Social Policy Field in Iran; Analyzing of Power Relations in Social Policy Process in Iran
Author: Yaser Bagheri, baghery.yaser@gmail.com
Department: social welfare
University: Allameh Tabataba'i, Iran
Supervisor: Dr. Ghaffari
Year of completion: 2018
Language of dissertation: Persion
Keywords:
Social Policy in Iran
, Power Relation
, Social Policy
, battleground
Areas of Research:
Poverty, Social Welfare and Social Policy
, Social Classes and Social Movements
, Organization
Abstract
The main research problem in the present study concerns the configuration of social policies and the policy making process in Iran. The significance of the subject arises from the importance of the policy audience, obscurity of power relations in this field, improper outcomes of social policies (despite the considerable costs), and the gap between the academic community and activists of the field. The research was conducted using qualitative method and formative evaluation, relying mainly on critical content analysis, and emphasizing the subjectivity of the three subjects of the interviewee, the researcher and the audience. As evident in the findings of the research, the social policy field in Iran is comprised of three elements of battlegrounds, social policy streams, and institutional actors. The three-valued logic (social justice, public acceptability, economic growth) is what defines the configuration and the conditions of possibility of policy in the field. Based on the research outcome, a historical individual is dominant in the policy making filed in Iran, which is indicative of a “non-social restoration system”. This system cannot be attributed to the left ideology nor it could be restrained by the right. However, it can be stated that right activists have had a more active role in the history of post-revolution social policy.
