Structural Equation Modeling of Women's Role in Good Urban Governance in Iran
Subject Areas : Woman and Societyمصطفی محمدی ده چشمه 1 , hengameh دالوند 2
1 -
2 - دانشگاه شهید چمران اهواز
Keywords: Women, good urban governance, structural equations, gender justice,
Abstract :
Introduction: In an era characterized by a growing emphasis on sustainable development and social justice, understanding and recognizing women's role in urban decision-making and management processes is of paramount importance. This study aims to develop a structural equation model to assess the position of women in good urban governance in Iran.
Methods: Employing a descriptive-analytical approach, this applied research identifies and analyzes the key drivers influencing women's roles in urban governance. A researcher-designed questionnaire was utilized to collect data from 150 experts, resulting in the identification of 36 factors categorized under four main drivers: laws and regulations, organizational charts and hierarchies, the decentralized urban management system, and urban plans and programs. Structural equation modeling was employed to infer the causal relationships among these factors.
Findings: The findings reveal that the "decentralized urban management system" and "laws" exert the most significant influence on women's positions in good urban governance in Iran, with factor loadings of 0.87. Organizational charts and hierarchies, with a factor loading of 0.69, and urban plans and programs, with a factor loading of 0.59, also have a substantial impact on women's roles. Furthermore, laws and regulations independently influence women's participation in urban governance. The study's findings are credible given that women, constituting more than half of Iran's urban population, have consistently strived for gender equality. This research not only provides a critical analysis of the current situation but also offers recommendations to enhance women's participation in urban management structures to achieve the vision of good governance.
References
1-Asbury, J. C. (1994). Giving shape to higher education governance: the ways of women trustees involved in presidential searches. University of Rochester.1(3),1-24.
https://www.proquest.com/openview/f854e6396d9e3fc4f7a4dde58a5858a0/1?pq-origsite=gscholar&cbl=18750&diss=y
2-Bature, E. A., & Edoeje, G. D. (2023). Globalization and women in governance in Nigeria: 2015-2022. NG Journal of Social Development, 11(1), 57-69.
https://www.ajol.info/index.php/ngjsd/article/view/260075
3-Bauri, A., & Basu, A. (2024). Women’s Political Participation and Empowerment in Urban Local Governance in West Bengal, India. Journal of Asian and African Studies, 59(1), 142-158.
https://doi.org/10.1177/00219096221100979
4-Beall, J. (1996). Urban governance: why gender matters. New York: UNDP. https://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/document?repid=rep1&type=pdf&doi=6a2ed8d0c0994ab83e447184f80f5773db82170c
5-Bezi, K. & Sargolzaei, S. (2012). An Assessment of Women's Role and Position in Urban Management Employing the TOPSIS Technique: A Case Study of Zabol City. [In Persian]. https://civilica.com/doc/1209812
6-Braverman-Bronstein, A., Ortigoza, A. F., Vidaña-Pérez, D., Barrientos-Gutiérrez, T., Baldovino-Chiquillo, L., Bilal, U., ... & Roux, A. V. D. (2023). Gender inequality, women's empowerment, and adolescent birth rates in 363 Latin American cities. Social Science & Medicine, 317, 115566.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2022.115566
7-Chukwudi, C. E., Okoya, A. A., Adebajo, A. A., & Adekunle, E. O. (2023).
Women empowerment and political participation in Lagos State: A study of Ipaja-Ayobo lCDA (Local Council Development Area). Humanus Discourse, 3(4), 1-15.
https://scholar.google.com/scholar?hl=en&as_sdt=0%2C5&q=Chukwudi
8-Ciborra, C., & Navarra, D. D. (2005). Good governance, development theory, and aid policy: Risks and challenges of e-government in Jordan. Information technology for development, 11(2), 141-159.
https://doi.org/10.1002/itdj.20008
9-Gerard, K. (2024). The political p
ractices of gender experts: repurposing women's empowerment. Globalizations, 21(4), 648-666. . https://doi.org/10.1080/14747731.2023.2240150
10-Goel, R. K., & Nelson, M. A. (2023). Women’s political empowerment: Influence of women in legislative versus executive branches in the fight against corruption. Journal of Policy Modeling, 45(1), 139-159. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpolmod.2023.01.003
11-Goryunova, E., & Madsen, S. R. (2024). The current status of women leaders worldwide. In Handbook of research on gender and leadership (pp. 2-22). Edward Elgar Publishing. https://doi.org/10.4337/9781035306893.00010
12-Goswami, I., Balakrishnan, S., Vinotha, C., Chopra, R., Sivakumar, V., & Chetan, D. M. (2023). Gender And Politics: Examining Women's Representation And Empowerment. Journal of Namibian Studies: History Politics Culture, 33, 1980-1994. . https://doi.org/10.59670/jns.v33i.2302
13-Goyal, M., & Sole, N. A. (2021). Urban Grassroot Governance and Women Leadership: Progress. file:///C:/Users/personal/Downloads/IJGD_Vol2_2_.pdf
14-Hatami, M., Sabour, M. R., & Niknafs, M. (2022). A Bibliometric Assessment of Research on Incinerator Ash: 2000-2020. Amir Kabir Journal of Engineering, 54(8), 3040-3025. [In Persian].
doi: 10.22060/ceej.2022.20084.7339.3040
15-Himel, M. (2024). ANALYZING THE COMBINED ROLE OF GOOD GOVERNANCE AND GDP ON WOMEN LITERACY IN AFRICAN COUNTRIES. Jurnal Ilmu Ekonomi Terapan Vol, 9(1), 151-170. DOI: 10.20473/jiet.v9i1.58725 DOI: 10.20473/jiet.v9i1.58725
16-Idrus, I. A., Anurlia, S., & Fadiyah, D. (2023). Analysis of the Impact of Patriarchal Culture on the Role of Women in Politics and Governance. Jurnal Studi Ilmu Pemerintahan, 4(1), 1-12.
https://doi.org/10.35326/jsip.v4i1.2965
17-Inglesi-Lotz, R., Oosthuizen, A. M., Jumaniyazova, S., Kuziboev, B., & Liu, J. (2024). Exploring the Impact of Women Governance on CO2 Emissions in the European Union and Central Asia. International Journal of Energy Economics and Policy, 14(3), 639-646. https://doi.org/10.32479/ijeep.15933
18-Johnston, K., Danho, E. J., Yarrow, E., Cameron, R., Dann, Z., Ekinsmyth, C., ... & Doyle, A. (2023). Governance and public policies: Support for women entrepreneurs in France and England?. International Review of Administrative Sciences, 89(4), 1097-1115.
https://doi.org/10.1177/00208523221120142
19-Jongen, H. (2024). Beyond the num
bers on women’s representation: Recognition of women’s leadership in global governance. Review of International Studies, 50(2), 312-332. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0260210523000542
20-Keping, Y. (2018). Governance
and good governance: A new framework for political analysis. Fudan Journal of the Humanities and Social Sciences, 11, 1-8.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s40647-017-0197-4
21-Khaliji, M. A., & Jafarpour Ghalehteimouri, K. (2024). EMPOWERING URBAN SPA
CES: A FUNCTIONAL EVALUATION OF WOMEN’S PARTICIPATION THROUGH PARTICIPATORY PLANNING–A CASE STUDY OF TEHRAN’S 20TH DISTRICT. Journal of Research and Innovation for Sustainability, 1(1), 36-54.
https://doi.org/10.14456/jris.2024.3
22-Krizsán, A., & Roggeband, C. (2023). Feminist governance in the field of violence against women: the case of the Istanbul Convention. In Handbook of Feminist Governance (pp. 359-369). Edward Elgar Publishing. https://doi.org/10.4337/9781800374812.00038
23-Mahwish, S., Bashir, F., Abbassi, F. A., & Khan, S. A. (2024). Empowering Women through Financial Inclusion and Governance: Evidence from 30 Developing Economies. iRASD Journal of Economics, 6(1), 98-108. https://doi.org/10.52131/joe.2024.0601.0196
24-Mechkova, V., Dahlum, S., & Petrarca, C. S. (2024). Women's political representation, good governance and human development. Governance, 37(1), 19-38.
https://doi.org/10.1111/gove.12742
25-Nwokediegwu, Z. Q. S., Ugwuanyi, E. D., Dada, M. A., Majemite, M. T., & Obaigbena, A. (2024). Urban water management: a review of sustainable practices in the USA. Engineering Science & Technology Journal, 5(2), 517-530.
26-Paknejad, F., & Karkarshoorki, H. (2017). Application of social network analysis to examine the role of women in the resistance economy movement: The national conference on the status of women in Iran's 20-year vision, Bandar Abbas. [In Persian].
https://civilica.com/doc/733125
27-Popoola, R. O., Egharevba, M. E., & Fayomi, O. O. (2021). Democratic governance, gender, and women’s rights in Nigeria: 1999-2019. African Journal of Reproductive Health, 25(5s), 188-201.
28-Rezazadeh, R. (2011). Women empowerment and good urban governance in Iran. Asian Social Science, 7(3), 260. https://www.ajol.info/index.php/ajrh/article/view/221453
29-Samvati, Z., Sototi, J., & Zarang, M. (2016). Assessing the Role of Women and Families in Development Plans as Reflected in the System's Fundamental Documents. Iranian Journal of Social Development Studies, 8(2 (serial 30)), 49-68. [In Persian]. https://sid.ir/paper/231995/fa
30-Sarkar, R. K. Problems and Opportunities of Women’s Participation in Urban Local Government. https://d1wqtxts1xzle7.cloudfront.net/110918130/Problems_and_Opportunities_of_Women_s_Participation_in_Urban_Local_Government-libre.
31-Shahrbafchi-zadeh, M., & Abbaszadeh, S. (2015). Women's Empowerment within the Framework of Development: Proceedings of the Women and Management in Higher Education Conference. [In Persian]. https://sid.ir/paper/827404/fa
32-Shaiko, R. G. (1997). Female participation in association governance and political representation: Women as executive directors, board members, lobbyists, and political action committee directors. Nonprofit Management and Leadership, 8(2), 121-139.
https://doi.org/10.1002/nml.4130080204
33-Statistics Center of the Ministry of Interior of Iran, 2023[In Persian]
34-Statistics Center of the Vice Presidency for Women's Affairs, 2023[In Persian]
35-Suresh, N. V., & Rexy, V. A. M. (2024, February). An Empirical Study on Empowering Women through Self Help Groups. In 3rd International Conference on Reinventing Business Practices, Start-ups and Sustainability 1(4)pp. 957-964 Atlantis Press.
https://doi.org/10.2991/978-94-6463-374-0_83
36-Tajdar, V., & Akbari, M. (2007). The Role of Women in Good Urban Governance. Journal of Urban Studies, - (24-25), [In Persian]. https://sid.ir/paper/471991/fa
37-Zaman, F. (2012). Bangladeshi women’s political empowerment in urban local governance. South Asia Research, 32(2), 81-
