Son Preference, Gender Discrimination and Missing Girls in Rural Spain, 1750-1950

Francisco Marco-Gracia and Francisco Beltrán Tapia

No 2007, Documentos de Trabajo (DT-AEHE) from Asociación Española de Historia Económica

Abstract: Relying on longitudinal micro data from a Spanish rural region between 1750 and 1950 (almost 35,000 life courses), this article evidences that discriminatory practices affected sex-specific mortality during infancy and childhood. Although it is likely that families also discriminated girls during the first year of life, the female excess mortality was especially visible in the 1-5 age-group. In this regard, while breastfeeding seemed to have temporarily mitigated the effects of gender discrimination, sex-specific mortality rates behaved markedly different once children were weaned. Parents therefore prioritised boys during infancy and childhood in the allocation of food and/or care in order to enhance their survival chances.

Keywords: Infant and child mortality; Gender discrimination; Female excess mortality; Health. (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I14 I15 J13 J16 N33 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 35 pages
Date: 2020-07
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-his
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Related works:
Journal Article: Son Preference, Gender Discrimination, and Missing Girls in Rural Spain, 1750–1950 (2021)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:ahe:dtaehe:2007

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