A Study of Religiosity and Lifestyle (Women over 20 in Tehran)

Lifestyles, since their emergence as constructive parts of modernity changes, have formed cultural and economic procedures and they even represent a quest for personal identity and have also affected social communications. Therefore sociologists are paying more attention to the subject of lifestyle these days and are studying the factors like religiosity of people influencing it. In this study which is a basic research, survey method was applied to assess the relationship between variables theoretically, and questionnaire was used to collect information. The questionnaires have been filled out through face to face method. Statistical population included 370 women of twenty years old or over, residing in Tehran. Probability sampling was put to use through multi-stage cluster sampling which is normally applied for wide areas. The research aims to examine and recognize the relationship between religiosity and lifestyle among women. The theory is based upon Weber’s theory of action. According to religiosity assessment measures of Gluck and Stark four aspects are considered to measure religiosity: beliefs, emotions, outcomes, practices and knowledge. Also, to assess life styles, three indicators of body management, interpersonal relationships, and norms of consumption were used. Findings indicate that among independent variables which have been confirmed to have a weak relationship with dependant variables (such as religiosity, cultural asset and age), the highest correlation exists between religiosity and lifestyle. It was also confirmed that there is a relationship between women’s lifestyle, their body management and their consumption norms. Among the most important achievement of this study is the relationship between religiosity and lifestyle. Accordingly, when religious institutions begins losing their power, and individual selections in the field of religion become a norm, and when intellectual and opinionative principles intermingle, individuals are not the only influential factors on people’s reactions towards social issues, decision makings, and opinions of the speakers of religion institute. Therefore beside religious options, individuals’ selective practices in the area of lifestyle are also affected by cultural patterns.