Investigating the Role of Rural Women Empowerment in Analyzing Economic, Social and Cultural Factors Influencing Local Communities Development

Abstract

In recent years, continuous awareness has increased on the need to empower rural women to achieve sustainable development. Therefore, this study has been conducted with the aim of investigating the role of rural women empowerment in the analysis of social and economic factors and cultural obstacles influencing local communities’ development. The study population consisted of rural women in Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari province, 384 of whom were selected by stratified random sampling method according to Krejcie and Morgan’s sample determination table. A questionnaire was used as research instrument. Data analysis was done by SPSS24 and AMOS22 softwares. The collected data were analyzed using the structural equation modeling technique. The results based on direct structural model showed that there is a positive significant relationship between variables such as social participation, social protection and economic factors, and the dependent variable of local communities’ development, and there is a negative significant relationship between cultural obstacles and the dependent variable of local communities’ development. Also, based on the results of the mediation structural model, it was found that rural women’s empowerment variable had a mediation role on the relationship between social and economic factors and cultural obstacles, and local communities’ development