JWAN SHARIFZADEH

Bukan — The structure of the family and the distribution of family responsibilities in Iran, like many societies around the world, are undergoing rapid social and economic transformations. However, in the Iranian case, these transformations have taken a more complex path, directly affecting women's conditions and roles within the family and society.

Escalating economic crises—foremost among them inflation, declining purchasing power, rising unemployment rates, and growing job insecurity—have pushed increasing numbers of women to bear responsibility for supporting their families, partially or fully. Women's roles are no longer limited to household management and family care—roles that have long been considered unpaid responsibilities and have not been recognized as economic work.

The story of Khadija A., 55, clearly embodies this reality. Alongside being a homemaker, she works in a shoe store and does weaving from her home to provide additional income for the family. She says: "My husband sometimes does manual work, but he does not have a stable job, and my income provides a large part of the family's livelihood."

Estimates indicate that more than six million women in Iran are officially classified as heads of their households. However, this number does not necessarily reflect the true scale of the phenomenon, as its determination is influenced by political, economic, social, cultural, and legal factors. Moreover, many women actually bear significant financial and family burdens without being officially registered as the main providers for their families.

Hidden Provision and Double Work

The recent changes in the division of labor and the shift from women's traditional roles come at a time when legal and social structures remain based on patriarchal norms. As economic pressures intensify, women's situations are also changing at a faster pace. Many women are not considered providers on paper and receive no support.

Kaziu Naimi (pseudonym), a sociologist and women's rights activist, said in her analysis of these conditions: "At a time when the definition of women's roles is undergoing changes and transformations on the ground, other family members still expect women to adhere to traditional roles. The structures are unjust, and women are working double."

Under the current economic crisis, a large proportion of women who have recently entered the labor market are those who were previously not allowed to work or study, and may not have had the opportunity to obtain sufficient education to effectively activate and benefit from their capabilities, according to our interviewee.

A woman who enters the labor market to compensate for insufficient family income may face, as she affirms, "an informal labor market, low wages, lack of insurance, job insecurity, and more, while family responsibilities remain. This situation becomes more acute for women who are heads of households and single women, because a woman's income in this case is no longer just a supplementary income to the family's income, but may be the sole source of livelihood for the family and for the woman herself."

There may be families, according to Kaziu Naimi, where the man is still seen as the main financial provider, while in reality it is the woman and her work that sustain the family. "Generally, women in this structure are alone and receive less support than men, and this pattern is rapidly worsening under current economic conditions."

The Growing Trend Toward Changes in Family Forms

The predominant family form—typically consisting of a father, mother, and children living together—has begun to change. In this shift, which statistics in recent years indicate is largely due to non‑marriage and rising divorce rates, economic problems have played the most prominent role.

Haniyeh M., 28, the sole provider for her daughter, has been living alone for four months with no support from anyone or any institution. She says her husband could no longer manage life: "He did not have a suitable job, and we could not even pay the rent. As a man, he also prevented me from working. Sometimes my mother would buy us living necessities. When financial pressures increased, he was not ready to take on any responsibility."

After separating from him, she asked him to keep their daughter for a year so she could rent a home and secure a job, but he said she should hand the child over to a social welfare institution. Haniyeh M. exchanged custody of her daughter for her dowry, and now lives with difficulty by working at a medical clinic.

A Disparity Between Social Reality and Structures of Power

What is taking shape today within the structure of the Iranian family may be an indicator of deeper changes in social relations—changes that reveal another face of economic problems. However, change in social reality does not necessarily mean change in structures of power.

This disparity may constitute one of the most important future issues of the family in Iran regarding women. Society expects women to have greater participation in both the economic and social spheres, but it has not yet recognized all the requirements necessary for this participation.

In such circumstances, social changes may, before leading to greater independence and choices for women, merely increase the burdens on them, or make women's fate more affected than that of others.

Elle S. , a 29‑year‑old nurse, is another woman who found starting a family impossible despite her desire to do so, and preferred to live alone. "The cost of living for two people, let alone marriage expenses, is very high. So now I live in a shared housing in another city and work at a hospital. Life has become much harder than ever, but marriage would certainly make it even harder."

She added: "It is true that I cannot live in my parents' home as I used to, but everyone sees me not as an independent person, but as a dependent part of that family."

Amina W., 68, a retired employee, is also facing new crises in her life. She says: "My husband died three years ago, and for about a year I have been taking care of his child instead of my son who is a refugee in Greece. The child's mother has also remarried and does not have the conditions or ability to care for him. On paper, the child is in his father's custody, but I take care of him on my retirement pension."

The number of women who, like her, bear the responsibility of caring for children at this stage of life is increasing.

Women Trapped in Injustice

What is forming today within the structure of the Iranian family may be an indicator of deeper changes in social relations—changes that reveal another face of economic problems. However, change in social reality does not necessarily mean change in structures of power.

This disparity may constitute one of the most important future issues of the family in Iran regarding women. Society expects women to have greater participation in both the economic and social spheres, but it has not yet recognized all the requirements necessary for this participation.

In such circumstances, social changes may, before leading to greater independence and choices for women, merely increase the burdens on them, or make women's fate more affected than that of others.