عوامل اجتماعی_فرهنگی مرتبط با گرایش به خرافات در بین زنان ساکن در مناطق حاشیه‌ای شهر یزد

Superstition and superstitious beliefs are among the important concerns today to the extent that they could be considered social and cultural issues as they can influence human social life. This study examined the socio-cultural factors influencing the tendency towards superstition among women living in the slums of Yazd, Iran. The study was designed as survey research and the data was collected using a questionnaire with cluster sampling among 246 women living in the slums of Yazd. The validity of the questionnaire was confirmed through content validity and Cronbach’s alpha coefficient was used to assess the reliability. The findings of the study indicated that the variables of marital and employment status and social security had no significant relation with the tendency of participants towards superstition. However, the variables including age, socio-economic status, modernism, alienation, life satisfaction, social learning, social exclusion, and the use of mass media had a significant relation with the tendency towards superstition. The results of multiple regression analysis confirmed the significant relation of four variables of life satisfaction, social learning, modernism, and the use of mass media among which mass media had the strongest role in explaining the variable of the tendency towards superstition.
Keyword
Superstition, Modernism, Alienation, Use of mass media, Suburbanization, Women.
 
Introduction
Superstitions and superstitious beliefs are among the important issues of the modern world, to the extent that they can be considered as a social and cultural issue that can play an essential part in the social life of humans. The presence of superstitious beliefs among the people of the world and Iran is an undeniable fact. Some of these beliefs are rooted in myths, some originate from particular interpretations of religious principles, and some have been passed down through generations without anyone doubting or researching whether there is any truth to them. In general, superstition refers to the set of beliefs and behaviors formed mostly due to the ignorance and unawareness of humans regarding the causal connections between phenomena and do not comply with logical and scientific principles. As one of the religious and traditional cities of Iran, Yazd is home to a specific and distinct social atmosphere which has a great significance for the present study. Women in Yazd are more inclined to mourning, fear, and believing in fate and destiny because of the gender inequalities, lack of social presence, economic powerlessness, being limited to housekeeping, the patriarch system, and polygamy, and have resorted to superstition in search of a solution. Nevertheless, superstition is among the essential issues in Yazd that influence the beliefs and attitudes of the community. Thus, the present study investigates the socio-cultural factors influencing superstitious tendencies among women living in Yazd urban squatter settlements. Social learning is the theory explaining the phenomenon of superstition. According to the social learning theory, superstitious thoughts and beliefs are rooted in the culture dominating the society that influences generations through their impact on and infiltration into individuals. Thus, some superstitious social habits and cultural traits create superstitious thoughts, ideas, and imaginations in the individual, and the individual later influences other people as a source of spreading superstitions.
 
 
 
Method
The present research is a survey. The statistical population includes women (the age group of 18-64 years) residing in urban squatter areas of Yazd including Hasanabad, Sadrabad, and Eskan (Pardisan). Cochrane’s sampling formula with a 95% confidence level and an error probability of 5% was used to determine sample size (246), and 246 people were selected out of the statistical population as the statistical sample through cluster sampling.    A researcher-made questionnaire was the tool used in the present study, and content validity was used to examine validity. Reliability was also tested by Cronbach’s alpha.
 
Results
Women turn to superstitions since they are always disfavored by men and the community. This tendency is observed in both single and married women. Besides, our study target community were squatter residents from a low occupation class who were unable of covering their needs and wants, so they resorted to superstitions. Although inclination towards superstitions –which is considered as one of the irrational beliefs in every community- is more favoured in the absence of social security, results of the present research revealed that the feeling of social security is not associated with superstitions. Hence, the variables of employment status, marital status, and the feeling of social security were revealed to have no significant relationship with superstitious tendencies among women, while younger people and those with higher education or studying at the university were less likely to be superstitious.  A significant and positive relationship was observed between socio-economic status and superstitious tendencies since unemployed or low-income people tended to resort to superstition to fill their emptiness or wipe out the class difference. A significant and inverse relationship was observed between modernism and superstitious tendencies since the tendency towards superstitions declines with modernity and enlightenment. Moreover, self-alienation and superstitious beliefs had an inverse relationship as well since self-alienated individuals who deem no control and dominance over nature for themselves and have cut their ties with the community tend to resort to superstitions. A significant and positive relationship was observed between superstition tendencies and life satisfaction since people with low life satisfaction suffer from isolation and were mentally incapable of paying efforts to achieve what they want, so they turn to misguided methods such as superstitions. Social learning had a significant and positive relationship with superstitious tendencies since superstitions are traditional beliefs passed down from one generation to the next. People consciously and unconsciously learn others' behaviors through observation, and an individual present in an environment where a specific behavior is repeated more frequently is more likely to tend towards it. Moreover, the variable of social deprivation was revealed to have a significant and positive relationship with superstitious tendencies. In fact, people only resort to superstitions when they fail to reach their ideal situations and suffer from anxiety and fear of the future so that they can achieve peace and their desires. The use of mass media results in lower tendencies towards superstitious beliefs through raising people’s knowledge and awareness, and thus has a significant and inverse relationship with the level of superstitious tendencies in women. Results of multiple regression supported the significant role of the four variables of life satisfaction, social learning, modernism, and the use of mass media in the level of superstitious tendencies, among which mass media played the greatest role in reducing these tendencies.
 
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