The Impact of Lifestyle on Students’ Political Orientations Using Structural Equation Modeling: A Case Study of Ahvaz
Keywords:
Lifestyle, Political Orientations, Religious Performance, Social Status, Economic StatusAbstract
This study aims to sociologically examine the impact of lifestyle dimensions on students’ political orientations in Ahvaz . The research adopted a descriptive-survey design with an applied objective. The statistical population consisted of university students in Ahvaz, from which 384 participants were selected using stratified random sampling. Data were collected through a structured questionnaire measuring lifestyle (religious performance, social status, and economic status) and political orientations. Content validity was confirmed by experts, and reliability was established using Cronbach’s alpha coefficients above 0.78. Data analysis was conducted using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM). The results indicated that lifestyle has a significant effect on political orientations, explaining approximately 27% of their variance (β=0.275). The strongest effect of lifestyle was observed on conservatism (β=0.320), while the weakest effect was on moderation (β=0.185). Religious performance, particularly socio-religious cohesion, emerged as the strongest predictor of both conservatism (β=0.299) and reformism (β=0.310). Social status showed a significant influence on moderation (β=0.412), whereas economic status did not demonstrate a statistically significant relationship with political orientations. The findings suggest that lifestyle, as a multidimensional construct, plays a crucial role in shaping political orientations, particularly through its religious and social dimensions.
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Copyright (c) 2025 Maryam Rahdarzadeh, Hasan Kheiri, Bahram Nikbakhsh (Author)
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