A Sociological Analysis of Periods of Shiite Hadith Sciences

The main issue of the current study is sociological examination of the periods of hadith sciences with the approach of basic methodology and the method of analysis of historical texts. During the six historical periods of hadith sciences, almost half of which have been growing and the other half have been declining, some factors such as belief in the adequacy of existing hadith works, the weight of the shadow of sciences such as jurisprudence and theology on hadith along with inappropriate division of labor, the prevalence of extremist rationalism, political repression and cultural turmoil, have declined hadith sciences, and factors such as individual characteristics of narrators such as questioning, being obligation-oriented and scientific interactions, political and economic support, the differentiation of scientific roles, the existence of an efficient educational system, the formation of organizational and group activities and easy access to scientific resources, have led to the growth of hadith sciences.