A Study of the Effects of Converting Villages into Cities on the People's Lifestyle Case Study: Khaf and Roshtkhar Counties in the Khorasan Razavi Province

Various socio-cultural and economic factors change the lifestyle of the people due to the changes of villages into cities. Lifestyle preferences of the people are demonstrated in leisure activities, clothing, nutrition, body management, architecture and interior design of houses. This study is aimed to examine social, cultural and economic factors that may have an impact on the lifestyle of the residents of the villages that have been converted into cities in the Khorasan Razavi Province, namely Khaf and Roshtkhar counties. According to available information between the years 2002 -2004, three suburbs called Nashtifan, Salami and Jangal were converted into cities. Theoretical research based on the theories of Ibn-Khaldun, Weber, Veblen, Simmel, Bourdieu, Giddens and Cheney have been developed. The research method was based on a survey, and a questionnaire was developed to collect data. The results show that more changes in the lifestyles of the people in the cities Salami and Nashtifan were caused by cultural factors and those in the Jangal have been caused by economic factors. Also the results show that there is a significant relationship between social participation, political and administrative organizations, ways and means of communications, individualism, identity and relationships, indirect and secondary classes as factors of social, cultural and educational facilities, wasteful consumption and cultural capital as cultural factors, consumerism, shopping, tendency towards speculative interests, fading support of joint economic prosperity as economic factors and lifestyle.