A Sociological Study of Iranian Women's Economic Participation: An Empirical Test of Douglass North's Theory of Social Orders

Malmir, Mahdi; Barforoush, Fatemeh

doi:10.22054/qjss.2026.90379.2952

A Sociological Study of Iranian Women's Economic Participation: An Empirical Test of Douglass North's Theory of Social Orders

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

Mahdi Malmir ¹

Fatemeh Barforoush ²

¹ Assistant Professor, Department of Social Sciences, Faculty of Letters and Human Sciences, Shahid Beheshti University, Tehran, Iran

² Master of Arts in Social Science Research, Shahid Beheshti University, Tehran, Iran

https://doi.org/10.22054/qjss.2026.90379.2952

Abstract

This study, adopting the perspective of new institutionalism and drawing on Douglass North’s theory of social orders, examines the impact of institutional quality and power structures on women’s economic participation in Iran. The conceptual framework of the research is based on the distinction between open-access and limited-access orders, with Iran being considered as an example of a limited institutional order in the analysis. The research data were extracted from international statistical sources and cover the period from 2011 to 2021. The research method employed is quantitative secondary data analysis. The findings indicate that factors such as weak rule of law, concentration of power, and structural constraints on access to equal opportunities constitute some of the major barriers to women’s economic participation. In contrast, economic variables such as economic growth, in the absence of effective institutions, have limited and unsustainable impacts. Accordingly, institutional restructuring, the expansion of democracy, the political and educational empowerment of women, and the reduction of institutional monopolies are considered essential prerequisites for improving women’s economic participation. The low rate of women’s economic participation in Iran and the Middle East compared with global levels reflects cultural, economic, and political constraints and confirms the significant role of institutional structures. Therefore, the central question of this study is: What institutional and social factors constrain women’s economic participation, and how can this situation be analyzed from a sociological perspective?

Keywords

Women&rsquo

s Economic Participation, Economic Sociology, New Institutionalism, Open Access Order, Limited Access Order

Subjects