Studying Social Factors Affecting Resident's Participation in Urban Affair (case of study: District 13 of the city of Esfahan)

Participation or the lack of it could seriously influence the planning of a city or district, meaning that it can slow down or accelerate the process of implementation of programs. Therefore, studying the factors that can influence resident's level of participation in city affairs can help city planners to better cope with problems such as rural migration into the city, population explosion, and the like. Thus, the aim of the present article is to assess the influence of social variables that can affect the rate of citizen's participation in city affairs in the city of Esfahan. This is a survey research that used a questionnaire to collect the needed data. The research population consisted of all Esfahani residents who were 18 years of age or above that resided in Esfahan District 13. Using a multi-stage cluster sampling technique, 180 individuals were selected as the sample. The results showed that institutional trust, social satisfaction, social safety, and length of stay, as independent variables, were significantly related to social participation, as the dependent variable. The socio-economic status of residents and type of residence were not related to social participation.