Women in Transition: The Case of Saudi Arabia

Abstract

This research investigates the impact of socio-economic changes on the traditional role of women in Saudi Arabia. A descriptive-comparative study was conducted using sixty-two women and their daughters, representing two generations and three economic groups all living in an urban community of Dammam. The information obtained from older women who had lived in Arabia prior to its oil boom supplied the baseline date for the comparison with young generation women, born and living in Arabia following the discovery of oil. The study found major social and cultural changes reflected in family structure and marriage styles, as well as in the rising number of educated women. Despite these changes, however, no significant modification in the traditional role of women was observed. This is believed to be because employment opportunities for women in the modem sectors of the economy remain extremely limited while the traditional economic contributions of women have become undervalued.