Women's Work and Family Life. the Case of Micro- Enterprise for Rural Women in the Central Zone of Chile

Among the most significant changes that have occurred in recent decades in rural areas in Chile highlights the increasing visibility of women in the labor market, which from our perspective is key for the effects it has on a personal level, quality family life and living arrangements of rural families. In this context, the exercise of an independent activity or the creation of a microenterprise is a pathway for personal and family subsistence for an ever wider rural woman. Therefore, from a perspective that combines quantitative and qualitative methods, the purpose of this paper is to analyze specific cases of micro-enterprises rural women in Central Chile, examining three specific dimensions: empowerment process, family restructuring and meanings built around productive activity.

The paper  is part of a broader study  held in the province of Ñuble, Central Chile,  concerning with  female work in different social and geographic spaces and the effects of paid female work at personal and family levels and in local and national development (Proyecto DIUBB 133324 2/R).