Abstract
Rural women have strong footing in Sri Lankan agriculture. Women in agriculture occupy varied social status; perform multiple roles and do diverse types of works in their rural social life. Thus, rural women’s role is not limited to agricultural activities; it encompasses household chores and social engagements. ‘Work’ has no explicit definition. It can be paid or unpaid. Perceived work satisfaction is the general attitude about work environments and it contributes towards interest and continuation of the work. This paper discusses factors affecting perceived work satisfaction of rural women in dry zone agriculture. In this study ‘work’ is identified as roles essential for the survival of rural women in the key operational spheres, such as domestic, economic and social, in their rural-social life as identified by them through their experience and exposure, irrespective of whether paid or not. The paper draws upon a field-based study with a sample comprising 150 rural women involved in agriculture. Respondents had poor satisfaction with domestic work and in their involvement with farm technology, but high satisfaction with economic and social roles and involvement with household technology. Further, associated work satisfaction was affected mostly by socio-cultural factors, followed by occupation related, personal level, and economic factors respectively.