spiritualism as a discourse was an indication of internal conflicts and ambiguities in making sense of religious discourse. This issue was a challenge for the development of religious discourse and a threat to its face as the dominant discourse, which finally opened up the gates for discourse of spirituality. Studies indicate that this discourse is still in the phase of formation in Iran. In other words, it is not yet stable and its meanings are not yet clear, and, therefore, is far from turning into a hegemonic discourse.
