Economic Insecurity and Women’s Preference for State Ownership in Iran

Hassan Gholipour Fereidouni, Behnaz Saboori (), Reza Ekhtiari Amiri () and Mohammad Reza Farzanegan ()
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Behnaz Saboori: Sultan Qaboos University, Oman
Reza Ekhtiari Amiri: University of Mazandaran, Iran
Mohammad Reza Farzanegan: Economics of the Middle East Research Group, Center for Near and Middle Eastern Studies (CNMS), School of Business & Economics, Philipps-Universität Marburg, Germany; ERF, Cairo; CESifo, Munich

MAGKS Papers on Economics from Philipps-Universität Marburg, Faculty of Business Administration and Economics, Department of Economics (Volkswirtschaftliche Abteilung)

Abstract: Iran’s move toward market-oriented reform faces political barriers. This paper examines a key but often overlooked group favoring state ownership: Iranian women, who consistently show stronger support for government involvement in the economy than both Iranian men and the global female average. Using World Values Survey (Wave 7, 2020) microdata, we show that this preference reflects a risk-averse response to economic insecurity. Traditional gender role beliefs, materialist orientations, confidence in government, and support for fundamentalist parties all raise the likelihood of preferring a larger state role. Older women, homemakers, and those in smaller towns and villages also show stronger support. These patterns point to a durable political-economic coalition backing state-led development, with implications for future reforms and social protection policy.

Keywords: Iranian women; economic preferences; size of government; World Values Survey (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 26 pages
Date: 2025
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