Women in the Soviet Countryside: Women's Roles in Rural Development in the Soviet Union (Cambridge Russian, Soviet and Post-Soviet Studies, Series Number 56)

This book presents the first substantive western treatment of the role of women in Soviet rural development. It analyzes both the gains made and the problems still faced by rural women in a society where development policies have been accompanied by formal commitment to sexual equality. Dr. Bridger first considers the impact upon rural women of social, economic, and political transformation from 1917 until the Kruschev era, and then examines in depth contemporary changes in women's roles and status. Issues such as the nature of women's work, the extent of female participation in the labor force, changing family and demographic structures, and the educational, political and cultural experience of Soviet women are discussed in detail. The problems of unequal access to mechanized work, poor promotion prospects, and inequalities within the marriage that emerge from this analysis are among the topics discussed in Dr. Bridger's conclusion, where she identifies the principal unresolved dilemmas facing rural women, and summarizes the role played by the Soviet government in both advancing and retarding possible solutions.

Research on women's roles in rural development has found that women's contribution to the rural economy is commonly underestimated and that women may find it difficult to benefit from the development process. Within this context, this book looks at the Soviet experience of development as reflected in the lives of rural women.