About Me
This essay provides a concise overview of the academic, educational, and professional trajectory of myself, Ali Yousofi, Professor of Sociology at Ferdowsi University of Mashhad. I was born in the city of Shahroud in Semnan Province and completed my secondary education at the Technical High School in Shahroud. My interest in sociology emerged in the early years following the Islamic Revolution as a result of my engagement with the ideas and works of Dr. Ali Shariati, an experience that ultimately led me to change my field of study.
My university education began with a Bachelor’s degree in Social Sciences, with a concentration in research, at Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, and continued with a Master’s degree in Social Science Research at Shahid Beheshti University. My academic path gained clarity with my admission to the PhD program in Sociology, specializing in Political Sociology, at Tarbiat Modares University. My doctoral dissertation focused on the issue of the political legitimacy of the government of the Islamic Republic of Iran.
At all stages of my education, I selected thesis and dissertation topics based on the major and challenging social and political issues of their time, ranging from the philosophy of science and the methodology of the social sciences to political satisfaction and state legitimacy. I joined the faculty of Ferdowsi University of Mashhad in 2002 and currently serve as a Professor of Sociology at this university.
In addition, my research sabbatical at George Mason University in the United States during 2018–2019, entitled “The Cognitive Compatibility of Islam and Democracy,” opened new intellectual and research horizons for me, particularly in the field of the sociology of religion. My primary teaching and research interests include political sociology, sociology of religion, urban sociology, and sociological theory, and I am currently preparing scholarly works in all four areas