Abstract
Arab-Israeli women have low labour force participation rates with only 1 in 3 women being employed. This paper investigates how cultural factors, such as attitudes towards women in the workplace, affect this group's labour force participation conditional on economic and demographic characteristics. Using a novel survey that collects details information about women's cultural beliefs, we find measures of a woman's "modernity" have a positive impact on labour market participation. In particular, conditioning on economics and demographic variables, women with more proficient computing skills and women with a driving license are more likely to participate in the labour market. Consistent with existing studies, we find that more highly educated women are more likely to be employed while women with more children are less likely to be employed. We also find that women who live in households with more salaried members are more likely to participate in the labour market.