Structural Modeling and Causal Explanation of Rural Communities Satisfaction towards Their Quality of Life: The Case of Aran-Bidgol County

One of the important indicators in urban planning is the attention to the quality of life of the citizens. Because, growth and improvement of the quality of life affect other dimensions of development in the cities and villages and it paves the way for development and progress. Assessing the residents' satisfaction with the living environment can help assess the policies, rankings of places, and formulate strategies for urban and rural planning and management. Present research studied the satisfaction of residents of Mohammad Abad, Ali-Abad, and Yazdel villages in Aran-Bidgol district. The sample size of the study was 291 villagers. The main data collection tool was a researcher-made questionnaire and the statistical analyses and structural equation modeling have been done using AMOS and SPSS software. A single-sample T test was used to analyze the data and determine the status of quality of life indicators. T-test results showed that the social, economic quality, and physical-environmental and service-related indicators are at un-desirable, semi-desirable, and desirable levels, respectively. Structural equation modeling was also used to assess the components of quality of life. The results of the second-order confirmatory factor analysis indicated that paying attention to the social indicator in the studied villages might increase the life quality, economic, physical, service, and environmental indices by 0.87%, 0.82%, 0.77%, 0.26%, and 0.23%, respectively.