Is son preference disappearing from Bangladesh?
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
4-1-2021
Abstract
Historically, son preference has been widely prevalent in South Asia, manifested in the form of skewed sex ratios, gender differentials in child mortality, and worse educational investments in daughters versus sons. In the present study, we show, using data from a purposefully designed nationally representative survey for Bangladesh, that among women of childbearing age, son bias in stated fertility preferences has weakened and there is an emerging preference for gender balance. We examine a number of different hypotheses for the decline in son preference, including the increasing availability of female employment in the manufacturing sector, increased female education, and the decline of joint family living. Using survival analysis, we show that in contrast to stated fertility preferences, actual fertility decisions are still shaped by son preference. (C) 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Keywords
Fertility, Gender bias, Birth spacing, Female employment, Bangladesh
Divisions
FacultyofEconomicsAdministration
Funders
Australian Government (66396)
Publication Title
World Development
Volume
140
Publisher
Pergamon-Elsevier Science Ltd
Publisher Location
THE BOULEVARD, LANGFORD LANE, KIDLINGTON, OXFORD OX5 1GB, ENGLAND