Applying the social contract approach to local empowerment with emphasis on the grounded theory method; Case study: Abkooh neighborhood of Mashhad

Today, the sustainability of cities is based on the citizenship and participation of cities and is achieved with the commitment of the civil society in residential communities. Local community contracts have been introduced by Habitat as a grassroots process that emphasizes the presence of people in all local programs. This approach has been considered by many developing countries for several years in order to empower and improve local governance.

Due to the innovation of the subject in Iran, it is intended; By selecting Abkooh neighborhood in Mashhad as a case study, the approach of social contracts in local empowerment should be introduced and feasibility study using the method of grounded theory.

Explaining the thematic framework of this research by library method and feasibility study of field approach by interview with interview and questionnaire. The research method is descriptive-analytical according to the applied external purpose and its nature. Sampling in the interview and questionnaire was done in a purposeful manner until saturation. The method of analyzing the findings is based on content analysis.

The results of the analysis show 193 open source, 12 subcategories, 2 main categories and a core that play a key role in the feasibility of the conventional approach in the Abkooh neighborhood of Mashhad.

According to the results, although the implementation of the local community contract approach at the neighborhood level may seem easy and possible, but the realization of this approach in Abkooh neighborhood requires the integration and alignment of organizations involved in the context. On the other hand, the lack of funding to delegate neighborhood organizing measures to citizens, the lack of integration in management, decision-making and monitoring the organization of worn-out structures and the weak culture of participation in people and city managers are some of the issues that must be considered before implementing the approach.