Son Preference, Childbearing Behavior and Respondent Socio-Demographic Characteristics in Morogoro, Tanzania

Abstract

The study finds out how son preference influences childbearing behavior in the Morogoro municipality, Tanzania. The study was conducted at six wards in the Morogoro municipality. A total of 203 households was surveyed. Purposive and simple random sampling was adopted to select households to be included in the study. A chi-square test was performed to test for the association between son preference and family size. Quantitative analysis of parity progression ratio and sex ratio at last birth shows that couples’ preference for sons adjust childbearing upwards in the Morogoro municipality. The findings show that couples’ continue having children until they reached the desired number of sons. The study concluded that son preference was a factor toward high childbearing behavior in the Morogoro municipality.