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This paper aims to focus on reducing the vulnerability of Ahvaz city against urban disasters and lowering the number of casualties and amount of financial losses using modern approaches to develop resilience strategies that can increase urban safety to an acceptable level. The strategic situation of Ahvaz city, because of its abundant resources, the war experience and its location on the boundary regions of Iran, highlights its significance. Ahvaz has a high population and an extended texture, and the existence of extraordinary constructions increases the importance of physical resilience in this city.

The present study investigates built environment aspects such as the urban structure, the urban form, land-use proximity pattern, urban road network and crucial and vulnerable centres in Ahvaz, using a combination of qualitative and quantitative methods. Hence, the areas at risk in Ahvaz were identified and illustrated in a comprehensive risk assessment map, and then, by using the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats technique and finally by using the Delphi method, some strategies and plans were presented to reduce the level of vulnerability in Ahvaz. Then, these strategies are prioritized by applying quality function deployment (QFD) technique.

The risk assessment result shows that most parts of Ahvaz’s urban areas are highly at risk. The central and northern parts of Ahvaz have the highest vulnerability at a time of crisis. These zones include district 1 (city centre) and districts 2, 3 and 7 at the city’s margins. The result of QFD process showed that the essential urban resilience strategy is to positively consider the passive defence studies with a physical resilience approach. Also, the proper distribution of strategic points in the city, moving the industrial and oil companies from the peripheral area, and facilitating access to vital, crucial centres to support urban regions are considered the most effective strategic plans.

This paper, with an integrated approach, examines and prioritizes the main physical problems of Ahvaz city based on the spatial analysis and opinions of experts. The physical strategies presented in this paper can significantly reduce the risks and increase the urban resilience of Ahvaz city in the face of crisis.

Heavy metals constitute one of the most hazardous substances that could be accumulated in biota coming from human activities such as agricultural and industrial wastes. This paper aims to study the levels of some of the most common heavy metals in muscles of the fish caught in the Karun River (Ahvaz, Iran) and to assess the health risks associated with their consumption.

In present study, the concentrations of three heavy metals (Pb, Cd and Cu) in the muscle of highly consumed fish species Ctenopharyngodon Idella (Cyprinidae) collected from three selected markets (Khoram Kooshk, Ahvaz-e Qadim and Padad Shahr; total number of samples was 45) in Ahvaz city and human health risk associated with their consumption were detected by Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS).

The results indicated that the highest and lowest accumulated metal concentrations were related to Cu (20.36 ± 0.84) and Cd (0.53 ± 0.02), respectively. In addition, the mean difference for Pb and Cu across two pairwise of sampling sites were significant (Ahvaz-e Qadim and Khoram Kooshk, P for Pb = 0.025, P for Cu = 0.033; Ahvaz-e Qadim and Padad Shahr, p for Pb = 0.018, p for Cu = 0.039). The estimated daily intake of all metals in muscles of fish in this study were below the legal limit, and mean differences were not statistically significant among the sampling sites, except for Cu (Ahvaz-e Qadim and Khoram Kooshk, p = 0.048; Ahvaz-e Qadim and Padad Shahr, p = 0.041). Target hazard quotient values were also all below 1.

It can be concluded that the fishes from Ahvaz city markets are comparatively clean and do not constitute a risk for human health.

This paper aims to study the impact of increasing number of competitors on the organisational learning (OL) in tourism small and medium-sized enterprises. The focus of this study is the tourism and travel agencies (TTAs) of the City of Ahvaz where the OL was studied within TTAs insofar as increasing the number of competitors is concerned. The underlying question in this paper is whether or not the increasing number of competitors affects OL in TTAs of the City of Ahvaz.

Using a longitudinal survey, OL was studied at individual, group and organisational levels. The research is based upon quantitative and qualitative methods. Owing to the small number of samples, in addition to questionnaire and quantitative analysis, authors made use of in-depth interviews. The first research was conducted in 2012, while the second one was done in 2014.

It was found that in 2012, with its limited number of competitors in the market, learning in these organisations was desirable at individual level and not at group or organisational levels. On the other hand, both the quantitative and qualitative methods in 2014, with the increased number of TTAs, suggested that the quality of learning were desirable in all organisational levels in that year.

Care should be taken in generalising the results of the research to other TTAs because the size of the sample in this study was small. Moreover, structure and performance of TTAs may be different among various regions. In addition to the said limitation, it must be noted that some variables such as experience, education and gender were not consider in analysing the results of the study. Furthermore, OL in the TTAs might be affected by other variables that were not considered in this study.

Originality of the study is to link “OL” to the “competition”. There is not any study with special focus on OL with approaching to competition, neither in travel and tourism literature nor in OL literature, and this study can be a starting point to raise further and future research and debates.

This study aims to investigate the spatial distribution of housing prices and identify the affecting factors (independent variable) on the cost of residential units (dependent variable).

The method of the present study is descriptive-analytical and has an applied purpose. The used statistical population in this study is the residential units’ price in Tehran in 2021. For this purpose, the average per square meter of residential units in the city neighborhoods was entered in the geographical information system. Two techniques of ordinary least squares regression and geographically weighted regression have been used to analyze housing prices and modeling. Then, the results of the ordinary least squares regression and geographically weighted regression models were compared by using the housing price interpolation map predicted in each model and the accurate housing price interpolation map.

Based on the results, the ordinary least squares regression model has poorly modeled housing prices in the study area. The results of the geographically weighted regression model show that the variables (access rate to sports fields, distance from gas station and water station) have a direct and significant effect. Still, the variable (distance from fault) has a non-significant impact on increasing housing prices at a city level. In addition, to identify the affecting variables of housing prices, the results confirm the desirability of the geographically weighted regression technique in terms of accuracy compared to the ordinary least squares regression technique in explaining housing prices. The results of this study indicate that the housing prices in Tehran are affected by the access level to urban services and facilities.

Identifying factors affecting housing prices helps create sustainable housing in Tehran. Building sustainable housing represents spending less energy during the construction process together with the utilization phase, which ultimately provides housing at an acceptable price for all income deciles. In housing construction, the more you consider the sustainable housing principles, the more sustainable housing you provide and you take a step toward sustainable development. Therefore, sustainable housing is an important planning factor for local authorities and developers. As a result, it is necessary to institutionalize an integrated vision based on the concepts of sustainable development in the field of housing in the Tehran metropolis.

In the Iranian economy, investing in the housing market has been very important and beneficial for investors and households, because of inflationary environment, low real interest rates, underdeveloped financial and tax systems and economic sanctions. Hence, prediction of house prices is the main concern of housing market agents in the economy. The purpose of this paper is to test the stationary properties of Iran's provinces to improve the prediction of future housing prices.

In this paper, the authors have tested the stationary properties of 20 Iran’s province centers over the period from 1993 to 2017 using a novel Fourier quantile unit root test and conventional ordinary/generalized least squares (O/GLS) linear unit root/stationary tests.

According to conventional O/GLS linear unit root/stationary tests, most of the house prices series exhibit random walk behavior, whereas by applying the Fourier quantile unit root test, the null hypothesis of unit root is rejected for 15 out of 20 series. Other results indicated that house prices of cities responded differently to positive and negative shocks.

Previous studies only addressed conventional OLS or GLS linear unit root or stationary tests, but novel Fourier quantile unit root test was not used. New results were obtained based on this unit root test, that, as a priori knowledge, will help benefiting from the positive effects, or avoiding being victimized by the negative effects.

In Iran, the frequent occurrence of disasters has always been a major problem. In recent decades, disasters have created considerable challenges, especially in cities. Hence, understanding the levels of urban resilience (UR) and planning for addressing vulnerabilities plays a key role in the era of increasing risks and uncertainties. The present study aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the state of resilience of Iranian cities.

A systematic literature review method was used to determine how resilient Iranian cities are. To find relevant studies, the authors searched Iranian and international databases such as Scopus, ScienceDirect, SID and Magiran. There was no restriction on the inclusion date, meaning that all papers published up until September 16, 2021 were considered for inclusion. The PRISMA framework was used for literature search and selection and, finally, 153 studies focused on 52 cities of Iran were selected for the systematic review.

In general, the results showed that the level of resilience was low in Iranian cities. Also, informal settlements, worn-out urban fabrics and the central parts of cities showed lower resilience than other parts.

The results of the study can be used to inform municipal authorities, urban planners and non-governmental organizations of the actions that need to be taken to enhance the resilience of Iranian cities.

Eating patterns around the world have changed considerably, including food choices and preparation. One of these alterations in food consumption patterns is an increase in desire for fast-food consumption, which has been associated with poor diet quality. In order to analyze consumers’ food consumption behaviors, it is necessary to account for psychological factors (e.g. attitudes) that shape behaviors. Thus, the purpose of this paper is to explore influencing factors on the attitudes of consumers in Isfahan City toward fast-food consumption, so as to understand why consumers use fast-food despite widespread knowledge of the negative health consequences.

The predominant paradigm of the present study was quantitative, in that it was a correlational survey. The population of this study consisted of consumers who lived in Isfahan city in June 2015. A total sample of 350 people was selected using convenience sampling. Data were collected through a face-to-face interview with the consumers using a researcher-made questionnaire. Analysis was conducted using SPSS (V20) and AMOS (V20) software and a set of correlation and differential tests.

The results revealed that “health consciousness” and “trust” are the main effective factors on the attitudes of the respondents. The results also revealed that the elder and married respondents have more positive attitudes toward fast-food consumption.

It is worth mentioning that fast-food has become an important part of the Iranian diet. These findings have both academic and policy implications. The results showed that the need for much more consumer education regarding fast-food and mass media could effectively be used. Further, the government should support and subsidize fast-food restaurants so that they may produce healthier food options.

The purpose of this paper aims at the spatial analysis of the Rastas dealing with the wool market to revise the production resulting in a recreation of spaces and the pathways based on its high economic–commercial role.

Secondary resources and direct observations through field research were the two critical methodological steps for this paper based on phenomenology and qualitative approaches.

The results represent that the usage of past experiences is the most effective solutions for activities relying on manufacturing inside the workshops leading to improvement in functional objectives of Bazaar. Integration between diverse institutions, precise planning regarding the creation and restoration of past and new jobs and organizing the exhibition of recreational spaces contributing to development regarding public attraction and strengthening the spatial relationships between production, representation and service. Indeed these mentioned steps will provide multifunctional space with a priority of production and reproduction useful on a recreation of urban life.

This study fulfils to examine the important of the bazaar (Iranian market) and recreate its manufacturing, service and economic processes.