The Situation of Economic Activity of Female Rural Dwellers in the Research Perspective

The study is devoted to sociological problems pertaining to the situation of women in the labour market. The problems were presented in the view of rural women themselves in relation to sociological literature and statistical data. The data which constitute the basis for the study are made up of 1600 questionnaires carried out on a nationwide sample of rural women as well as the reports from focus group interviews conducted with four groups of rural women. The study on ‘Rural women in the labour market. The diagnosis, conditions and prospects’ was carried out in 2007–2008 as a part of SOPHRD1.6 (b) project ‘The diagnosis of the social and professional situation of rural women in Poland” funded by ESF and implemented by the Polish Social Policy Association in cooperation with the Ministry of Labour and Social Policy. The objective of the research was to carry out a diagnosis and to indicate the reasons and the determinants of rural women’s activity and inactivity in the labour market. Researchers outlined independent variables regarded as potential indicators of economic activity, the sense of job security, inactivity and the plans concerning future employment. The indicators were grouped into seven sets: 1. variables related to the social standing of an individual 2. family situation 3. socialization patterns 4. socio-political activity 5. environment-related factors 6. educational activity 7. a subjective assessment of the local labour market. The paper focuses on a number of socio-demographic correlates that affect rural women’s labour market situation and merely outlines the presence of other variables that might be important from the point of view of professional activity of this group of women