The Tehran, Iran migration study: Background

This chapter focuses on the relative integration of migrants into the rapidly expanding population and economy of Tehran. Tehran was selected because it shared many of the demographic characteristics of cities in less developed nations urban primacy, rapid growth, high rates of natural increase, rural-urban migration, disparities in wealth, and inequalities in the distribution of resources. Natural increase was thus high in Tehran, as it was in other urban places, but lower than in rural areas. In the mid- 1970s the pace of migration to Tehran seemed to have slowed, as alternative urban destinations were developing. The degree of urbanization in Iran accelerated after World War II. Tehran dominates Iran's urban and social system. The theoretical threads are woven together to understand how migrants to Tehran adjust in the labor market, occupational prestige, employment, housing, consumer goods, and income. The enormous urban expansion was accompanied by unprecedented economic growth generated by Iran's petroleum resources.