Child labor processes in the city of Mashhad: A narrative study

It has been more than a decade that the phenomenon of child labor has become a social problem in Iran. Though universal, it has certain features in every society. In the present study, the processes of child labor formation in the city of Mashhad as one of the cities of Iran have been investigated. The study population in this study were working children living in Mashhad in 2015. First, the files of 345 working children were reviewed through documentary method. A profile of the working children situation was provided. Then, the narrative research method was employed to find these processes and narrative interview technique was used to obtain the description of the lives of these children. After fifteen interviews, theoretical saturation was obtained. Sequential and fragmented sections that were effective in bringing children to work were then extracted as sub-narratives. In this way, the general processes through which child labor forms were determined in a pattern. The results show that most of working children have family support. This means that they turn to work and live on the streets while their families are aware of this. These children are driven to work on the streets in four processes of being a member of an immigrant family with economic poverty, having a family following labor culture, having irresponsible parents, as well as being a member of a beggar family. In all processes, there are interrelated factors at three macro, intermediate and micro levels that underlie child's labor. At the macro level, economic problems lead to the formation of two huge migration waves to the city of Mashhad. Poor immigrants settle on the outskirts of the city and are in an unfavorable economic situation. At the intermediate level, the critical living conditions of working children such as domestic violence, lack of access to education (especially among foreign immigrants), preference for work over education, the prevalence of having a begging-based lifestyle and addiction of family members can be mentioned. Findings of the study at the micro level emphasize the relationship between the working children and the offending or working peers. In these situations, working children may become addicted and be forced to work to pay for drugs, or be driven to work under the influence of their friends to gain economic benefits such as buying favorable snacks or playing games on the net at game centers. However, it was also found out that the children's families also benefit from and encourage them to work.