تحلیل موانع توسعه کار افرینی زنان روستایی در مقابله با وضعیت نامناسب فضای کار آفرینی( مطالعه موردی: روستاهای شهرستان مریوان)

Extended Abstract

Introduction

An assessment of current conditions in rural areas shows that, despite the considerable potential of these regions and women’s demonstrated ability to harness such capacities for entrepreneurial activity, structural, cultural, and institutional constraints continue to obstruct the realization of women’s full capabilities. Constraints such as limited access to financial resources, inadequate specialized training, restrictive social norms, and underdeveloped infrastructure have collectively produced an unfavorable environment for rural women’s entrepreneurship. Gender stereotypes, inequitable divisions of labor, and the dual burden of household and economic responsibilities expose rural women to challenges such as diminished self-confidence, low risk tolerance, and restricted access to resources within male-dominated environments.

Marivan County, the study area, suffers from structural and economic weaknesses stemming from geographical isolation and centralized national planning, factors that have exacerbated unemployment and poverty among rural women. Against this backdrop, the present study seeks to identify the barriers hindering the development of rural women’s entrepreneurship and to examine the strategies they employ to cope with these challenges. The main research questions are:

1. What factors account for the underdevelopment of rural women’s entrepreneurship in the region?

2. Which key conditions are necessary for improving the entrepreneurial environment?

3. What strategies do rural women adopt to adapt to unfavorable conditions?

Methodology

This study is applied in purpose and adopts a descriptive–analytical design, employing both documentary (library-based) and survey approaches for data collection. Theoretical data were drawn from documentary sources, whereas empirical data were collected through survey methods. The spatial scope encompasses the rural settlements of Marivan County, and the temporal scope corresponds to the second half of the 2024–2025. The statistical population comprised women from 12,083 rural households across 149 villages. Based on Cochran’s formula, a sample of 320 rural women was calculated. Sampling was conducted in two stages: first through stratification and then through random selection across villages and rural districts.

Research instruments included a researcher-designed Likert-scale questionnaire and semi-structured interviews. Instrument validity was assessed and confirmed through expert review by faculty members, local elites, officials, and entrepreneurship specialists. The reliability of the questionnaire, assessed using Cronbach’s alpha, was 0.82, indicating an acceptable level of internal consistency.

Results and Discussion

The study identified eight major barriers to the development of rural women’s entrepreneurship: (1) weaknesses in management and planning systems (e.g., neglect of women in resource allocation, absence of a comprehensive rural development plan); (2) structural barriers (low competitiveness, lack of processing industries); (3) inadequate infrastructure (limited access to electricity, internet, and transportation); (4) weak economic networking (poor integration with larger markets); (5) socio-cultural constraints (gender-based division of labor, family resistance); (6) educational deficiencies (limited entrepreneurship counseling); (7) financial constraints (difficulty obtaining loans, lack of microfinance funds); and (8) individual barriers (low risk tolerance, weak self-confidence).

Path analysis indicated that weak development management and planning (factor loading = 0/633) and an unfavorable business environment (0/459) were the most influential determinants of adverse entrepreneurial conditions. Moreover, environmental factors (total loading = 0/465) exerted a stronger influence than individual factors (0/292). Regarding coping strategies, the most common included daily wage labor on farms (impact coefficient = 0/720), selling metal assets and gold (0/385), migration (0/296), and, to a lesser extent, marriage and homemaking (0/191).

Overall, the findings suggest that advancing rural women’s entrepreneurship requires systemic management strategies that simultaneously address environmental factors (e.g., infrastructure, access to finance) and individual factors (e.g., education, self-confidence). Weaknesses in development planning, as the root cause of these challenges, have undermined the effectiveness of supportive policies. The coping strategies adopted by women—such as migration or selling assets—are not only unsustainable but also heighten their economic and social vulnerability. The study underscores the need to acknowledge rural women as key agents of sustainable development and cautions that neglecting this issue will perpetuate cycles of poverty and gender inequality.

Conclusion

By examining the barriers to rural women’s entrepreneurship in Marivan County, this study shows that a combination of structural, environmental, and individual constraints has produced an unfavorable entrepreneurial environment for women. Weak management and ineffective development planning—together with inadequate infrastructure, financial limitations, and entrenched patriarchal norms—have undermined the emergence of a sustainable entrepreneurial ecosystem. The coping strategies adopted by women—such as daily wage labor, asset liquidation, and migration—while offering short-term relief from poverty, ultimately deepen cycles of deprivation and gender inequality rather than enhancing economic agency. These findings underscore the urgency of revising rural development policies by prioritizing women’s empowerment, strengthening supportive networks, and expanding access to resources. Without structural reforms in planning systems and transformations in societal attitudes, the realization of sustainable rural development goals will remain unattainable.