Assessing the Impact of Education on Women’s Empowerment: The Case of District Abbottabad, Pakistan
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Education is widely acknowledged as a fundamental catalyst for empowering women, fostering socio-economic progress, and enhancing decision-making abilities, adaptability, and overall quality of life. This study explored the role of education in empowering women in Abbottabad District, Pakistan. Abbottabad was explicitly chosen due to its higher female literacy rate in the province and its geography, which exhibits socio-economic diversity and cultural constraints. To capture both numerical trends and in-depth personal experiences, this research adopts a mixed-methods design, integrating quantitative and qualitative data collection and analysis. A pragmatic research approach was employed, using purposive sampling to recruit 130 respondents. Data was collected through structured questionnaires and scheduled interviews, with secondary data obtained from various academic journals, reports, and relevant institutional publications. The analysis of descriptive statistics and thematic methods revealed that 95% of respondents considered education a critical factor in women’s empowerment, significantly influencing their social and economic development. Chi-Square values and p-values indicate that the education level of women significantly affects their social empowerment in terms of decision-making power (χ2=6.02, p-value=0.025) and freedom of movement (χ2=6.93, p-value=0.016). Chi-Square values and p-values further demonstrate that the education level of women significantly affects their economic empowerment in terms of access to the job market (χ2=3.34, p-value=0.089) and equal opportunities (χ2=3.74, p-value=0.077). Women with higher education, such as Graduate or Postgraduate degrees, were found to have better job access and decision-making power. Interestingly, older women with lower educational levels had more influence in social and economic decisions, particularly regarding property matters. The findings highlight that while education is indispensable, other socio-cultural factors also contribute to shaping women’s empowerment.
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