Journal of Iranian Cultural Research

Journal of Iranian Cultural Research

The issue of companion animals in Tehran: The multiple intersection of attachment, differentiation, and social conflict

Document Type : Scientific Research Manuscript

Authors
1 Assistant Professor of Futures Studies, Department of Cultural and Social Governance, University of Tehran, Tehran, Iran
2 PhD in Sociology, Faculty of Humanities, University of Isfahan, Isfahan, Iran
3 PhD in Sociology, Department of Social Sciences, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, Iran
Abstract
This study, adopting an interpretive phenomenological approach, seeks to investigate the issue of companion animals in Tehran (with an emphasis on the phenomenon of dog walking). In this study, in-depth interviews were conducted with 17 Tehrani citizens through snowball sampling. The formulation of the research findings was carried out in three coding stages; in the first stage, 184 codes were extracted from the interview texts, and in the second stage, by aggregating and categorizing them, 21 themes and finally 6 concepts were identified: "dramatic consumption and self-location: action for identity location", "emergence of new forms of family", "deep attachment and mutual emotional actions", "social confrontation and conflict", "identity and value transformation", and "non-inhibitory policies". The findings are organized around the main category of "multiple intersections of attachment, differentiation, and social conflict". In a way, social realities are evidence that the social reaction of individuals to the phenomenon of companion animals is not only not the same and uniform; Rather, in some respects they are at two distinct ends of the spectrum and have formed a controversial social field. On the one hand, there is a growing group that interprets the phenomenon of companion animals as part of individual rights and a modern lifestyle and moves towards keeping and keeping animals in public spaces. On the other hand, a group considers its spread and expansion to be a violation of civil rights and animal rights and even a threat to public health, social security and cultural norms, and calls for legal restrictions on it. This confrontation has transformed the issue of companion animals from a personal issue into a public and political issue that requires comprehensive regulation and social dialogue based on the participation of all stakeholders in order to secure civil rights and animal rights in order to resolve this controversial situation.
Keywords
Subjects

Giddens, A. (2004). Modernity and Individuation, Society and Personal Identity in the Modern Age (translated by Naser Mofavqian), Tehran, Iran: Ney Publishing House. http://opac.nlai.ir/opac-prod/bibliographic/585843
Abroshan, M. (2019, May 2). Keeping animals, a reflection of emotional emptiness or a display of social prestige. Shargh Newspaper. Retrieved from sharghdaily.com/fa/tiny/news-264880
Akbari., Z. S., Rostami, R., & Mamghanieh, M. (2011). The relationship between keeping different types of pets and the personality traits and mental health of pet owners. Journal of Veterinary Research, 66 (3), 275-271.
Alford, K. (2020). 10 Science- Based benefits of having a dog. American Kennel club.
Bagheri, R., Kordzanganeh, J., Ananhad, M. (2022). A sociological study of the phenomenon of keeping pets (case study of Ahvaz city in 1400), Quarterly Journal of Socio-Cultural Development Studies, 10(4), 39-9.
Balluerka, N., Muela, A., Amiano, N., & Caldentey, M. A. (2014). Influence of animal-assisted therapy (AAT) on the attachment representations of youth in residential care. Children and Youth Services Review, 42, 103-109.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2014.04.007
Banihashemnejad, S., Hashemian, B. N., & Timour, T. A. (2019). Presenting a conceptual model for examining the effects of keeping pets on individual performance, Fourth International Conference on Research in Psychology, Counseling and Educational Sciences.
Bauman, Z. (2008). Fluid Love: On the Impermanence of Human Bonds (E. Tabeti, Trans.). Tehran, Iran: Qognoos Publishing House.
Bayati, P. (2021). Sociological analysis of the consequences of the tendency to keep dogs in the criminological index with an emphasis on the role of the police in dealing with this phenomenon, Quarterly Journal of Police Criminological Research, 2(4), 115-132.
Bourdieu, P. (1984). Distinction: A Social Critique of the Judgment of Taste. Rutledge. Cambridge Dictionary
Brooks, R. L. Kelly,. Lovell, K., Bee, P., Walker, L., Grant, L., Rogers, A. (2018). The power of support from companion animals for people living with mental health problems: a systematic review and narrative synthesis of the evidence, Brooks et al. BMC Psychiatry, 7(30), 1-12.
Buller, K., & Ballantyne, K. C(2020). Living with and loving a pet with behavioral problems: Pet owners’ experiences, Journal of Veterinary Behavior, 10(37), 41-47. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jveb.2020.04.003
Chira, A. M., Kirby, K., Epperlein, T., Bräuer, J. (2023). Function predicts how people treat their dogs in a global sample, Scientific Reports, 7(13), 49-54.
Giddens, A. (2005). Central Issues in Social Theory: Action, Structure and Contradiction in Social Analysis (M. Rezaei, Trans.), Tehran, Iran: Suad Publishing House.
Hinic, K., Kowalski, M. O., Holtzman, K., & Mobus, K. (2019) The effect of a pet therapy and comparison intervention on anxiety in hospitalized children. Journal of Pediatric Mursing, 46, 55-61. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pedn.2019.03.003
Holand, K., & et al. (2022). Why do people want dogs? A mixed Methods study of Motivations for Dog Acquisition in the united Kingdom.Veterinary Humanities and Social Sciences, https://doi.org/10.3389/fvets.2022.877950
Horn, J. C.. & Mee, J. (1984). Pleasure of their company:A Report on psychology today's survay on pets and people. Psychology Today, 52-64.
Irvine, L., & Cilia, L. (2017) Morethanhuman families: Pets, people, and practices in multispecies households. Sociology Compass, 11(2), e12455.
Jamali, M., & Zolfaqartaleb, M. (2018). The jurisprudential status of impurity and keeping dogs in Islamic religions, Journal of Medical Jurisprudence, 12(42), 1-13. https://doi.org/10.22037/mfj.v12i42.32123
Karimian, S. A. (2023). An ethical inquiry into the sterilization of domestic and stray animals, Quarterly Journal of Applied Ethics Studies, 19(2), 36-11. https://doi.org/10.22081/jare.2023.66859.1837
Khodadadi, F. (2022). The Transformation of the Way of Looking at Dogs: From Pity in the Past to Favoritism in Today's Society, Islam and Social Sciences, 14(28), 155-173. https://doi.org/10.30471/soci.2022.8836.1820
Khoshbartar, M. (2021). Jurisprudential and Legal Basis of Keeping Animals with an Approach to Dog Walking, Master's Thesis, Semnan University, Humanities Campus, Faculty of Humanities, Semnan, Iran.
Kidd, A. H., Kelley, H. T., & Kidd, R. M. (1983). Personality characteristics of horse, turtle, snake,and bird owners. Psychological Reports, 52 (3), 719-29. https://doi.org/10.2466/pr0.1983.52.3.719
Kim, W. Min., Kyung. C., Sung-il. C. S. (2020). The Relationship Between Dog-Related Factors and Owners' Attitudes Toward Pets: An Exploratory Cross-Sectional Study in Korea, Animal Behavior and Welfare, 18(7), 43-49. https://doi.org/10.3389/fvets.2020.00493
Maktabi, N., Mojtahedzadeh, S., & ArabAsadi, S. (2021). Protecting the rights of urban animals by modeling themselves on advanced countries, Quarterly Journal of Environmental Science and Technology, 23(11), 212-201. https://doi.org/10.30495/jest.2022.56743.5219
Marrais, De. & Tisdale, K. (2002). what happens when researchers inquire in to difficult emotions? Reflection on women anger through qualitative interview, journal of educational psychologist, 32(2). 115-123. https://doi.org/10.1207/S15326985EP3702_6
Moustakas, C.E. (1994). Phenomenological research methods: Sage Publications, Inc. International Educational and Professional Publisher Thousand Oaks Londan.
Nouri, H., & Saboui. J, S. (2023). In a study entitled Jurisprudential analysis of keeping different types of dogs from the perspective of Islamic religions, Jurisprudence Quarterly, 30(1), 119-148. https://doi.org/10.22081/JF.2023.65018.2568
Overgaauw, P.A.M., Vinke, C. M., van Hagen Marjan A.E., Lipman, Len J.A. (2020). A One Health Perspective on the Human–Companion Animal Relationship with Emphasis on Zoonotic Aspects, Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2020, 17, 3789. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph17113789
Parslow, A., Jonn, A. F., Christensen, H., Rodgers, B., & Jacomb, P. (2005). Pet ownership and healthin older adults: Findings from a survey of 2,551 community-based Australians aged 60-64. Gerontology, 51 (1), 40-47.
Peterson, A.T. L. (2011). Form Fur Baby to chick magnet:A sociological view of dogs and their people, scholar works at university of Montana, university of Montana.
Radmard, M. (2018). Islamic lifestyle: The prevalence of dog ownership in Iranian Islamic society and its dimensions. Sokhan Jame'ah, 7(16), 7-22.
Redmalm, D. (2020). Discipline and puppies: The powers of pet keeping. International Journal of Sociology and Social Policy, 41(3/4), 440-454. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJSSP-08-2019-0162
Rowan, A., Kartal, T. (2018). Dog Population & Dog Sheltering Trends in the United States of America. Animals, 8(5), 84-88.
Saunders, B., Sim, J., Kingstone, T., Baker, S., Waterfield, J., Bartlam, B., & Jinks, C. (2018) Saturation in qualitative research: exploring its conceptualization and operationalization. Quality & Quantity, 52(4), 1893-1907. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11135-017-0574-8
Soleimani, M. E., & Gholampour, A. (2023). A review of the challenges of managing free-roaming dogs in the country. Report of the Research Center of the Islamic Consultative Assembly Serial Number: 25019246. https://report.mrc.ir
Striwing, H., & Sarenbo, S. (2021). Dog owners’ supervising duty and criminal negligence – A critical review of two judgments by Swedish courts of appeal. Forensic Science International: Animals and Environments, 7(1), 1-9. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fsiae.2021.100031
Tan, C. K., Liu, T., & GAO, X. (2021). Becoming ‘pet slaves’ in urban China: Transspecies urban theory, single professional women and their companion animals. Urban Studies, 58(16), 3371-3387. https://doi.org/10.1177/0042098021991721
Taqvi, M. (2019). Cultural factors of keeping pets and its preference over childbearing compared to Islamic teachings: Case study  of Tehran citizens (Master's thesis), Faculty of Welfare, Department of Cultural Studies, Tehran, Iran.
Vanderstoep, W. S. (2009). Research method for every day life. blending qualitative and quantitative approach. Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Varathi, G. (1400). Criminal policy governing the keeping of pets in the Iranian legal system, International Law Quarterly, 5(20), 1-33.
Veblen, T. (2007). The theory of the loose-fitting class (F. Ershad, Trans.). Tehran, Iran: Ney Publications.
Wells, D. L. (2009). The effects of animals on human health and wellbeing. Journal of Social Issues, 65(3), 523-543.
Worth, A J., & Cave, N. J. (2018). A veterinary perspective on preventing injuries and other problems that shorten the life of working dogs. National Library Of Medicine, 1(37), 161-169.
Send comment about this article
Enter Name.
Enter a valid email address.
Enter a vaid affiliation.
Enter comments (At leaset 10 words)
CAPTCHA Image
Enter Security Code Correctly.

Articles in Press, Accepted Manuscript
Available Online from 23 May 2026

  • Receive Date 23 April 2025
  • Revise Date 16 May 2026
  • Accept Date 23 May 2026