Perception of the Local Community in the Eastern Region of Golestān Province Regarding a Good Village

Document Type : Research article - extracted from the dissertation

Authors

1 Ph. D in Geography and Rural Planning, Department of Human Geography, Faculty of Geographical Sciences, Khārazmi University, Tehran, Iran.

2 Associate Professor of Geography and Rural Planning, Department of Human Geography, Faculty of Geographical Sciences, Khārazmi University, Tehran, Iran.

3 Professor of Geography and Rural Planning, Department of Geography, Payam Noor University, Tehran, Iran.

Abstract

A "good" village is a settlement that, according to the attitudes, ideals, norms, standards, needs, common and desired desires of the majority of its residents, is called "good". Therefore, the qualitative concept of "being good" takes place in the bed of local social experiences and awareness that live in the village environment and are closely related to the socio-geographical space of such areas. So, this research aimed to identify the characteristics (in the form of development principles) of a good rural settlement in the eastern of Golestān province (Kalāleh, Minoodasht and Gālikesh cities). The present research was epistemologically subjectivist, methodologically interpretive, and qualitative in terms of research method. The participants were villagers residing within the geographical area under study. Using purposeful sampling based on criteria such as topography, temperature, elevation, land use, distance to urban centers, accessibility (communication facilities and networks), the presence of a rural development plan ("Hādi" plan), and in consultation with local experts and specialists from the Housing Foundation of the Islamic Revolution, 15 villages were selected. In these villages, through purposeful and theoretical sampling, theoretical saturation was reached with 87 participants. In addition to the library method, based on fieldwork, semi-structured interviews and an interview checklist containing key questions were employed to understand the local community’s perception of a "good village." Within the framework of the Grounded Theory Methodology (GTM), following the transcription of the interviews, open, axial, and selective coding were performed. Based on the analysis, 349 concepts, 81 subcategories, 29 main categories, and 13 selective categories were identified. According to the findings, from the perspective of the local community in the eastern region of Golestān Province, a "good village" is one characterized by a sustainable environment, high social capital, capacities for employment development, a thriving system of economic activity, adequate welfare and infrastructural facilities, capable local management, continuous interaction with governmental management, a physically distinctive and identifiable landscape, information technology, a spirit of advocacy, collective and convergent social behavior, strong rural-urban linkages, a participatory spirit, and a strong sense of place attachment.

Highlights

  • From the perspective of the local community, the concept of a "good village" is multidimensional and integrated.
  • The categories of advocacy spirit and physically identifiable landscape were discovered in the present study as distinct from findings in previous research.
  • Attention to the discourse of the local community in determining the substantive and procedural principles of rural development planning is both essential and inevitable.

Keywords

Main Subjects


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