Mortaza Firuzi; Seyed Hadi Zarghani; Hadi Azami; zahra nasimi
Abstract
There have been many changes in geographical names throughout history. After the formation of the modern nation-state in the Middle East and then the spread of nationalism in the region, geographical names played a significant role in their national identity. This method of naming also holds true for ...
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There have been many changes in geographical names throughout history. After the formation of the modern nation-state in the Middle East and then the spread of nationalism in the region, geographical names played a significant role in their national identity. This method of naming also holds true for the name of the Persian Gulf. The name of the Persian Gulf has been used as the most common name in history. In this respect, despite a great deal of research on the name of the Persian Gulf, there has been little research linked to the Persian Gulf entry in Ottoman and Turkish lexicons and encyclopedias.This paper focuses on the entries of the Persian Gulf in early modern Turkey and the Ottoman lexicon and encyclopedia, which were written before the establishing of modern nation-states in the Middle East. This research is new to his field, as no research was found regarding the Persian Gulf entry in the Turkish and Ottoman lexicons and encyclopedias. In this research, by adopting a descriptive-analytic method, the associated entries in the seven Turkish and Ottoman sources were translated and analyzed.The results of this study show that the entries of the Persian Gulf hold a special place in modern Turkish and Ottoman sources. When it comes to the Persian Gulf, they used Baṣra Körfezi, Baḥr-i Fârs, and ʿAcem. These names are equal to one another, and there is no preference for their use. Furthermore, it was only used in the Ottoman era. However, the Persian Gulf has always been used both before and during this period, and also in the post-Ottoman period.
Malihe Akhbari; seyed hadi zarghani; Masoud Minaei
Abstract
Border security refers to prevention of any act against the law along official borderlines of a particular state and regulation of the trans-border passage of individuals, goods, and domestic animals through legally allowed border crossings while carefully observing legal rules and obligations. Every ...
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Border security refers to prevention of any act against the law along official borderlines of a particular state and regulation of the trans-border passage of individuals, goods, and domestic animals through legally allowed border crossings while carefully observing legal rules and obligations. Every nation tries its best to keep the borders totally blocked except for particular border crossings where trans-border passage has been allowed upon previous agreements. Many factors affect border security of a country. The plans and policies adopted by countries to appropriately and effectively control their borders are among the most important factors contributing to security performance along the borders. In this respect, careful locating of police stations and border outposts impose large contributions to efficiently control and management of borders and the establishment of security along the borderlines and within the border area. The present study aims at investigating and analyzing the factors affecting border outpost location with the help of remote sensing and geographical information system (GIS) software tools. In order to extract, examine and analyze the required information, images taken by the OLI sensor on Landsat satellite in 2018 were loaded with ENVI 5.3 software where remote sensing and GIS techniques as well as fuzzy inference system and analytic hierarchical process (AHP) were utilized. Finally, output map was classified into three classes, namely suitable, moderate, and unsuitable land uses. It should be noted that the analyses were performed using 13 criteria, namely land use, slope, border right-of-way, territory of existing outposts, right-of-way of protected zones, road access, territories of cities and villages, power transmission lines, watersheds, water channels, railways, and faults.
zahra nasimi; seyyed Hadi Zarghani; omid ali kharazmi
Seyyed Javad Mousavi Zare; Seyyed Hadi Zarghani; Moustafa Amir Fakhriyan
Abstract
Soft power and its manifestation are among the topics that have found way into academic circles and policy-making with the help of Joseph Nye. Despite the widespread popularity of the concept, Nay's lack of precise theoretical explanation has led to many ambiguities about this form of power. So ...
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Soft power and its manifestation are among the topics that have found way into academic circles and policy-making with the help of Joseph Nye. Despite the widespread popularity of the concept, Nay's lack of precise theoretical explanation has led to many ambiguities about this form of power. So that despite the abundance of literature, researchers still do not fully understand the theoretical nature of soft power That What exactly is soft power? And what elements is it made of? These are issues no valid answer for which has yet been found. Therefore, this research, relying on the data theory of the foundation and content analysis, seeks to analysis the elements affecting this power at the state-nation level. Based on this, the scientific findings of the research indicate that If the elements of soft power at least to the resources, tools, mentality of the actors, the behavior, effects, and movements of the actors under the exercise of power are limited. In a general contents, the concept of soft power at the state-nation level is : a process in which the stimuli (material and spiritual resources) of a country through attractive behavior and in the form of non-violent tools (types and forms of diplomacy) on people's minds (Elites and public ) influences and causes to effects, movements and behaviors, etc., in order to change the mentality and behavior of the target community towards the agenting country.
seyed Hadi Zarghani; Fayyaz MazloumYar
Abstract
AbstractThe creation of countries based on borders is the product of the second half of the nineteenth century, and Afghanistan is one of the first countries to be established on this basis. Afghanistan's current political borders are imposed, largely influenced by the political struggles and rivalries ...
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AbstractThe creation of countries based on borders is the product of the second half of the nineteenth century, and Afghanistan is one of the first countries to be established on this basis. Afghanistan's current political borders are imposed, largely influenced by the political struggles and rivalries of British and British power in Tsarist Russia in the 19th century and during the Great Game to prevent a direct confrontation between the two powers in Central Asia. They set up a barrier between themselves and established the country's political borders through several treaties. Meanwhile, the Durand Line and the issue of Pashtunistan are very important because the developments in Afghanistan after the signing of the Durand Line entered a new phase that over time and major changes such as Britain's withdrawal from the subcontinent and India's independence not only failed. With the advent of Pakistan and the conflict of interest between the two neighboring countries, the complexity of events has increased and continues to this day. The present study, using descriptive-analytical methods and citing reliable library sources, seeks to examine the role of major powers such as Britain and Russia in shaping Afghanistan's political borders, especially the Durand Line, and its negative consequences for Afghanistan and its role in creating differences between Afghanistan and Pakistan. The results show that regional and supra-regional powers, especially Britain, played a role in shaping Afghanistan's borders, and Durand's mystery is one of the leftovers of British-Indian colonialism, which has now become a source of discord between Afghanistan and Pakistan and its negative consequences. To Afghanistan has included land closures and lack of access to open waters, support and rise of political instability in Afghanistan, global insecurity, the collapse of the social system, and so on.
Seyyed Hadi Zarghani; Maliheh Akhbari; Neda Chareie; Najmeh Mahmoudi
Abstract
Abstract Countries that are inferior to their neighbors in terms of water supply(upstream) are often passive. In particular, if they are unable to obtain the favorable agreement their neighbors (in a shared basin), they will face challenges and conflicts with them. The opposite is also true; sometimes, ...
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Abstract Countries that are inferior to their neighbors in terms of water supply(upstream) are often passive. In particular, if they are unable to obtain the favorable agreement their neighbors (in a shared basin), they will face challenges and conflicts with them. The opposite is also true; sometimes, upstream countries use this situation as a political tool to put pressure on the opponent and gain more points. This research, using a descriptive-analytical method and citing reliable sources, seeks to study and analyze Turkmenistan's hydropolitical bottlenecks in relation to its neighbors. The paper assumes that Turkmenistan's geographical location and hydropolitical situation in terms of water supply is such that the country will face major challenges with its neighbors. Findings show that Turkmenistan is in a downstream position towards most of its neighbors. This issue potentially (Iran) and actually (Afghanistan and the four Central Asian republics) will create grounds for a hydropolitical challenge for Turkmenistan in relation to its neighbors. While the impact of some variables such as climate change and drought persistence, increasing urbanization and lifestyle changes and consequently a sharp increase in water consumption and the need to produce some strategic agricultural products, will intensify the hydropolitical crisis between Turkmenistan and neighbors in the near future.
Seyyed Hadi zarghani; sajed bahramijaf; rr sa; mm ss
Abstract
Border areas are geographical areas that, despite their high capacity, are sometimes neglected in accordance with their specific conditions. Due to their distance from the center, geographical isolation, etc., these areas have huge differences in terms of welfare and development with the central centers, ...
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Border areas are geographical areas that, despite their high capacity, are sometimes neglected in accordance with their specific conditions. Due to their distance from the center, geographical isolation, etc., these areas have huge differences in terms of welfare and development with the central centers, and the creation and operation of border markets can moderate the one-way relationship between the center and the surrounding area and improve regional well-being. . This study examines the impact of Shushmi border market on the development and welfare of Nosud city in Kermanshah province using descriptive-analytical method. The statistical population of this study consisted of all cocoons, merchants and other operators as well as citizens of Nosud. The sample size was selected based on Cochran's formula of 320 people and the questionnaire was distributed among them. SPSS software (Cronbach, regression, correlation) and LISREL software were used to analyze the data. Based on the results obtained from linear regression, the economic variable has the highest correlation with the development and welfare of border residents. Among other dimensions, the results of the correlation test showed that the social component had the highest correlation with the research components.
Moharram Mashayekhi; Seyyed Hadi Zarghani; Omid Ali Kharazmi
Abstract
Extended Abstract
Introduction
In a world of international communications and interactions, cities are studied as geographical regions within an atmosphere of streams built upon direct connections between cities (Najati Hosseini, 2011). In other words, cities play a significant role in the global ...
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Extended Abstract
Introduction
In a world of international communications and interactions, cities are studied as geographical regions within an atmosphere of streams built upon direct connections between cities (Najati Hosseini, 2011). In other words, cities play a significant role in the global politics, economy, and the restoration of global management. In the globalization age, cities can be introduced as key players within the frameworks of decentralization policies and interactive actions between cities and provide the means for increasing interactions in areas including information technology, economy, society, and culture (Acuto, 2012). Therefore, in today’s world, the development and progress of cities highly depend on communications and interactions between them at a transnational level. In fact, modern cities are regarded as spatial-geographical territories that enter transnational interactions and assume international roles. The subject of urban diplomacy is a tool used for studying the role of urban geographical regions in international interactions. Urban diplomacy can be defined as institutions and processes through which cities serve the purpose of demonstrating their capacities and interests in one another in relation with other actors as well as within international politics (Pluijm & Melissen, 2007). During the past few years, Mashhad metropolitan area has managed to take a bold step in the direction of growth and development at both national and international levels through progress in areas such as industry, science, tourism, etc. The backgrounds and requirements for Mashhad metropolitan area to play a role within the urban diplomacy framework is an important subject which is examined in the present study.
Method
The present inquiry is an applied study conducted using the descriptive-analytical method. This study seeks to provide answers to the following question: How is the position of urban diplomacy in Mashhad metropolitan area with focus on transnational actions of municipality and universities? Data were collected using library studies and by referring to valid sources, along with field observations and gathering the comments of experts through interviews and questionnaires.
Results and Discussion
The analysis and examination of the findings show the active role of Mashhad municipality and universities in the context of urban diplomacy development. According to the results of SWOT model, the perceivable reality is that, given the high position of Mashhad metropolitan area in Iran and the Islamic world, the activities carried out under the present conditions with regards to urban diplomacy development of this city have not been acceptable and significant. There is a need for organized planning and more scientific actions, particularly in the municipality sector and universities. Based on the findings from the IE matrix (the internal-external factor assessment matrix) the urban diplomacy in Mashhad metropolitan area is currently at a conservative position (wo). The conservative position denotes that to develop the urban diplomacy in Mashhad metropolitan area, the internal weaknesses should be mitigated using external opportunities.
Conclusion
Considering its exceptional capacities in religious, historical, scientific, cultural, and geo-cultural areas, Mashhad metropolitan area can play an influential role in the context of urban diplomacy and particularly, religious and scientific diplomacies, both at regional and the Islamic world levels. However, the findings of the study point to a number of challenges faced by this city along this path. According to the results of SWOT model, despite the strengths (10 strengths) of Mashhad metropolitan area in the context of urban diplomacy development, there exist multiple weaknesses as well which are subject to systemic inadequacies. Moreover, regardless of the effective roles of universities and scientific centers in Mashhad in the field of international scientific interactions during the past few years, urban diplomacy development in this city requires making use of opportunities, esp. efficient planning and policymaking in the area of municipality and universities’ transnational interactions. As a result, Mashhad metropolitan area can rely on increasing the transnational interactions of municipality and universities and making use of external opportunities to mitigate its internal weaknesses in line with urban diplomacy development.
Seyyed Hadi Zarghani; Mahdi Badakhshan
Abstract
Extended Abstract
Introduction
Electoral geography discusses "the geographical aspects of elections and referendums, the organization of such events (particularly their results), and the cultural and economic conditions at different local, regional, and national levels" (Moyer, 2000, p. 225). The ...
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Extended Abstract
Introduction
Electoral geography discusses "the geographical aspects of elections and referendums, the organization of such events (particularly their results), and the cultural and economic conditions at different local, regional, and national levels" (Moyer, 2000, p. 225). The Elections are one of the main manifestations of democracy in the modern era, and it has become more important than ever with respect to the role of people in determining rulers. Democracy is known as the lawful management of a political society which is executed through the mechanism of transferring the population's will to governance for the administration of countries; thus, elections are indeed considered as the most significant manifestation of democracy. An extensive spectrum of situational and geographical factors influences electoral decisions, and, in general, each study discusses only one aspect of this spectrum. In fact, the outcome of various elections is influenced by spatial and geographical variables at individual and social levels. Additionally, there are factors and actors at local, regional, national, and even international levels which affect the outcome of elections.
Theoretical Framework
The geography of election is one of the branches of political geography focusing on geographical regions as the platform for electing representatives at local, regional, and national levels. The most important electoral geography constituencies are comprised of factors such as "the spatial organization of elections, the spatial diversity of voting patterns, and the relationship with the demographical indexes, the effect of environmental and spatial factors on the voters’ decisions, the spatial patterns of representation, and the role of components such as power and politics in voting patterns" (Kavianirad, 2013, p. 34). In fact, the geography of election focuses on various geographical aspects of elections, and referendums and their organization and results in particular while considering the cultural, economic, and other conditions influential at various local, regional, and national levels. the spatial analysis of election results can offer a specific spatial perspective to determine the approach of each constituency for the candidates, as well as the elections, and also to better identify the factors affecting the voting process (Zarghani & Razavinejad, 2013).
Methodology
The present study is considered as a descriptive-analytical research. Data collection was carried out using library and document studies. The geographic, economic, political, cultural, and social variables are considered to affect the people's vote and the voting pattern of candidates. The neighborhood, as well as the ethnic and religious characteristics, is one of the most important factors affecting the candidates' voting pattern. This study analyzes the role of the three variables of neighborhood, religion and the rural and urban residence on the voting pattern of candidates of the tenth parliamentary election based on authoritative library resources and statistical data in Qayenat and Zirkouh electoral areas.
Results and Discussion
There are various factors and variables involved in people’s decision for voting in favor of one or more candidates from among a number of candidates. In fact, during the process of elections, voting patterns for candidate in elections are a function of components such as the candidates’ characteristics and individual features, as well as political, economic, and sociocultural macro variables and finally the characteristics and personal features of voters. For example, personal characteristics such as age, gender, education, religious beliefs, ethnicity, and spatial attachment might play a role in the person’s decision for voting in favor of a certain candidate. Other effective variables are dependent on the personal characteristics of the candidate, and finally the political, economic, ideological, cultural, and social variables – in both macro and micro scales – can influence citizens’ electoral behaviors.
In fact, variables such as age, gender, degree of education, ethnicity and religion, economic status of voters, and the individual and personality characteristics of the candidates including gender, educational level, power of expression, background and social status, executive and management background, ethnic ties and economic base have a significant influence on the number of people voting for candidates. Finally, more general economic, social and political variables such as governments and other policies and actions of actors, religious leaders and ethnic groups are also influential in this regard.
Conclusion
The results of this study as well as other similar studies on the spatial analysis of parliamentary votes in Iran show that the following factors influence Iranian people’s electoral behavior, ultimately leading to the formation of different voting patterns for the candidates, including ethnicity and ethnic groups’ behavior, religious and ideological variables, the neighborhood variable and the effect of birthplace, the economic variable and the type of economic base, and personal and personality traits of both the voters and the candidates. The research results in the form of tables and maps indicate that the neighborhood variable plays an effective role in the voting pattern of candidates. In addition, the religion factor and Sunni religious minority have also been effective in their voting pattern so that Sunnis are more likely to welcome the reformist candidates similar to presidential elections. Finally, despite the difference in the number of candidates’ votes in urban and rural areas, voters' residency in urban and rural areas has no significant effect on the voting pattern independently, and this variable is influenced by other factors, including the neighborhood, ethnic, regional, and religious variables.
Mahdi Bazargan; Mohammad Rahim Rahnama; Mohammad Ajza Shokouhi; Seyyed Hadi Zarghani
Abstract
Extended abstract
Introduction
Today, robbery, as one of the most widespread and abusive kinds of crime in most of the countries including Iran, has become a widespread and serious problem that has various social, economic and security dimensions. Over the past few decades, with the advent of advanced ...
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Extended abstract
Introduction
Today, robbery, as one of the most widespread and abusive kinds of crime in most of the countries including Iran, has become a widespread and serious problem that has various social, economic and security dimensions. Over the past few decades, with the advent of advanced tools, crime mapping has become a major issue for scholars and thinkers in analyzing and distributing geographic spatial distribution of crime, in order to examine the spatial perception of criminals with greater spatial accuracy. Crime analysis, and in general, geographic crime studies look for spatial representation of criminal acts to know how to disperse crime, and identify mass crime cores. The main purpose of this kind of attitude and analysis of crime is to provide patterns to reduce the incidence of crime in the urban space. Studies show that some urban spaces have higher rates of crime due to their physical, social and economic characteristics, and vice versa, some spaces prevent and deter crime within themselves. On the other hand, it has been proven that criminal offenders often make logical choices and seek the simplest, least risky and most suitable opportunities and conditions for the time and place for committing crime. Accordingly, the study intends to identify and analyze the spatial masses of burglaries in the Mashhad metropolis.
Therotical Framwork
Theft is to steal something secretly. The crime center is the area where the average crime rate is more than the periphery. This place can be a house, a street corner, a shop or any other place.
Unprotected urban spaces are areas of cities that are more suitable for crime than other physical urban areas. The occurrence of crime in one place produces an outline map, in which the spatial distribution of offenses is well represented. It also shows the flow of basic crime patterns in the region. Time-based patterns of crime can be displayed seasonally, monthly, weekly, and day-to-day. The most important spatial patterns of crime are as follows: A) Scattered pattern: In this pattern, crime is spread throughout the study area and is not clustered or concentrated like the status of houses that are located across the scope of the robbery due to the inadequate design features of these locations. B) Cluster Pattern: These types of criminal events are clustered in one or more special spaces within the scope of the study. For example, sports stadiums can be be the focus of a myriad of offenses related to vehicles. C) Point pattern: This particular type of crime conforms to a particular criminal location. For example, shopping mall parkings in the center of a busy city can be of such kind where all delinquency events are created in a special place.
Method
The method of research in this research is purposeful, applied and descriptive-analytical. ArcGIS and Surfer softwares were used to analyze the data. The statistical population of the study, including theft crimes, occurred in the time period from 2011 to 2016 (9152 cases) in Mashhad, the information was obtained from the awareness police of Khorasan Razavi province.
4 .Results and Discussion
The results of the research show that between 2011 and 2016, the highest rate of theft occurred was in the year 2015 and the lowest rate was in the year 2012. Among the areas of Mashhad, zone 11 of Mashhad with 0.26% in 2015, the lowest level of theft and zone 2 with 17.16% in 2011, has the highest rate of robbery. Also, the highest rate of robbery is in Samen area. The results of the standard deviation test indicate that the depth and direction of development of theft in the city of Mashhad stretch from the northwest towards the southeast. After investigating the spatial distribution of high crime scenes during 2011-2016, Khawja Rabih area was identified as the main center for theft.
5 .Conclusion
In the new millennium, due to the expansion of urbanization and the emergence of metropolitan areas, a variety of urban issues including increased crime rates have become particularly evident. Crime is a phenomenon in which human beings with all the facilities and scientific advancements have not been able to control it and increase it.. In fact, delinquency is a very complex social phenomenon that can be seen in different social environments. The source of delinquency must be sought in the social and economic structures and the disadvantages they derive from them. In the case of a spatial and temporal context, the grounds for crime and its repetition are provided, and over time, a geographic environment becomes a mass crime center.The results of the present study show that corrupt crime pillars in Mashhad are often located in defenseless urban spaces such as marginalized areas and worn out texture. Thus, plans must be made to control and reduce crime in these areas.
Seyed Hadi Zarghani; Ebrahim Ahmadi
Abstract
1- INTRODUCTION
Geopolitical code is considered as a set of political – geographical presumptions related to infrastructure of foreign policy of a country, so that any country has its various and exclusive codes and usually operationalizes these codes based on geopolitical weight and nature of ...
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1- INTRODUCTION
Geopolitical code is considered as a set of political – geographical presumptions related to infrastructure of foreign policy of a country, so that any country has its various and exclusive codes and usually operationalizes these codes based on geopolitical weight and nature of its goals and exploits them. Supposed Iraqi codes in this paper are investigated based on mentality of Ba'ath government of Saddam rather than main goal of Iraqi state to attack Iran. Most considered Iran-Iraq war as the result of Saddam greed in Algerian treaty, but it seems border disputes on Arvand is not the only factor of conflict. Occurring revolution in Iran made condition that Saddam convinced others to accept his desired picture of Iranian revolution with the help of some western power and Arabian countries. So, using this excuse he can accompany Arabs with himself through stimulating nationalism sense of them. In fact, main goal of Saddam in attack Iran was to meet goals like being first regional power, seizing energy sources of khouzestan, entering to Persian Gulf through hegemony on Arvand (overcoming Iraqi geopolitical dilemmas). Mentioned cases are assessable in the frame of intended geopolitical codes of Saddam.
2- THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK
Geopolitical codes are operational agenda of foreign policy of a country - beyond its borders- that assesses geographical places. In geopolitical codes, a country determines its behavior towards the world – thereby, it considers five following issues:
1. Who are our potential and present allies?
2. Who are our potential and present enemies?
3. How we can keep our allies and make potential allies?
4. How we can confront with present and newfound enemies?
5. How we justify 4 above issues to our society and global society.
Geopolitical codes of any country are specifically for that country and they try to affect geopolitical codes of others to meet their interests and goals. In this regard, today redisplay (geopolitical depiction) under title of a geopolitical code is one of the powerful tools to reasonably manifest actions of foreign policy of governments. Thereby, geopolitics of display as an entity of a geopolitical code indicates enemy needs justifications (redisplays) to begin a war. In this case, enemies are displayed as wild or evil and their policies are manifested unreasonably. It means that they do not appreciate value of their political situation and the war is the only way to control “their unbridled” forms. It seems, it is necessary to identify geopolitical codes, since they act as a logical and justified base for actions of foreign policy.
3- METHODOLOGY
This research is based on descriptive – analytical in terms of nature and method. Information has been gathered in attributive method, referring to valid sources. Main question of this research is how we can assess the role of geopolitical codes of Iraq in attack Iran? Assumption of research is that questioned geopolitical codes by Saddam (as he intended) were one of the main reasons for Iraq and Ba'ath party to attack Iran. In this paper, first, codes of Iraq attack that have been operationalized by frightening from Iranian revolution (prerequisite of codes) indicate 3 main goals of Saddam, namely, being the first regional power, achieving energy sources of khouzestan, and entering to Persian Gulf through hegemony on Arvand (overcome on geopolitical dilemmas of Iraq).
4- RESULTS & DISCUSSION
Although disputes on Arvand is considered as the only factor of Iran-Iraq war, real geopolitical codes of Saddam to justify war were beyond them (1975 Algerian Agreement). Indeed, cases like geopolitical dilemmas of Iraq in access to sea (Persian Gulf) through absolute hegemony on Arvand, access to oil regions of south ( khouzestan ), being Umm al-Qura of Arabian world and the first regional power can be considered as the main goals of Saddam (his geopolitical codes) rather than excuse of 1975 Algerian Agreement. Many of observers believes that decision of Saddam Hussein was his personal calculative mistake based on ambition and feeling of vulnerability. Perhaps, it can be said, one of the reasons of misunderstandings of Saddam was his idealistic, myopic and deviated attitude in regard to policy of the region and the world. He did not know political realities and so, acted based on his ideals and ambitions (his mental presumptions) and finally, he was led toward false calculations and significant mistakes due to nature of his decision making. So, Saddam presumption on Iranian condition (domestic anarchy, collapse of army and weakness of military forces, international sanctions) was never occurred because it was dreams of Ba'ath party, Saddam and Arabian kings, rather than product of collective wisdom and correct interpretation of geography and geopolitical condition of Iran.
narges hajipanah; Seyed Hadi Zarghani; Omid Ali Kharazmi
Abstract
1. Introduction
Nowadays in most of the countries in the world there is a growing trend towards decentralization and development of local governments. One of the most cited reasons for this issue is the fact that most of the countries apply the decentralization process as a method for enhancing the ...
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1. Introduction
Nowadays in most of the countries in the world there is a growing trend towards decentralization and development of local governments. One of the most cited reasons for this issue is the fact that most of the countries apply the decentralization process as a method for enhancing the performance of public sectors and the economic development in as much as the central government without local governments faced a challenge in making relationships with the citizens. Due to the increasing expansion and variations in the duties of governments on the one hand and the increasing demands of cooperation on the part of people and private institutions, on the other hand, the governments are forced to see the political and managerial decentralization as an important and effective strategy and to reconsider the spatial pattern of power distribution in the country. The factors and grounds for the formation of local government consist of general substructures like geographical, political-legal, sociocultural and economic-financial factors. For constructing each of these substructures, there are a host of different factors which require a comprehensive analysis. The fact is that local government has been currently turned into an indispensable necessity in the world and a country like Iran, which has a centralized structure, is no exception. The present study, based on the systemic thinking approach, has explored the influential factors in the formation of local government in Iran and the main focus is on identifying and exploring economic-financial aspects. It also attempts to indicate and present the role and relationship of economic-financial factors, as one of the most important and influential components in the formation of local governments, in the form of a model based on the systemic thinking approach and by using Vensim software.
2. Theoretical framework
The increasing growth of public-oriented local institutions and their necessary function in the management of general affairs of the country have led to the consideration and emphasis of local orientations. In the implementation of local government, each country, based on its political, economic, cultural, geographic and demographic requirements, must organize the aspects of local government and enhance the efficiency of management in the local governments. In a more precise term, local governments must be formed and developed based on their own specific and unique strategic patterns. According to the ideas of scholars, the most important and influential factors in the formation and establishment of local governments can be categorized into four main categories: geographic, economic-financial, political-legal and sociocultural factors. The present study explores and identifies the effective economic-financial factors in the formation of local government based on the systemic thinking approach. The systemic thinking is a powerful method in dealing with the highly complex managerial issues. Nowadays, the dominant attitude in the management of organizations is the systemic thinking and this method is especially applied in the regional and urban planning. Based on this method and in the framework of the present study, we can describe and explain the mutual and multiple relations of economic-financial factors with each other and with the whole system. For example, the reduction of dominance of central government on economic affairs can lead to an increase in the responsibility and decrease of corruption which in turn can lead to more efficiency in the performance of public sectors and economic growth. Therefore, it can be asserted that with the formation of local government, the extent of economic power of central government becomes moderate and the accountability increases. In addition, the amount of economic corruption reduces and a condition can be provided for economic growth and efficiency of public sectors. In such a thinking, as the influence and impact of an element become high in a system, such an element must be considered as a more influential and critical element in the system. The change in this element can also affect the whole system.
3. Methodology
The present study analyzes and explores the role of economic-financial factors in the formation of local government in Iran based on the systemic thinking method. In fact, it is an applied research in terms of results and an exploratory one in terms of objectives. The main objective of the study is identifying and prioritizing the effective economic-financial factors and their relationships in the formation of local government. In addition, the existing challenges in this aspect are analyzed and these influential factors are presented and explained in the form of a model by using Vensim software. The necessary data are collected using library and field-based approaches and in the latter case the use is made of quantitative and qualitative approaches. In the quantitative phase, the sample of study are forty scholars of local government and in the qualitative phase seven of these scholars are selected for interview using the snowball sampling method. In order to identity the extent of effects of economic-financial factors in the formation of local government in Iran and to prioritize the extent of effect of each relevant factors, the researchers used independent-samples t-test and Friedman test, respectively. In order to draw and design the causal diagrams based on the systemic thinking method, the Vensim software was utilized.
4. results& discussion
In spite of the fact that economic and financial centralization has some revenues, it has some disadvantages like lower general/public supervision, higher grounds for corruption, reduction in accountability and weaknesses in economic efficiency. Therefore, financial decentralization is the pivotal solution which, from 1980s, has been welcomed by many countries as a developing strategy. In the present era, the role, function and responsibility of local governments for providing services and substructures have been increased to a great extent. Nevertheless, the local institutions and organizations are still dependent on the central government for the provision of financial resources and these resources are both inadequate and unpredictable. Therefore, the analysis and recognition of the role of economic-financial factors in the formation of local governments, because of their important and substantial role for such a purpose, are highly important. In the present study, the influential role of these factors in the formation of local government were explored and the field study findings with regard to the effective role of each of these factors and their relationship with each other and the whole system were presented in the form of a model. Therefore, by studying the literature on the issue of concern and by considering the theoretical principles the important factors like “reduction of political patronage of the local government on financial affairs, preference of qualitative growth to quantitative development, possibility of more precise reception of taxes from people, high economic centralization and the resulting disadvantages, reduction in bribery and corruption rate, reduction in the expenses of central government, decentralization as an effective tool for increasing the efficiency of public sector and economic growth” were extracted. In addition, the results of interviews add other factors like “oil income of Iran” to the identified factors. On the whole, the above mentioned factors, from the viewpoints of scholars and based on library and field-based studies, were identified as the main factors in the formation of local government in Iran in the economic-financial domain.
5. conclusions & suggesyions
After recognizing the min influential factors in the economic-financial domain, the extent of effects and functions of these factors was designed in form of a model using the Vensim software. The results of this study revealed that factors like the dominance of central government over economy, increase in the efficiency of public sector, economic growth and preference of qualitative growth over the quantitative one are among the main and critical elements in the system and, thus, have a higher degree of influence compared to the other variables. In addition, the findings of study indicated that among the identified economic-financial factors, the issues like the increase in the efficiency of public sector and economic growth, economic centralization and its disadvantages and the expenses of central government have priority over the other factors in terms of their degree of influence.
Seyed javad Mosavi; seyed hadi zarghani; hadi azami
Abstract
Extended Abstract
1. Introduction
Science and technology play a geopolitical role in the global geography of power which is called the power of science and technology. In this regard, statesmen emphasize on science and technology as a key source for the promotion of geopolitical prestige as well as ...
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Extended Abstract
1. Introduction
Science and technology play a geopolitical role in the global geography of power which is called the power of science and technology. In this regard, statesmen emphasize on science and technology as a key source for the promotion of geopolitical prestige as well as a fundamental tool for improving their people’s standard of living. In other words, science and technology are not only considered as one of the main factors of national power, but also play fundamental role in strengthening other dimensions of national power such as economic, military, territorial, political, cultural power, and so on. Therefore, the study of indicators and variables demonstrating the power of science and technology is very important in terms of evaluating the scientific and technological power of countries and comparing them to each other, as well as analyzing the function and influence of scientific and technological power on other dimensions of national power, such as territorial, military, political, economic, cultural dimension, and so on. This study intends to explore and recognize the most important variables and indicators shaping the scientific and technological power of countries and describe it in a conceptual model.
2. Theoretical Framework
Although power is one of the terms that there is no general consensus about its meaning, it can be defined simply as the dominant ability of the individual, society and government over the opinions and actions of others. However, this phenomenon has the special place in the political geography literature, particularly in geopolitics. The scholars in geopolitics and international relations fields along with the statesmen have always concerned about the components and factors of national power and actually indicators can accurately reflect the nature of national power. Generally, national power is considered as a combination of the material and spiritual capacities of a country. More precisely, the national power of countries is arisen from the diverse sources such as land and geography space, human resources, military, scientific and cultural capabilities. Meanwhile, science and technology in the opinion of most scholars is one of the main components of national power. In this framework, if science, on its general concept, refers to any kind of consciousness about objects, phenomena and relationships; and technology is defined as the systematic use of scientific information and other systematic consciousness for practical purposes; and also, innovation is considered as the equivalent of putting creative ideas into a new product or service, power of science and technology will be defined as a power of human which is appeared by the ability for knowledge generation, knowledge application, innovation and skilled human resource training. Obviously, variables and indicators of scientific and technological power have a fundamental impact on other dimensions of power such as economic, military, territorial, political, and social power.
3. Methodology
This study has been carried out with the reference to materials of library and fieldworks in descriptive-analytical method. First, in the library step, the most important variables and indicators influencing on scientific and technological power of countries in 102 indicators was gathered referring to reliable sources. In the next step, these indicators were classified in terms of their nature and function in six factors including human resources, financial and economic factors, mediator, information and communication technology (ICT), academic output and performance in strategic sciences. Then, in fieldwork part, the importance of the indicators of each factor, as well as the prioritization of the six factors of the scientific and technological power were determined in fieldwork approach and a questionnaire was prepared by domestic and foreign experts. Accordingly, a researcher-made questionnaire consisted of 108 questions was designed in both Farsi and English based on the Likert scale. Then, regarding the interdisciplinary nature of the research, professors and experts in various fields of political geography, international relations, science and technology policy, economics with an emphasis on economic development, strategic management, management and strategic planning were asked to fill out the questionnaire. Finally, more than 300 questionnaires were provided to internal and external experts and field analysis was based on the filled out questionnaires.
4. Findings and Discussion
The results of this research in two parts of the library and fieldwork show that the phenomenon of the power of science and technology, like national power, has a mixed nature; in other words, since this concept is influenced by the various fields including human resources, financial resources and information technology, it requires a combination of operational indicators to define itself and consequently, assess the power of science and technology. Accordingly, the combinative model of the power of science and technology is proposed as the result of research in the form of six conceptual factors on the priority importance order (economic factors, human resources, scientific output and innovation, information technology, performance in strategic sciences and mediator) with 44 operating indicators.
