Perceptions of Agency Among Iranians in a Life Shaped by Conflict

Behnam Abedi

Diplomová práce

Anotace:

This study looks at how Iranians perceive and exercise agency in the midst of ongoing conflict, analyzing the role of historical narratives, sociopolitical instability, civic engagement, and religious beliefs. Based on Giddens' Structuration, Bourdieu's Habitus, Scott's Everyday Resistance, Bayat's Non-Movements, Mahmood's Politics of Piety, and Emirbayer and Mische's Temporal Agency, I investigate how conflict—economic sanctions, political repression, and social unrest—shapes agency in Iran. I used a qualitative approach to conduct a focus group with eight different participants and in-depth interviews with four people in Tehran, gathering narratives of resilience and restriction. The findings demonstrate that historical narratives, such as wartime unity, motivate agency but are overshadowed by survival-driven choices, such as job changes and family priorities, which are carried out through covert defiance—digital posts and private networks. Sociopolitical instability splits collective action, encouraging individual acts—legal battles, quiet teamwork—while civic engagement turns to symbolic gestures, such as scarf protests and community aid, which are constrained by fear. Religious beliefs differ: faith promotes resilience via rituals and patience, but secularization opposes state religion through cultural myths and skepticism. Cross-cutting themes such as generational/gender divides, family/community bonds, cultural practices, and hope/survival highlight the complexities of agency, with elderly women steeped in faith and younger men desiring autonomy. These findings refine conceptions of agency, stressing its gendered, temporal, and nuanced aspects, and have implications for understanding resilience in repressive environments.

Abstract:

This study looks at how Iranians perceive and exercise agency in the midst of ongoing conflict, analyzing the role of historical narratives, sociopolitical instability, civic engagement, and religious beliefs. Based on Giddens' Structuration, Bourdieu's Habitus, Scott's Everyday Resistance, Bayat's Non-Movements, Mahmood's Politics of Piety, and Emirbayer and Mische's Temporal Agency, I investigate how conflict—economic sanctions, political repression, and social unrest—shapes agency in Iran. I used a qualitative approach to conduct a focus group with eight different participants and in-depth interviews with four people in Tehran, gathering narratives of resilience and restriction. The findings demonstrate that historical narratives, such as wartime unity, motivate agency but are overshadowed by survival-driven choices, such as job changes and family priorities, which are carried out through covert defiance—digital posts and private networks. Sociopolitical instability splits collective action, encouraging individual acts—legal battles, quiet teamwork—while civic engagement turns to symbolic gestures, such as scarf protests and community aid, which are constrained by fear. Religious beliefs differ: faith promotes resilience via rituals and patience, but secularization opposes state religion through cultural myths and skepticism. Cross-cutting themes such as generational/gender divides, family/community bonds, cultural practices, and hope/survival highlight the complexities of agency, with elderly women steeped in faith and younger men desiring autonomy. These findings refine conceptions of agency, stressing its gendered, temporal, and nuanced aspects, and have implications for understanding resilience in repressive environments.

Keywords

Agency, Chronic Conflict, Historical Narratives, Socio Political Instability, Civic Engagement, Religious Beliefs, Resilience, Adoption, Repression, Secularization, Structuration Theory, Habitus, Everyday Resistance

Jazyk práce: angličtina

Datum vytvoření / odevzdání či podání práce: 13. 1. 2026

Obhajoba závěrečné práce

• Obhajoba proběhla 13. 1. 2026
• Vedoucí: prof. Bernadette Nadya Jaworsky, Ph.D.
• Oponent: doc. PhDr. Csaba Szaló, Ph.D.

Masarykova univerzita

Fakulta sociálních studií

Magisterský studijní program / obor:
Sociology / Sociology