An Analysis of Rural Studies in Iran

In this article, having reviewed studies done through historical and documentary methods, on rural communities, the process of emerging rural studies was analyzed in three groups. The first group included monographs and writings which studied the rural society in general. These studies didn't have theoretical orientation to rural society and could be divided into two categories as general and special. However, monographic reports were of two types. Some of them were supplements to socioeconomic studies that had been conducted in rural areas and others were independent reports. The second group was historical and theoretical studies. They had theoretical orientation, the methodology of which was based on historical documents and historical analysis, and often had been affected by ideological values. The rural studies focused on political dimensions of rural areas and criticized the consequences of land reforms in 1340s (1960s). After the revolution, more emphasis on negative outcomes of land reform and systems of rural exploitation, changes in the systems of ownership, the forces of production, management changes, new social stratification system and changes in the power structure and developmental outcomes of the Islamic Revolution can be traced. The third group of studies had educational orientation. They discussed rural issues in the form of social science academic courses such as rural sociology and rural development. The final section of the article focused on weaknesses, needs, new subjects, problems and the use of new methodologies in rural studies.