Conceptualization of the Challenges in Home-based Businesses in the Villages of Kermanshah Province

Every income-generating business set up at home and done by means of the tools and facilities at hand is referred to as a home-based business. The present research was conducted to determine the challenges of home-based businesses in the villages of Kermanshah Province. The research is based on the qualitative method of "Grounded Theory", judgment and snowball sampling procedure, and in-depth semi-structured interviews with 19 activists in home-based businesses as well as experts from various fields of government, academia and the private sector. The validity of interviews was confirmed by triangulation and researcher’s review methods. For the data analysis, a systematic approach and a three-step open, axial, and selective coding technique were used. The results of the study showed that the development of home-based businesses in the study area is faced with various challenges that can be categorized into causative, interfering and contextual types. The major consequences of these challenging conditions include demotivation of activists, creation of psychological barriers for newcomers, increase in rural-urban- migration, and reduction in business competitiveness.