On the Effect of Non- Governmental Organizations (NGO) on the Socio-economic Status of Women Heading Households

This paper is based on an experimental study exploring the effect of Non- Governmental Organizations (NGO) in empowering women heading households in Tehran. The main purpose of this research was to investigate the effect of NGO membership on the socio-economic status of women heading households in Tehran city through examining the mean differences of two groups of women’s access to welfare resources, professional skills, social support, social trust, life satisfaction, power of control and making decision, attitudes toward one’s abilities and merits. A use was made of a questionnaire in this survey study. A total of 384 respondents was sampled using cluster sampling method. Data were analyzed through utilizing Chi square and Mann-Whitney U test. The results revealed that women NGO members had a significantly higher socio-economic status, more access to welfare resources, more life satisfaction, and a better attitude toward their abilities and merits. However there were no other significant differences as regards professional skills, social support, social trust, life satisfaction, power of control and making decision between the study groups.