Journal of Research and Rural Planning -پژوهش و برنامه ریزی روستایی

Purpose- Climate change has negative effects on the economic, social, and environmental aspects of rural households. Given the importance of the impact of climate change on the livelihoods of rural people, this study was conducted with the aim of reducing vulnerability and increasing resilience and adaptation to these conditions in Mashhad Township.Design/methodology/approach- The statistical population of the study is 11,706 rural households in Mashhad Township, out of which 372 households were selected proportionally by multistage stratified random sampling based on Cochran’s formula. The main tool of the research was a questionnaire whose validity was examined through content validity, structural validity, and reliability by composite reliability and Cronbach’s alpha (a= 0.9). The data were analyzed using SPSS and LISREL software. To examine the fit of the measurement model of the effects of climate change on sustainable livelihoods, the collected data were analyzed using second-order confirmatory factor analysis with LISREL software.Findings- The results of the study showed that the greatest impact of climate change was on financial capital, including income reduction, increased costs and increased product prices, reduced productivity and employment. In addition, the greatest effects of climate change on social capital include were on reduced sense of belonging and increased dependence on government support; on human capital include a were on reduced health levels and quality of life; and on natural capital include a were on reduced land resources and pressure and occurrence of hazards; and on physical capital were on reduced services and facilities for people. The research findings also showed that the goodness-of-fit indices (AGFI=0.91, GFI=0.91), (NNFI=0.91, CFI= 0.92), and (RMSEA= 0.073, X2/df= 2.97) confirmed an excellent fit of the measurement model of the effects of climate change on sustainable livelihoods with observed data. In addition, the results of structural equation modeling showed that the greatest impacts of climate change among livelihood capitals were respectively related to physical, financial, natural, social and human capitals.

Purpose-Women's participation in decision-making processes is a prerequisite for achieving sustainable development in local communities. However, despite the importance and necessity of involving all members of society in various aspects of development, unfortunately, due to various reasons (economic, social, cultural, and institutional), insufficient attention has been given to this matter. Consequently, the role of women's participation in rural development is significantly weak. Therefore, one crucial aspect of rural development planning is to focus on the participation of rural women and examine the obstacles they face.Design/methodology/approach -This research is descriptive-analytical in terms of its practical purpose and methodology. The data collection tools consisted of questionnaires and interviews conducted with a sample of 378 women from the villages of Lasht Nesha district in Rasht city. Descriptive statistics and exploratory factor analysis were used to analyze the data.Findings-The test results revealed that five categories of factors constitute the primary obstacles to rural women's participation in the villages of Lesht-nesha district. These categories include: the status of social capital, education, health, and social characteristics, explaining a variance value of 17.32% motivation, self-awareness, and cognitive characteristics, explaining a variance value of 16.83% financial and economic status and characteristics, explaining a variance of 12.43% beliefs, community customs, and cultural characteristics, explaining 8.86% of the variance; and justice, gender equality, and institutional-political characteristics, explaining 8.55% of the total variance.Originality/value - Overall, the results indicate that the barriers related to the social capital status, education, health, and social characteristics are more relevant to the participation of rural women.

Purpose- The purpose of this research is to identify and analyze the obstacles of developing tourism entrepreneurship among rural women in Oraman District of Sarvabad County, considered as one of the important poles of rural tourism in the country.Design/Method/Approach- This study is applied in terms of purpose; descriptive-analytical in terms of method, and mixed in terms of data gathering as a combination of two methods namely documentary (library) and survey based on observation, interview and questionnaire. The statistical population of this research includes rural women of Oraman District, and key informative and experts in rural development. The sample size was 97 samples among rural women occupying in the field of rural tourism in Oraman District and 50 ones of key informative and experts in rural development selected by snowball sampling method.Findings- The data analysis employing inferential statistics (chi-square, one-sample t-test and correlation) showed that, legal obstacles and weakness in policy making and planning with a mean score of 4.96, weakness in tourism infrastructure, services and facilities with a mean score of 4.53 and social and cultural obstacles with a mean score of 4.48 have higher priority, respectively whereas financial obstacles have the lowest calculated mean score (3.78) among the studied indicators. Also, the results of the correlation test revealed that rural women with a better and more favorable situation in terms of personality and background, i.e. with a higher education level and occupying in the field of rural tourism and more purposeful in life, have more tendency to enter the field of rural tourism and entrepreneurship. In addition, there is a negative relationship between the desirability of personality and background variables with the effect of identified obstacles on women entrepreneurship, which means that the better the personality and background variables are, the less the effect of the identified obstacles on women's entry into the field of tourism and entrepreneurship and innovation.Practical implications- The government as well as government institutions responsible for development in the area should first improve the tourism development environment in the studied rural areas and provide the conditions for the development of rural tourism in the area and prevent the region from moving towards stagnation in tourism, and then in the next stage entering more women into the field of tourism, make an attempt to direct them towards entrepreneurial activities.Original/value- There are many obstacles in front of rural women in the direction of turning to entrepreneurial activities in the field of rural tourism. Obviating these obstacles, firstly, requires identifying them and then applicable planning pertinent to each obstacle.

Purpose- Environmental issues such as the ecological footprint, are the product of intellectual, cultural, and economic factors. Therefore, it is necessary to know the variables effective on the amount of the footprint. The main objective of the present study is to investigate the factors affecting the ecological footprints of the rural settlements in Eslamabad-e Gharb County with a holistic and spatial approach. Design/methodology/approach- The present study is an applied one regarding the objective and descriptive-correlational regarding the methodology. In terms of the data collection method, it is a field survey. The statistical population includes 25% of the villages in Eslamabad-e Gharb County (40 villages). The sample size was determined as 500 households based on the latent and observable variables. The Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) was used to analyze the data. Also, the Geographically Weighted Regression (GWR) was used to investigate the effects of the locative-spatial factors on the research variables.Findings: The results of the Bootstrap test based on the T values indicated that the variables “ownership”, “environmental awareness”, and “consumerism” had the highest t-value and thus, were most correlated. The variable “ownership” in the economic structure is more correlated with the ecological footprint of the researched villages than other independent variables with a statistic of 26.053. overall, the analysis of the direct and inverse correlations in the SEM indicated that the variables “ownership” and “employment” were the most effective factors on the ecological footprint with coefficients of 0.874 and 0.575, while the “conspicuous consumption” was the least effective variable. Also, the results of spatial regression showed that the villages in the northwest of the county were more effective while moving towards the southeast and getting distant from the center reduces the effectiveness of the research variables on the ecological footprint.Research limitations/implications- The high rate of employment in the agricultural sector, the weakness in environmental issues training, and the high rate of livestock and agricultural ownership among a limited number of people have created obstacles on the road to the ecological sustainability of the region.Practical Solutions: Directing the residents of the researched villages towards non-agricultural employment by providing appropriate facilities and support, promoting an environment-friendly lifestyle, and training the residents to increase their environmental awareness by holding workshops in this field.Originality / Value: The present study is the first to use the SEM and spatial approach to investigate the factors effective on the ecological footprints of rural settlements. The results obtained can aid the planners and decision-makers in the field of rural settlements to advance the goals of sustainable development.

Purpose- The goal of this research is to identify institutional variables affecting entrepreneurship in Nesa rural Area in Karaj County.Design/methodology/approach-This is a fundamental, applied research that uses a descriptive survey method for data collection. The statistical population of the research comprises the residents of Nesa Rural district. The sample size was calculated using Cochran's formula (n = 216) and its distribution among the villages was proportional to the number of households in each village and the sampling was conducted using a simple random method. The research instrument is a researcher-designed questionnaire. In this research, the confirmatory factor analysis method was used to assess the validity and reliability of the questionnaire, and the partial least squares path analysis method was adopted to test the conceptual model of the research. The relationship between the variables was measured with the Pearson correlation test.Findings- The findings of the research on the state of entrepreneurship suggest that self-employment driven by a small family business approach, mostly without innovation, has been the predominant entrepreneurial activity in the study area. The results of the conceptual research model showed that the institutional variables of economic stability, transparency and accountability, and educational system and skills training have the most direct impact on the state of rural entrepreneurship. The analysis of fit indices of the model revealed that the coefficient of determination for the dependent variable of the rural entrepreneurial status was 0.683. Accordingly, the independent and mediating variables of the model can explain 68.3% of the variance in the rural entrepreneurial status, indicating the explanatory power of the model.Practical implications- The results of the research suggested that rural entrepreneurship is in a deplorable condition and despite the direct and indirect effects of institutional variables on rural entrepreneurship, institutional factors play a weak and inefficient role in rural areas. Hence, it is necessary to pay attention to the role of institutional factors such as political stability, enforcement of the rule of law among citizens, control of corruption, and payment of rewards in proportion to the endeavors and creativity of individuals to promote rural entrepreneurship.

Purpose- With the physical expansion of cities, some surrounding villages are incorporated into the city as new neighborhoods. These areas, due to their rural backgrounds, differ from newly developed urban neighborhoods in physical, social, economic, and cultural aspects. Social issues, particularly behavioral problems, are one of the challenges in these areas. The neighborhood of Noh-Dareh in Mashhad (with a rural background) faces such a challenge. The Saber Street (located in Noh-Dareh) is the intersection of formal and informal settlements and has a strategic location due to its proximity to the Kuh Park. However, the occurrence of certain inappropriate behaviors has led to a decline in its efficiency and attractiveness for residents. This study aims to propose design recommendations for Saber Street to improve user behavior patterns.Design/methodology/approach- This research is mixed-method (quantitative and qualitative). After collecting library resources (behavior, environment, and perception), user behaviors were identified by using qualitative techniques (observation, behavioral mapping, and interviews). The obtained data were then categorized into conditions, actions, and consequences through qualitative analysis using MaxQDA. Subsequently, based on the typology of existing micro spaces, design recommendations were proposed based on behavioral patterns.Findings- Behaviors in the micro spaces of the mentioned street are often solitary, involving short and unconventional pauses due to the lack of diverse activities, psychological insecurity, inappropriate lighting furniture, and inconvenient climatic conditions. These results are reduced identity and increased insecurity, social damages, and inefficiency of activities.Practical implications- To improve these conditions, it is suggested to enhance urban management control, adopt supervisory policies through the design of frontages, allocate collective activities in the space, organize various events, and provide welfare and comfort infrastructure and equipment.Originality/Value- Considering the presence of social conflicts in neighborhoods with rural backgrounds, such as social damages, activity inefficiency, and ultimately resident dissatisfaction, the innovation of this study lies in identifying the context and causes of inappropriate behavioral patterns in these neighborhoods.