Factors Affecting the Rise and Decline of Myth in Iran with Emphasis on Sports

For thousands of years, the ancient land of Iran has witnessed the emergence of myths that have arisen from the values and culture of its people, and over the years, some of these myths have declined. This research aims to identify the factors influencing the emergence and decline of sports myths in Iranian society. The study is qualitative and employs the Glaser method. The research tool consisted of semi-structured interviews that examined the causes of the emergence and decline of myths in Iranian sports. Data collection involved interviews with sociologists, professors of Persian literature, sports management professors, athletes, and experts. To ensure credibility, transferability, and confirmability, and to assess the reliability of the interviews, the inter-rater reliability method was used. Given that this reliability was above 60%, the trustworthiness of the coding was confirmed. The results of the research indicated that society requires myths due to the need for appropriate models, an eternal quest for order, guidance, and identity. Additionally, data analysis revealed that external appeal, honor, myth-making constructs, hope, and homogeneity are significant factors in transforming an athlete into a myth in today’s Iranian society. Furthermore, factors influencing the breaking of the sanctity of sports myths or the decline of a sports myth include concepts such as paradoxes, the speed of reasoning, changing values, modernization, and myth-deconstruction. It appears that in contemporary Iranian society, the decline of sports myths has accelerated due to rapid social, cultural, and technological changes, making the emergence of new myths more challenging.