Measuring autonomy: evidence from Bangladesh

Ana Vaz (), Sabina Alkire, Agnes Quisumbing and Esha Sraboni ()
Additional contact information
Ana Vaz: Senior Research Officer, Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative (OPHI), Oxford, United Kingdom
Esha Sraboni: Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island, USA

Asia-Pacific Sustainable Development Journal, 2018, vol. 25, issue 2, 21-51

Abstract: The search for rigorous, transparent and domain-specific measures of empowerment that can be used for gender analysis is ongoing. This paper explores the added value of a new measure of domain-specific autonomy. This direct measure of motivational autonomy emanates from the “self-determination theory” (Ryan and Deci, 2000). We examine in detail the Relative Autonomy Index (RAI) for individuals, using data representative of Bangladeshi rural areas. Based on descriptive statistical analyses, we conclude that the measure and its scale perform broadly well in terms of conceptual validity and reliability. Based on an exploratory analysis of the determinants of autonomy of men and women in Bangladesh, we find that neither age, education nor income are suitable proxies for autonomy. This implies that the RAI adds new information about individuals, and as such, could represent a promising avenue for further empirical exploration as a quantitative, yet nuanced, measure of domain-specific empowerment.

Keywords: empowerment; agency; social indicators; Bangladesh (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: D63 O55 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2018
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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Related works:
Working Paper: Measuring Autonomy: Evidence from Bangladesh (2019)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:unt:japsdj:v:25:y:2018:i:2:p:21-51

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