On the Quantity and Quality of Girls: Fertility, Parental Investments and Mortality

S Anukriti, Sonia Bhalotra and Eddy H F Tam

The Economic Journal, 2022, vol. 132, issue 641, 1-36

Abstract: Access to prenatal sex-detection technology in India has led to a phenomenal increase in abortion of girls. We find that it has also narrowed the gender gap in under-five mortality, consistent with surviving girls being more wanted than aborted girls. For every three aborted girls, one additional girl survived to age five. Mechanisms include moderation of son-biased fertility stopping and narrowing of gender gaps in parental investments. However, surviving girls are more likely to be born in lower-status families. Our findings have implications not only for counts of missing girls but also for the later life outcomes of girls.

Date: 2022
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Working Paper: On the Quantity and Quality of Girls: Fertility, Parental Investments, and Mortality (2018)
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