01834nas a2200133 4500000000100000008004100001100001800042700001500060700001400075700001500089245011900104856015500223520132200378 2025 d1 aChuanming Sun1 aYutao Chen1 aHui Zhang1 aWeifeng Su00aCan cultural labor empower women in the context of intangible cultural heritage? A case study of Jian’ou Tiaofan uhttps://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-105007538545&doi=10.1080%2f0023656X.2025.2511703&partnerID=40&md5=630ed0c2a575cc573b5e2dfb3a54ae1e3 aIntangible cultural heritage has the potential to enhance women’s empowerment and gender equality. By focusing on the case of Jian’ou Tiaofan, as a form of Chinese intangible cultural heritage, this study investigates women’s empowerment through cultural labor in the context of intangible cultural heritage. Results show that women’s empowerment is essentially a process that begins with the redistribution of cultural power from male folk elites to women and realizes the reproduction of power through the transformation and accumulation of resources. As women engage in preserving and inheriting of intangible cultural heritage, their empowerment evolves dynamically across the three stages of ‘task-oriented empowerment,’ ‘career-oriented empowerment,’ and ‘mission-oriented empowerment’ driven by the internal mechanism of ‘functional premium–justice distance–empowerment autonomy.’ This study deepens the understanding of women’s participation and their empowerment. In order to combine women’s empowerment with the preservation of intangible cultural heritage, it is suggested that relevant entities encourage women to participate in cultural labor and address the issue of gender justice embedded in this process. © 2025 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor \& Francis Group.