Cultural Pluralism and Legal Recognition: A Qualitative Study of Minority Rights in Globalized Societies
Keywords:
cultural pluralism, legal recognition, minority rights, globalization, legal pluralism, qualitative study, TehranAbstract
This qualitative study aimed to explore how minority-rights actors in Tehran understand cultural pluralism, legal recognition, and the transformation of belonging in the context of globalization. A qualitative research design was adopted using semi-structured interviews with 24 participants in Tehran, including minority community members, legal professionals, civil society actors, and cultural-rights stakeholders. Participants were selected purposively through maximum-variation sampling to capture diverse experiences of ethnic, linguistic, religious, and cultural minority-rights issues. Interviews continued until theoretical saturation was achieved. Each interview lasted between 45 and 80 minutes and focused on experiences of legal recognition, institutional access, cultural identity, discrimination, and transnational rights discourses. Interviews were audio-recorded with consent, transcribed verbatim, anonymized, and analyzed using thematic analysis. NVivo software was used to organize transcripts, develop codes, compare patterns, and construct categories. Trustworthiness was enhanced through prolonged engagement with the data, peer review of codes, memo writing, and participant validation of selected interpretations. Four main categories emerged: legal recognition as symbolic and administrative visibility; conditional belonging and unequal citizenship experiences; negotiation between state law, community norms, and individual rights; and globalization as both an empowering and contested source of minority-rights discourse. Participants described recognition not only as constitutional or statutory protection, but also as everyday institutional responsiveness in education, courts, media, and public administration. They also emphasized that formal equality may remain incomplete when minority identities are tolerated privately but insufficiently represented publicly. The study suggests that minority rights in globalized societies require more than abstract equality. Effective cultural pluralism depends on participatory legal recognition, accessible institutions, protection against discrimination, and safeguards for vulnerable persons within minority communities. Globalization expands rights vocabulary, but local legitimacy remains essential for sustainable legal adaptation.
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