جامعه شناسی کاربردی (Sep 2021)
Exploring the Effects of Religiosity and Social Capital on the Political Satisfaction of the Citizens of Isfahan
Abstract
Introduction:Political satisfaction is so important for political systems at the national and international levels that the spread of political dissatisfaction in a society can dismantle the foundations of that system’s legitimacy. Among the factors affecting citizens’ satisfaction as emphasized in various theories, including Robert Putnam’s theory of social capital, the theories of traditional and rational culturalists, and sociologists' theories about religion, is the extent to which the citizens benefit from social capital and religiosity. Extensive political satisfaction, especially if done in an organized manner, prevents indifference, monopoly, and political, social, and cultural alienation. It also reduces political conflicts and social inequality and strengthens national solidarity. Although political satisfaction is a qualitative and mental state at first glance, it is affected by a variety of demographic and socio-economic structures. What is important is to identify the decreasing and increasing factors and also the process of this influence on the citizens’ political satisfaction. Based on the above explanations, the present study aims to evaluate and scientifically explain political satisfaction as a dependent variable and explain the effect of religiosity and social capital as two components affecting the political satisfaction of the citizens of Isfahan province. Reviewing the theoretical and empirical literature, the main hypothesis in this study can be formulated as follows: religiosity affects the citizens’ political satisfaction through the mediating variable of social capital directly and indirectly. Materials and Methods:The present study employed an applied descriptive-analytical research method and survey research approach for testing the hypothesis. The unit of observation and analysis was individual citizens. The statistical population of the study consisted of Isfahan citizens 18 years of age or older. The statistical sample size was 340 among the citizens of Isfahan province. To test the reliability of the research instrument and the generalizability of the results of the sample, 5% was added to the statistical sample and a sample of 395 people was considered. The present study used a cluster random sampling method for selecting the participants.Regarding the indirect effect of religiosity on political satisfaction through the baseline variables of social capital, the method of Preacher and Hayes (2008) was used. Accordingly, the coefficient of determination of the research model was 0.32. Also, the value of F 46.70 and the significance level of 0.00 showed that the research model has a favorable explanatory capability. Discussion of Results and Conclusions:Descriptive statistics showed that 180 participants were men and 215 were women, which made the sample more random. Among the selected participants, 203 of them were single and 192 were married. In the field of education, about 46.3% of the participants were at the undergraduate level and the average age of the respondents was 24.5 years. In terms of employment status, 224 (56.7%) of them were government officials. Therefore, the indicator in this variable was the job status. In the income ranking, income levels below 3 million Tomans per month had the highest frequency (44%) and income levels above 10 million Tomans per month had the lowest frequency (2.5%) among respondents.According to the research experimental findings, the citizens’ level of political satisfaction was at an average level (65.81%), lower than the expected average. Political satisfaction was measured at the three levels of political agents, political institutions, and rules and procedures of the system. In all three cases, the results were lower than the average. The average of political satisfaction in terms of rules and procedures (40.50%) was relatively higher than the other two dimensions, namely political activists (12.28%) and political institutions (13.03%). Also, based on the findings, social capital had a significant relationship with political satisfaction. In other words, with the increase of social capital among citizens, their level of political satisfaction also increased.The results of the study also showed that the variable of social capital in the two dimensions of social trust and social participation had a direct and significant relationship with political satisfaction as a general structure. As the findings indicated, religiosity also had a significant relationship with political satisfaction. This means that with increasing religiosity among citizens, their level of political satisfaction also increased. In addition, the variable of religiosity had a direct and significant relationship with political satisfaction as a general structure. The ritual and emotional dimensions of religiosity increased political satisfaction among the citizens, which can be the reason for the effect of the citizens’ presence in Muharram ceremonies, mourning delegations, and mass ceremonies such as Friday prayers, congregational prayers, etc. It seems that not only a religious government but also the participatory content of Islam and its teachings based on emphasizing people's participation in social and political activities and condemning indifference in social and political issues related to society and government were effective in this regard.
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