Assessment of Women empowerment and its determinants and utilization of Government Welfare Scheme among women in the adopted villages of a private medical college: A cross sectional study

Abstract

Background: In rural India, women's empowerment is hindered by challenges such as limited access to education, economic opportunities, and healthcare services, compounded by entrenched gender inequalities. Addressing these issues requires comprehensive assessments of empowerment indicators to inform targeted interventions and policy initiatives aimed at promoting gender equity and sustainable development. The utilization of various national and state women welfare schemes varies based on awareness level and access, which are determined by socioeconomic factors. Therefore, this research aimed to assess the various dimensions of women empowerment, and various factors associated with it, and the utilization of government welfare schemes.

Objectives:

1. To measure the various dimensions of women empowerment (household autonomy, freedom of mobility, gender preference & domestic violence, etc.,) among women in the adopted villages of a private medical college.


2. To find the various factors associated with the dimensions of women empowerment.


3. To estimate the utilization of government women welfare schemes among women in the adopted villages.

Methodology: A cross-sectional study involving 587 married women out of 3833 females were selected by stratified random sampling among each stratum (5 adopted villages). All married women < 60 years old in the village willing to participate were included in the study, excluding widows. The data was collected using a pretested standardized questionnaire adopted from the Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) containing socioeconomic demographic details, indicators of women empowerment, and utilization of women welfare programs. The data was collected by the personal interview method.

Results: The mean age of the study population was 39±12 [CI: -4.155 to 0.173].  Among the 587 study participants, 74.1% of women have autonomy over making household decisions, 62.2% have freedom of mobility, 69.8% responded that it is adequate if their girl children are educated up to high school, 74.8% of women have a positive attitude against domestic violence. 34.2% of women were registered and utilized the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) scheme.

Conclusion: This study showed that women empowerment is improving in rural areas over time. However, regular promotional and awareness campaigns are required to improve various dimensions of women empowerment and their quality of life.