Women in the Middle East and North Africa : Change and Continuity

This book explores the complexity of women's social status in the Middle East and North African region and fills a gap in the existing literature by providing an up-to-date and comprehensive portrait of women's status from a theoretical and socio-demographic perspective. This book explores the complexity of women's social status in the Middle East and North African region and fills a gap in the existing literature by providing an up-to-date and comprehensive portrait of women's status from a theoretical and socio-demographic perspective. The author debunks some common assumptions regarding the economic, cultural and demographic transformations of the MENA region. The book highlights the social forces that have transformed the region over the past several decades. Debunking requires exploring the inter-relationship of multiple factors that influence women's integration into public life, factors such as fertility, education, employment and labor migration. It necessitates examining the impact of sudden oil wealth in the region as well as looking at the complex ways in which patriarchal systems are intertwined and often embedded in religion and then enforced by governments This book explores the complexity of women's social status in the Middle East and North African region and fills a gap in the existing literature by providing an up-to-date and comprehensive portrait of women's status from a theoretical and socio-demographic perspective. The author debunks some common assumptions regarding the economic, cultural, and demographic transformations of the MENA region. The book highlights the social forces that have transformed the region over the past several decades. Debunking requires exploring the inter-relationship of multiple factors that influence women's integration into public life, factors such as fertility, education, employment and labor migration. It necessitates examining the impact of sudden oil wealth in the region as well as looking at the complex ways in which patriarchal systems are intertwined and often embedded in religion and then enforced by governments. -- Book Description Cover......Page 1 Contents......Page 8 List of Tables......Page 10 Acknowledgments......Page 12 Part I: Introduction and Background......Page 14 1 Introduction......Page 16 2 The Path of Social and Economic Change According to the Modernization Theory......Page 38 3 Patriarchy, Modernization, and the Global Economy......Page 46 Part II: Status and the Component Variables that Influence Women’s Advancement in the MENA Region......Page 64 4 Women’s Status: The Question of Access to Resources and Women’s Empowerment......Page 66 5 Women’s Status and Fertility Patterns......Page 74 6 Education and Status of Women......Page 86 7 Work: Definition and Patterns......Page 106 8 Labor Migration, Oil Revenue, and their Impact on Women’s Employment......Page 122 Part III: Conclusion, Discussion, and Case Studies......Page 136 9 Conclusion......Page 138 Notes......Page 178 Bibliography......Page 192 Index......Page 218 Introduction The path of social and economic change according to the modernization theory Patriarchy, modernization, and the global economy Women's status : the question of access to resources and women's empowerment Fertility patterns, trends, and women's status Education and status of women Work : definition & patterns Labor migration, oil revenue, and their impact on women's employment Conclusion.