A Process Analysis of Students’ Institutional Habitus (A Case Study of Junior High School Students in Mashhad)

The present research aims to determine the level of and also the conditions influencing institutional habitus in students in the city of Mashhad. The conceptual framework of the research has been compiled based on Bourdieu’s theories, and survey as well as content analysis have been used to collect and analyze data. Using a survey approach, the statistical population was formed from among students in schools in the city of Mashhad by means cluster sampling and the Cochran formula, which led to 390 students being selected. As for the thematic analysis, 31 teachers were interviewed as the key well-informed using purposive sampling and theoretical saturation criterion. The quantitative results point out students' institutional habitus to be lower than the average level, and the qualitative results also indicate weakening institutional habitus in students in recent years owing to circumstances both within and beyond the field. Therefore, the results of this study qualitatively and quantitatively point to a wane in the level of students' institutional habitus, which is unfavorable for education, a field among the most significant of social fields. Given the correlation between the fields of production and consumption in education, it is necessary that the posed challenge be addressed, studied and put right.