Investigation of psycho-social and religious behavior of Ahıska (Meskhetian) Turks: The case of Erzincan province

This research aims to examine the psycho-social and religious behaviors of Meskhetian Turks who lived away from their homeland for many years and were exiled. The research adopted the widely used semi-structured interview technique to gain a deep understanding during the data collection process. Purposive sampling and snowball sampling types were used in the study to reach volunteer samples. The sample of the study consists of a total of 16 Meskhetian Turks, 13 of whom are women and 3 of whom are men, residing in Üzümlü district of Erzincan province. All participants are adults over the age of 18. Demographic information form and semi-structured interview questions were used as data collection tools in the study. The findings of the study were revealed by examining the data obtained with this method through descriptive and content analysis. Analyzes have shown that religion affects psychosocial behavior; It has been revealed that individuals who practice religious behaviors have better mental health. It has been concluded that religion, language, ethnicity, cultural similarities, neighborhood relations, religious places, economic and environmental conditions are effective on the psycho-social behavior of Meskhetian Turks. In addition, it was determined that as the duration of stay in Turkey increased, there was an increase in the participants' social adaptation, belongingness and initiative characteristics, and a decrease in their shyness characteristics. Among the results obtained from the interviews are that female participants exhibit more religious behavior than men, that their rate of worship increases as their age increases, and that their frequency of religious behavior increases after coming to Turkey, compared to the period before coming to Turkey.