Young womenʹs attitudes towards agriculture and womenʹs new roles in the greek countryside: A first approach

In recent years the employment situation in urban areas has deteriorated, particularly for women, while in countryside new kinds of work are being promoted in the framework of endogenous development. The purpose of the present article in the light of these conditions is to examine the attitude of young women to employment in farming and the prospect of living in a farming household, as well as their attitude to the new roles that are emerging for farm women. The data are derived from field research in four communities, having been obtained by means of a personal questionnaire addressed to all the unmarried women between 18 and 30 who live in them. The findings indicate that the girlsʹ attitude to farm employment remains extremely negative. Their orientations in relation to work and place of residence are characterized by strong inclinations to emigrate to urban or semi-urban areas. Their attitude to the prospect of having a farmer for a husband is more flexible, but only on certain conditions. The new roles that are promoted for women in the agricultural sector are perceived as low income occupations, which can be seen only as a temporary expedient, acceptable as an answer to the employment problem only until such time as a better solution can be found.