نوع مقاله : مقاله پژوهشی
نویسنده
استادیار، عضو هیئت علمی دانشکدۀ م.ا. فرهنگ و ارتباطات، دانشگاه امام صادق (ع)، تهران، ایران
چکیده
کلیدواژهها
عنوان مقاله [English]
نویسنده [English]
Extended Abstract
Introduction and Objectives: Analyzing approved sociology programs from the perspective of their connection with scientific and discursive identity in relation to macro-scientific policies and upstream documents related to Iranian higher education is important, because the expansion of the social sciences without considering the goals stated in policies imposes various undesirable intellectual and material consequences on higher education and society. A review of the history of the social sciences and sociology in Iran shows their epistemological and theoretical connection to the discourses and values of numerous actors at the levels of policymaking, planning, and implementation.
If we accept that macro-scientific policies act as a plumb line for bestowing scientific and discursive identity upon Iranian higher education, their violation or deviation in programs and disciplines indicates a strategic challenge. In policy research, the conventional values of society are taken into account. The social sciences, and sociology in particular, are among the modern sciences that have been used mainly for cultural-political purposes since their inception. In this sense, sociology was a tool for political purposes during the Pahlavi era, rather than an epistemological domain whose historical roots in terms of identity corresponded to the native context and life of Iranian society. It is as if sociology oscillated like a pendulum along the vector of liberalism and socialism—a science determined by political discourse.
After the end of the Cultural Revolution (1983), sociology was characterized as “secular” more than any other discipline in the humanities and social sciences. However, during the 2000s and 2010s, the gradual establishment of the idea of Islamizing the sciences and subsequently the transformation of the humanities turned conventional humanities and social sciences into an opportunity. The theoretical framework includes policy studies and Wallersteinian genealogy.
Method: This paper employs the methods of policy analysis (PA) and policy research (PR) using the documentary research method (DRM). Policy analysis requires attention to what shapes the big picture—namely, the frameworks, theories, underlying assumptions, and practical approaches for assessing and influencing political feasibility. Its practical considerations include: identifying relevant actors, understanding their motivations and beliefs, assessing available resources, and identifying the arena or level at which rules affect the policy-making process. Examples of policy documents include administrative reports, minutes, maps, and curricula.
In policy research, the following questions are answered with regard to the background of the problem: Have the objectives changed over time? Are the objectives symbolic or intended to create real change? What are the values and assumptions underlying the policy? To what extent have the policies been successful? Who are the audiences, actors, and policymakers? Which organizations and committees have participated in its implementation? By what means have the programs been consolidated or implemented?
The focus of policy analysis is influenced by the conceptual framework of the analysis. In this study, social science curricula, with an emphasis on the field of sociology, are considered as the final product, which should be considered in their broader discursive domain, namely the macro-policies of science in Iranian higher education. For this purpose, the approved curricula were taken from the curriculum website and analyzed according to the method of policy analysis and the principles of policy research. The statistical population was all disciplines and fields of study in the social sciences and sociology, and the sampling was consistent with the entire population (full-sample).
Results: The findings were analyzed in three layers: “normative and prescriptive,” “descriptive and situational,” and “discursive and in-depth exploration.” The results indicate a plurality of meanings in terms of content, function, and expectations of sociology among Iranian universities. In addition to examining the current status of the field of sociology in its historical and political context, a pathology analysis was conducted regarding the up-to-dateness, applicability, effectiveness, and implementation method of the curricula in accordance with the country’s major scientific documents and policies.
By moving away from the center of the sociology discipline to the outer layers of the social sciences family, at least seven areas of expansion of the social sciences in Iranian higher education can be identified: social planning, policy-making and governance, development and Iranian-Islamic pišraft (progress), demography, philosophy of science, social work and services, anthropology, and specific social studies. In these disciplines, discursive confrontations such as “development” (tawsiʿah) and “Iranian-Islamic pišraft” (progress) are evident in the titles of the disciplines.
Referring to the content layer of the proposed curricula of the universities, it becomes clear that some trends are still pursuing mainstream (Western) social sciences and sociology. Some universities have even become intellectual bases of liberal ideology or other Western “isms.” The refinement and restorative approach to sociology has had a slow movement. Of course, foundational and productive approaches have also been pursued in intellectual bases connected to the discourse of the Islamic Revolution. The followers of mainstream (Western) sociology in Iran have not been very mindful of the connection between this science and the history and native context of their society. One of the most fundamental issues in the depth and discursive layer of sociology in Iranian higher education is the relationship between sociology and value. Believers in mainstream (Western) sociology in Iran still consider sociology to be a neutral, impartial, and objective science.
Discussion and Conclusions: The gap between the goals stated in the policies and the current situation is evident. If we analyze the trajectory of sociology in Iran, the scientific identity of the approved programs of the discipline and trends of sociology has been neither entirely convergent nor entirely divergent with the epistemological and cultural discourse after the Islamic Revolution. Some programs (such as the field of historical sociology) have assumed that the path of “studying” modern social science is separate from the path of “applying” it and have reduced “modern social science” to the “history of modern social science” (equivalent to the history of other sciences). Another group of programs (such as Social Science Research and the Sociology of Iranian Social Problems) have distanced themselves from the ontological, epistemological, and anthropological aspects of modern social science and use sociology merely as a technique and tool for surveys and social research.
In these programs, where pragmatist motivations have prevailed, it is inevitable and, where necessary, justified to resort to some mainstream (Western) sociological theories because those theories are supposed to shape the application and theoretical framework of research and studies. Most of what is going on in Iranian higher education in the social sciences stems from the debates of previous decades of Western civilization. Some critical attitudes toward that civilization and the revisions that Western thinkers have made concerning certain key positions and issues (regarding the relationship between science, society, and religion) have either not found their way into the Iranian academic community or have done so to a lesser extent.
In terms of the interdisciplinary aspect, sociology has had little success in updating itself in relation to psychology, cognitive sciences, policy-making, media, and new technologies, including artificial intelligence (AI). The lack of an evaluation system for the proper formulation and implementation of scientific policies is a serious gap.
Acknowledgement: Not mentioned.
Conflict of Interests: There has been no conflict of interest.
کلیدواژهها [English]
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