A Review and Survey on Components of Empowering the Rural Women and Explanation of Their Effective Factors: A Case Study of Isfahan County

Women empowerment is a dynamic process that helps them to gain further access to resources and control over their lives and therefore causes a stronger sense of independence and self esteem. This study aims at investigating the factors affecting the economic empowerment of rural women. It is an applied research with a survey methodology in which 260 rural women in Isfahan County are selected through random sampling. The data are analyzed in a factor analysis method. The study results show that the most important factors affecting the empowerment of rural women are cooperation in economic activities, family ties, and social awareness which explain some 55.80 percent of cumulative variance; and the most important obstacles are psychological-personal components concerning cooperation in economic activities as well as physical-communication and cultural-organization components which explain some 51.60 percent of cumulative variance.