Purpose:The present study aims to provide a sociological understanding of young people’s concerns regarding political development and to explain their patterns of participation, withdrawal, and protest.

Method: This study was conducted using a qualitative approach based on grounded theory methodology. Data were collected through in-depth, semi-structured interviews with 20 first-year students at Yazd University. Data analysis was carried out through open,axial, and selective coding,and continued until theoretical saturation was reached.

Findings: Young people’s understanding of concerns related to political development is not limited to the formal sphere of politics; rather, it is closely intertwined with their social, economic, cultural, gender-related, and everyday lived experiences. Dissatisfaction with compulsory laws, gender-based restrictions, economic problems, feelings of inequality, individual disregard, and distrust in governance emerged as the most significant categories derived from the data. Despite these dissatisfactions, many participants distanced themselves from violence and regarded peaceful protest as a more desirable form of political action. At the same time,fear of political and social consequences,the prioritization of personal security and individual salvation, and the belief that existing conditions are unchangeable led them toward a form of pessimism, passivity,and political glumism. According to the paradigmatic model of the study,nonviolent protest orientation constitutes the central phenomenon, which is shaped through its interaction with multiple forms of dissatisfaction,legalism,political non-participation,and the prioritization of individual interests.

Conclusion:The findings indicate that the decline in young people’s formal political participation does not necessarily imply political indifference. Rather, it may reflect a transformation in the forms of political action and the emergence of more complex patterns of protest,caution,and civic claim-making.