Investigating the role of small cities in developing rural regions with emphasis on quality of life: Case study of Firoozabad rural district in Selseleh town

The purpose of the present study is to investigate the role of Firouzabad town, as a small urban center, in developing surrounding rural regions. In this study, in evaluating the rural development, the emphasis has been put on the quality of life. This study has used survey methods and has been conducted in a cross-sectional format and applied partially stratified sampling with a sample size of 330 people including the head of the households in ten villages in the rural districts of Firoozabad. In this study, T-test and Wilcoxon tests were used for hypothesis testing. Research findings show that the Firouzabad town has improved services, income, participation, housing and personal well-being of the surrounding villages while the city has not been able to improve the immigration status and job opportunities in surrounding villages. According to the results of this study, the level of life satisfaction has been improved among people after Firouzabad became a city. Findings from the regression analysis, indices of services, immigration, participation, and personal well-being have had a direct and significant effect and housing index has significant and reverse effect on life satisfaction of people who live in studied rural areas.