Document Type : Original Article
Authors
1 Corresponding Author, Department of History of Islam, Bent al-Hoda Higher Education Complex, Qom, Iran / Department of History and Civilization, Faculty of Studies of History and Islamic Civilization, Ma'aref University, Qom, Iran.
2 Researcher of Ziarat Research Institute, Department of Social Sciences, Ferdowsi University, Mashhad, Iran.
Abstract
Keywords
Main Subjects
چکیده تفصیلی
Introduction
In December 2000, the United Nations designated December 18 as International Migrants Day due to the increasing number of immigrants worldwide (Shaban Azadi, 2009). Pressure factors are considered to be among the most important reasons for migration and include social, political, and economic problems that encourage immigrants to leave their homeland (Portes and Burroughs, 1989). Iran's geographical location and the Islamic Revolution in Iran made Iran the fourth most immigrant-receiving country in the world (Mohammadi et al., 2019). Women also constitute half of this population and play an important role in accepting the socio-cultural roles of the destination society. Research has shown that in the qualitative dimension, women are not just subordinate immigrants, but also have an active role and independent presence in the migration process (Sadeghi and Valadvand, 2015). Migration patterns to Iran show that women seek personal, identity, and social development and use it as a strategy for survival (Moshfegh and Khazaei, 2022). The phenomenon of migration definitely affects women's lives, and hearing the lived experiences and narratives of immigrant women is important for further understanding and discovering its consequences. The present study aimed to better understand the lived experiences of immigrant women and answered the question: What are the causes and consequences of Afghan immigrant women's migration to Iran based on their lived experiences?
Method
The present study was conducted with the aim of identifying the situation of immigrant women in Isfahan using a qualitative grounded theory method. Scientists have identified three situations as indicators for applying the grounded theory method: "First, when there is little information about the issue under study; second, when the researcher intends to create a theory with explanatory power; third, when there is a process in the subject under study and the researcher's goal is to recognize and understand the behaviors of individuals in specific situations" (Birks and Mills, 2011). The data were collected using in-depth semi-structured interviews. The population of the present study was Afghan immigrant women aged 20 to 55 living in Isfahan. 23 of them were selected for the study through the judgmental sampling until theoretical saturation was reached in the data obtained from the semi-structured interviews. In line-by-line analysis, 481 raw data were obtained. Using two procedures, namely, posing questions and comparing data and returning to the data, concepts were extracted from the raw data. The number of concepts extracted in this stage was 12 concepts. During coding, attention was paid to Strauss and Corbin's paradigmatic model.
Results
The findings showed that women immigrants to Isfahan, after experiencing the socio-scientific life in this city, have understood and transferred to a different feminine identity. The researcher's theoretical inference is that the causal conditions are security-seeking, the search for a transcendent identity, and the socio-cultural poverty of the origin society, and the existence of hegemonic pressures against women in the origin society. Intervening conditions such as the acceptance of the host society, a similar cultural background, and the existence of the shrine of Imam Reza have an effect on the experience of women's transcendent identity. The background condition of being in Iran, having free time, continuing education, critical thinking, and a desire for personal development have forced Afghan immigrant women in Iran to adopt a definitive strategy of acquiring a new feminine identity and scientific, cultural, and social strategies such as attending scientific societies in the host city, increasing self-efficacy and continuing education, organizing mental, linguistic, and social communications. The central phenomenon in the present study is "internal migration as the transcendence of the identity of a Muslim woman". Internal migration means that the immigrant has revised her mental values and personal beliefs. The causal conditions of this phenomenon included "female identity vacuum and search for security".
The final strategy, the definitive strategy, is the acceptance of a new identity based on the understanding of female superiority, which has caused the internal migration of immigrant women to Iran. The data obtained from the experiences of women show that the socio-religious and bio-experience of these women has changed during migration, and the cultural-religious environment of Iranian society has caused Afghan immigrant women to not act passively by modeling themselves on the identity of Muslim, Shiite, and Iranian women, but rather to purposefully and selectively choose scientific, cultural, and social strategies.
The consequences of this process can be categorized into three dimensions: cultural, social, and political. Familiarity with the culture of Islamic Iran, change in the experience of scientific and educational life, the most important cultural outcome, cooperation and collaboration with the host society and celebration of national and religious occasions are social outcomes and familiarity with the political values of the Islamic Republic in the form of the host society, creating a spirit of resistance and anti-arrogance, honoring the category of martyrs and martyrdom and familiarity with the great men of the Islamic Revolution are the most important political outcomes derived from the experience of immigrant women to Isfahan. The result of the present study has shown an increase in the feeling of satisfaction with the lives of immigrant women to Iran. This inner satisfaction is due to the acquisition of a feminine identity in the cultural, religious, political and social context of Iranian society and the realization of internal migration as the elevation of the identity of Muslim women.
Conclusions
The present study aimed to investigate the factors, contexts, conditions, and consequences of the lives of Afghan immigrant women in Isfahan using a qualitative grounded theory method. The findings of the study showed that acquiring a female identity for immigrant women is a multidimensional and complex phenomenon that is formed in the context of conflict between the culture of origin and the culture of destination. Despite economic problems, spouse unemployment, psychological problems of being away from family, and even the cultural differences of the new society they encountered, the immigrant women studied in the present study were able to manage all of these issues, enter the field of action, and take appropriate activities. It was also proven that women play an active role in the migration process (Sadeghi and Valadvand, 2015). The results showed that immigrant women living in Iran have experienced a change in their female identity by being present in a different socio-religious environment, and the theory of acquiring female identity by Twitts and Warshop (1997) was proven. Berry's theory considers acculturation as a learning process (Berry, 2005; Sam and Berry, 2006). In the present research, it was proven that immigrant women to Isfahan started their lives in a new socio-cultural context and acquired a new identity. A notable point in these interviews was that none of these women felt dissatisfied with life in the host society, and Giddens's theory of cultural integration and assimilation was proven (Giddens, 2008). The activism of immigrant women based on the acceptance of a new feminine identity is a new thing that has been less addressed so far and is one of the innovations of the present study.
Author Contributions
All authors participated equally in the design of the study, writing the article, and editing the final versions.
Data Availability Statement
Data available on request from the authors.
Acknowledgements
The authors would like to express their gratitude to the "respected officials of the Honar Isfahan Husseinieh" who provided spiritual and scientific support for this research.
Ethical Considerations
Cases such as falsification of data, distortion of results, plagiarism, and any other unethical behavior have been strictly avoided in this study.
Funding
This study was conducted without receiving any financial support from government, commercial, or non-profit organizations.
Conflict of Interest
The authors declare that there are no conflicts of interest in connection with this study. In other words, there were no financial or personal interests that could affect the results of the study.
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