Small Towns and Sustainable Development of Urban Peripheral Settlements Case: Khosf

In order to achieve a balanced and integrated development of spatial planning in developing countries, the creation of a balanced and systematic hierarchy of settlements is one of the basic needs. In this regard, attention to small cities is one of the equilibrium solutions to this situation. The first urban nuclei associated with rural areas are small urban centers that are considered as connecting the rural areas with large cities. The purpose of this study is to investigate the functioning of the small city of Khosf in the development of its peripheral rural areas, This research is practical and in order to nature and method are descriptive-analytical method and documentary, library and survey methods. This study was conducted with a sample size of 384 questionnaires in 16 villages among household caregivers residing in the villages of Khosf city. In this research, a one-sample t-test was used to test the hypotheses and statistical software. The results of research findings in four dimensions of economic, social, cultural and health aspects of Khosf city showed that the city of Khosf, as a mediator, was successful in providing services to its rural spheres of influence, as well as the provision of services.