Analyzing the Resilience of Rural Women Entrepreneurs by Connor-Davidson Scale

Entrepreneurial resilience is the ability to withstand adversity quickly and is one of the most important personal traits in entrepreneurship. The resilience of women entrepreneurs in rural areas effectively creates or promotes business resilience, and as a result, the rural society. Resilient entrepreneurs welcome change instead of resisting and are very risk-averse and tolerant in achieving goals and managing challenges. This research aims to analyze the resilience of rural women entrepreneurs. The study's statistical population includes all members of parent companies supporting the development of agriculture in Fars province. The study was performed using stratified and random sampling methods with a sample of 269 people. A questionnaire was developed to collect data. The Connor-Davidson Individual Resilience Measurement Scale (CD-RISC) was used to measure resilience. According to the study results, the individual resilience of rural women in Fars province is almost high. A Comparison of the individual resilience in the three cities of the study shows that women entrepreneurs in Marvdasht and Shiraz have higher individual resilience than women entrepreneurs in Estahban. The variables of entrepreneurial spirit, entrepreneurial motivation, creativity, and the number of family members have a significant correlation with women entrepreneurs' resilience. Based on the results of the Stepwise regression, entrepreneurial spirit, entrepreneurial motivation, creativity, and the number of family members can predict the changes in women's resilience. Improving individual characteristics is necessary to improve rural women's entrepreneurial resilience. Therefore, it is suggested that training should be considered to strengthen the motivation, creativity, and entrepreneurial spirit of rural women. Strengthening the skills of rural women in decision-making, stress management, concentration, emotional control, and independent thinking will also improve their resilience.