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Over the past two decades, the issue of rural women in developing countries has evolved from relative
obscurity to a primary concern among the growing community of researchers and policy makers who
are interested in women's economic and social situation status. In respect to developing countries,
rural women play a vital role in agriculture, daily reproductive tasks and income generating activities,
etc. However, it is the reality that less value is given to their contributions, and rural women are less
likely to realize their status to make a life better for themselves, families and communities. In this
regard, participation of rural women in productive cooperation is an appropriate means for empowering
them and reduction their poverty. This study was undertaken to review individual-economic factors
affecting rural WP in "Paveh ball-making project" as a productive cooperative (co-op) in Iran. As an
exploratory and descriptive-survey study, 120 rural women were selected from the cooperative in Paveh
district using systematic probability method. The project was the first of its kind in the region. The
study area is located in the west of Kermanshah province, in the mid-west of Iran. Necessary data and
information were gathered using several methods such as documentary review, observation, PRA
techniques, and a designed questionnaire. The result of path analysis showed that the socio–economic
variables could explain about 61% of dependent variable (women participation). Trust to co-op staff,
awareness, number of family, economical motivation, economic improvement of women’s family, years
of membership, years of management at the cooperative, land and livestock ownership, were among
the highly prevalent socio –economic factors that potentially have affected the participation of women
in this co-op. As the factors influencing the participation of women are multiple and complex, a holistic
approach should be adopted with emphasis on improving access to education, enhancing social status,
increasing external funds and supports especially for rural women, encouraging ownership of local
projects, and mechanisms to enhancing participation.