A theoretical plan to explain social collapse in Iran

Document Type : علمی وپزوهشی

Authors

1 ِDepartment of social sciences, Faculty of human sciences, University of guilan, Rasht city, Country of iran

2 Associate Professor, Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Tehran

3 Associate Professor, Faculty of Humanities, University of Tarbiat Modares

4 Research Institute of Social Studies, Research Institute of Humanities and Cultural Studies

10.22059/jsr.2024.362841.1887

Abstract

This study aims to provide a new and integrated theoretical plan to explain the issue of social collapse. The literature on the topic of collapse has been classified in the form of two categories of theories of the collapse of the state and the collapse of civilizations, After their critical review, the necessary elements were selected from each of them to build a new and different theoretical plan of the concept of social collapse. The present theoretical plan is based on Parsons' theory of social order, but efforts are made to complete both the whole and its parts with other theories. In this case, if the government enters into intense foreign military competition, it will put tensions on other sub-systems, which due to the systemic situation of the society will cause the occurrence of four cultural, economic, political and stratification crises, and as a result of them, a social crisis will occur. In such a situation, if the model of crisis management is carried out in the form of the establishment of a Sultanate government, the result will be a crisis of legitimacy. In the current theoretical plan, social crisis, Sultanate government and crisis of legitimacy are among the necessary conditions for the occurrence of collapse, which if accompanied by a sufficient condition known as accelerating factors, will cause social collapse. The meaning of social collapse is the same structural change of society that takes place in the form of structural change in four subsystems of society.

Keywords