Application of the Integration Techniques in Determining the Level of Rural Development (The Case of Iranshahr?s Rural Districts

Identifying the inequalities and imbalances across different geographical zones and then, policy making to remove and reduce such disparities is the main task of development authorities. Determining the level of development based on credible indicators is the way to show spatial, economic, social and cultural differences of areas in compare to each other. The purpose of this study was to determine the level of development using TOPSIS, Numerical Taxonomy and integration techniques in rural districts of Iranshahr County. To do this, after reviewing the reliable literatures and sources of statistics, 65 development indicators were recognized as suitable to involve in the study. Through the first stage of data analysis, the indicators’ weights using AHP and Entropy methods were assigned. Then, the level of development for each rural district using TOPSIS, Numerical Taxonomy and integration techniques including average rating method, Borda and Copeland was determined. The findings revealed while the level of development among rural districts using integration methods were almost the same, the discrepancies between rural districts were more identified using TOPSIS-AHP. Furthermore, the development coefficients obtained from different methods showed that even the most prosperous district did not indicate a high level of development. In better words, there was a general deprivation condition across the whole rural districts of Iranshahr County. At last, to improve the situation of different rural districts some applied suggestions were offered according to detailed outcomes of the study.