Child Sex Ratio Research Articles

Assessment of Socioeconomic Development of the Aspirational District in Central India: A Methodological Comparison

This study examines the Washim district’s socioeconomic growth to determine the criteria for district development. This study found that the Washim district comes under the rural area, where the child sex ratio is inferior. Even in some villages, it has zero value. In some regions where the Scheduled Caste (SC)/Scheduled Tribe (ST) population is more, the child sex ratio is less. Out of six sub-districts, four sub-districts have a low literacy rate (less than 75%). The mean literacy rate is found as 81.7%, and its standard deviation is evaluated as 7.0. In the region where the literacy rate is higher, people are less busy with farming, and hence the percentage of the cultivator is less and vice versa. In the region where SC and ST population is more, the percentage of Household Industry (HHI) worker is higher and vice versa. Out of 698 inhabited villages, 692 villages are electrified in the district, with 99.1% of towns having installed power supply. The use of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG)/piped natural gas (PNG) is minimal in the Washim district. In the region where firewood availability is accessible and adequate, the use of LPG/PNG is found to be less than its average value.

Effect of ovulation before or after intrauterine insemination on pregnancy outcome in patients with unexplained infertility or polycystic ovarian syndrome

Objective To investigate the relationship between ovulation and pregnancy outcomes in patients undergoing intrauterine insemination (IUI). Methods The clinical data from 784 patients, diagnosed with polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) or unexplained infertility, underwent 1624 IUI cycles were analyzed retrospectively. Ovulation was observed by transvaginal ultrasonography on the day of IUI. The clinical pregnancy rate (CPR), abortion rate (AR), and live birth rate (LBR) were analyzed. Results The study included 1031 pre-ovulation IUI cycles (63.49%) and 593 post-ovulation IUI cycles (36.51%). The CPR was 13.05%, the AR was 15.57%, and the LBR was 11.02%. Ovulation before or after IUI affected the CPR (11.06% VS 16.53%, p = .002) and LBR (9.41% VS 13.83%, p = .006) per cycle, but did not affect the AR (14.91% VS 16.33%, p = .149). The sex ratio of children was not related to ovulation (p = .948). After adjusting for baseline characteristics and logistic regression, the CPR (OR = 1.931, 95% CI 1.062–1.931, p = .019) and LBR (OR = 1.389, 95% CI 1.007–1.916, p = .045) of post-ovulation insemination were higher than those of pre-ovulation insemination significantly. Conclusion Pregnancy outcomes were affected by ovulation on the day of IUI in patients with unexplained infertility or PCOS. Post-ovulation insemination may improve the CPR of IUI.

Study on gender preference among pregnant women attending the tertiary care Hospital, Valsad: A cross-sectional study

Child sex ratio has been declining over a period of time. Preference for a male child by the family leading to sex selective abortion is found to be a major factor which may have adverse impact on the social structure. The social evil female feticide and infanticide can be eradicated only when we identify the reasons of gender preference and recognize the importance of women in their life. Preference for male baby reflects underlying socioeconomic and cultural patterns and prevailing inequity between genders in many societies in India. So this study was undertaken to find out the gender preference and various reasons for gender preference among antenatal women.This study was conducted among ANC mothers to know 1. Epidemiological factors of pregnant mother affecting the gender preference 2. Know the gender preference among ANC Mother for current pregnancy 3. Know the reasons for gender preference. A cross-sectional questionnaire based study was conducted among 100 antenatal women attending to Outpatient department of tertiary care hospital in the months of July-August 2021. Written consent was obtained after being briefed in detail about the aim and objectives of the study. Information was obtained using a pre-tested questionnaire on Demographic details, Obstetrics details, order of pregnancy, gender preference by the mother and reasons for gender preference etc. The data was entered and analyzed by using statistical software. In our study mean age of pregnant mother is 23±2SD, 15% mothers are illiterate and 58% from general category and 51% are residing in Nuclear family. 40.0% of pregnant mother had male gender preference and main reason for male gender preference was previous female child (60.0%), income purpose (57.50%), for generation constitution (45.0%) and demand of in laws (45.0%). We also noted the reason for non-preference of female child and noted that 87.5% had already a female child in their family.A desire for a balanced number of daughters and sons and a preference were observed. A son preference was observed among pregnant mothers for various reasons such as Income purpose, generation constitution, demand of in laws etc.

Understanding the Geography of Victimization: A Spatial Analysis of Intimate Partner Violence in India.

Most studies on intimate partner violence (IPV) and its drivers have focused on individual-and household-level characteristics of the victim. Recent studies have acknowledged that it is a community-level phenomenon, using spatial analytical methods to analyze community-level determinants of IPV and its geographic dimensions. Such studies provide mixed evidence on the impact of different factors and need to be supplemented by similar studies-particularly in South Asian countries where IPV is common. The present study examines district-level variations in the incidence of various forms of IPV and identifies its determinants in India, a fast-growing South Asian country with poor gender indicators. The study combines data from the National Family Health Survey, District Level Household Survey, and the decadal Census. It applies spatial analytical methods such as the Global Moran's I, Getis-ord statistic, and Multivariate Local Geary to determine the nature of the spatial distribution of different categories of IPV. Spatial regression models are used to identify the community-level predictors of each category of IPV. The study finds non-random overlapping spatial clusters in the eastern part of India. The study also finds that neighborhoods characterized by low empowerment levels, and with a high child sex ratio, road connectivity, and proportion of socially marginalized groups are more likely to exhibit high levels of all types of IPV-although the impact of these determinants varies across districts. Furthermore, spill-overs in the incidence of IPV between neighboring districts are also observed. The study concludes by recommending the use of localized policies, rather than broad national or state policies, in reducing IPV.

Status of Gender Imbalance Among Children in Bhiwani District

Women empowerment is a burning trouble all over the world. “Women empowerment” and “women equality with men” is a regular problems. The gift paper tries to show the gender imbalance many of the kids inside the Bhiwani district of Haryana. Haryana typifies many northwestern states wherein females experience inferior fitness and unsure survival, particularly after the neonatal period. Gender imbalance is a disparity between men and women in a population. Gender refers back to the socially constructed roles, behaviour, activities and attributes that a given society at a given time and place recollect suitable for men and women and boys and women and the relationships among them. Gender defines and differentiates what males and females, and girls and boys are expected to be and do their roles, obligations, rights and responsibilities. In this present paper, we outline the Tehsil-sensible Spatio-temporal study of gender imbalances within the infant sex ratio of the Bhiwani district. The sex ratio is the quantity of males and females for each hundred girls. The hole among ladies and men leads to gender imbalance. The sex ratio is an vital social indicator to degree the extent of triumphing equity between women and men in a society at a given time. Changes in intercourse ratio in large part reflect the underlying socio-cultural and financial patterns of society. The paper attempts to take a look at the gender imbalance in phrases of the child sex ratio of the given district. The issue is important and demands suitable corrective movements.

The association between reproductive history and the multidimensional health of older adults in rural China and its gender differences: Evidence from the Chinese longitudinal healthy longevity survey.

BackgroundFew studies have examined the association between reproductive history and the multidimensional health of older adults with more diverse reproductive histories and poorer health status in rural China. The purpose of this study is to explore the effect of parity, sex ratio of children and late childbearing on multidimensional health and its gender differences.MethodsThe analytical sample consisted of 3,377 older adults in rural China who participated in the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey (CLHLS) in 2018. Linear regression models were applied to estimate the relationship between reproductive history and multidimensional health, with separate models for each indicator of health outcomes.ResultsOlder adults in rural areas with greater parity were more likely to have better cognitive function (β = 0.409, 95% CI: 0.255–0.563), fewer Activities of Daily Living (ADL) limitations (β = −0.085, 95% CI: −0.137 to −0.034) and symptoms of depression (β = −0.396, 95% CI: −0.577 to −0.216). The social mechanism of intergenerational support from children later in life partly explained the positive effect of parity. Late childbearing had negative effects on cognitive function (β = −1.220, 95% CI: −1.895 to −0.545), ADL (β = 0.253, 95% CI: 0.028–0.478) and symptoms of depression (β = 1.025, 95% CI: 0.237–1.812). Women were more likely to be influenced by the positive effect of parity; the association between late childbearing and health was only significant in the male group.ConclusionsParity and late childbearing are associated with cognitive function, activities of daily living, and symptoms of depression in the older adults in rural China. Older adults with more children might be in better health, and this finding is especially significant in women. However, late childbearing had a negative effect on multidimensional health, especially for men. The social mechanism and gender differences between reproductive history and health need to be further explored.

Correlation between caste-based female literacy and child sex ratio in Alipurduar district of West Bengal

The present paper examines the correlation between the caste-based female literacy rate and child sex ratio in the Alipurduar District of West Bengal in 2011. The study is secondary data based which is collected from the Census of India. The study aims to analyze the spatial pattern of female literacy rate and child sex ratio and to find out the correlation between the caste-based female literacy rate and child sex ratio in Alipurduar District. Pearson’s correlation method is used to identify the correlation between female literacy rate and child sex ratio. The result of the study reveals that there is a wide disparity in the spatial distribution of caste-based female literacy rate and child sex ratio in the Alipurduar district. The study shows that the correlation between the caste-based female literacy rate and the child sex ratio is not equal. Correlation is positive in the case of General Caste but negative for both the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe in Alipurduar District. The study also highlights that the correlation between the Scheduled Caste female literacy rate and child sex ratio is significant at the 95 percent level.

Gendered mortality of children and adolescents in nineteenth-century Denmark. Exploring patterns of sex ratios and mortality rates

ABSTRACT The relationship between gender and mortality in nineteenth-century Europe has been highly debated. In particular, historians disagree about the manner and degree to which gender discrimination affected the mortality risk of the female population. This article contributes by examining the evidence of gendered mortality differences among children and adolescents in nineteenth-century Denmark. It makes use of both child sex ratios and mortality rates to explore the prevalence of excess female mortality. We show that the female mortality rate in Denmark was higher than that of males starting from around age four and lasting until adulthood, for the majority of the nineteenth century. This mortality gap, while initially narrow, was systematic and most pronounced in rural areas and during late adolescence. The gap was produced by a faster mortality decline among males. This pattern is clear both in time, as the gap widened during the nineteenth century, and during the life course, as the male mortality rate declined faster and reached lower levels during late childhood and early adolescence. While it is possible that various forms of gender discrimination slowed the mortality decline of females, the aggregated nature of the data limits our interpretation. However, by comparing the two mortality measures employed, we argue that in a low child-mortality setting such as Denmark, sex ratios are not always sensitive enough to measure excess female mortality in childhood. Further, since sex ratios primarily excel at measuring ‘hidden’ or unregistered mortality, they may be a suboptimal measure of mortality differences in the presence of a thorough and reliable vital registration system.

TO WHAT EXTENT HAS BETI BACHAO BETI PADHAO BEEN SUCCESSFUL IN IMPACTING GIRL EDUCATION IN INDIA?

Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao (save the girl child, educate the girl child)one of the first scheme introduced by the government India in 2015 aimed at generating awareness about gender empowerment and the importance of education for the girl child. This paper evaluates whether the policy has been successful in impacting girl education in India by considering factors such as change in enrollment ratio of girls in secondary education, change in child sex ratio, effectiveness of awareness drives and the allocation of funds. Ourresults indicate that this policy alone cannot be successful in changing the attitudes of people. To makeawareness drives more effective, my research sheds light on how the funds need to be diverted towards district level engagement rather than at the national level.

Family patriarchy and child sex ratios in historical Europe

ABSTRACT Although recent findings suggest that gender-discriminatory practices unduly increased female mortality rates during infancy and childhood in historical Europe, especially in Southern and Eastern Europe, there is little research on the conditions that triggered these practices. Relying on child sex ratios (the number of boys per hundred girls in a particular age group) as a cumulative measure of sex-differential mortality around birth, infancy, and childhood, this article explores whether the notion of patriarchy – i.e., varying degrees of sex- and age-related social inequalities – helps to explain the variation in such discriminatory practices. For our analysis, we rely on the NAPP/Mosaic census database, which provides detailed information on more than 300 populations in historical Europe and western Siberia. Using a range of harmonised variables from the combined Mosaic and NAPP data, our results show that the Patriarchy Index, a recently developed composite measure of gendered and generational power relations in marital and family dynamics, is positively associated with child sex ratios across Europe. More specifically, we find that patrilocal norms, a low female age at marriage, and a direct measure of son preference – namely, the prevalence of having a boy as the last child – are strongly correlated with higher child sex ratios.

‘Missing girls’ in interwar Poland: child sex ratios and their correlates across multiple borderlands

ABSTRACT Our testing of the relationship between child sex ratios (CSRs) and demographic, socioeconomic, and cultural diversity across nearly 300 districts of interwar Poland around 1931 yields a picture more complicated than common explanations of high masculinization of offspring. In line with existing literature, we found district-level CSRs to be positively associated with the extent of agriculture but negatively related to the relative spread of female employment outside farming and less hierarchical gender and generational household arrangements. At the same time, several of the classical modernization variables (e.g. industrialization, urbanization, female literacy or fertility) either did not result in lower sex ratios or turned out irrelevant. In this article, we attempt to reconcile these diverging results by putting them in the context of the country’s relative backwardness, the specific labor demands created by modernization, and the structure of the agricultural labor market. Altogether, our results add a new stimulus to study gender discrimination in infancy and childhood in East-Central European context and to contemplate universal explanations thereof.

Sex ratio of children in maternity hospitals with obstetric pathology

With a detailed study by geneticists and anthropologists of the question of the sex ratio, a curious phenomenon was discovered. It turns out that boys are born 6% more than girls, although in the first months of pregnancy, the embryos of boys die 2-3 times more often.

Knowledge and perspectives of registered gynecologists about gender determination in relation to abortion laws – Exploratory questionnaire based study in central India

India is one of the few countries to legalize abortion since 1971. However, legalizing abortion has not translated into safe and affordable services. The birth sex ratio in India has been declining since the 1901. Despite the attempts by government to monitor radiologists and genetic laboratories, the Census of India 2011reported a dip in the child sex ratio in states like Maharashtra between 2001 and 2011.The present study was conducted as a cross-sectional questionnaire based study in clinics of participating doctors in a district in tribal region of central India. With the help of pre-validated questionnaire the knowledge and perception of registered gynaecologists were noted regarding the recent abortion laws.72% respondents were aware of the recent amendments in abortion laws but surprisingly only 54% participants have successfully enumerated them and 28% participants were unaware of the recent amendments in the Act.Only 24% participants said that amendments in MTP act was very good but still 12% doctors believed that there is a scope for further amendments.According to 64% participants the PCPNDT Act is acceptable but 12% said record keeping is very difficult and 6% felt that it needs lots of amendments.Majority of the respondents were aware about the MTP & PCPNDT Acts, surprisingly only 54% participants have successfully enumerated them. According to only 24% participants recent amendments was good, According to 12% they were necessary but still 12% believed that there is a scope for further amendments.

AN ANALYSIS OF HEALTH PROFILE OF THANJAVUR DISTRICT AS ENVISAGED BY NATIONAL FAMILY HEALTH SURVEY 2019-21

National Family Health Survey-5 (NFHS-5) fieldwork for India was conducted in two phases, during the years between 2019 and 2021 by 17 Field Agencies and gathered information from 636,699 households, 724,115 women, and 101,839 men. Information was gathered from 27,929 households, 25,650 women, and 3,372 men from Tamil Nadu and in Thanjavur from 826 households, 687 women, and 83 men. This research paper points out the health indicators in which Thanjavur District improved over the earlier NFHS and over the State as well as Country level averages in the NFHS-5. As per The NFHS -4 the sex ratio has raised marginally to 1053 and in the NFHS-5, sharply raised to 1112. The sex ratio of the country is also remarkably high crossing 1000 mark, first time in the Indian statistical history in the NFHS-5. NFHS-5 reveals positive note that the child sex ratio restoration back to 934. It reflects the changing mindset proliferating in the district towards the female. Amidst the negative mindset towards upbringing girl children in the state of Tamil Nadu, revealed by the reduced child sex ratio of 878 in NFHS -5 from 954 in NFHS-4 in Tamil Nadu a sharp positive increase in the child sex ratio in Thanjavur is fair enough to the fair sex. On the other hand, the reason for the reduction in the child sex ratio in the rest of the state of Tamil Nadu needs an immediate attention comparing the previous NFHS. It is also to be noted here that even the country level child sex ratio also is in increasing trend as per the present NFHS comparing its earlier survey. KEYWORDS: National Family Health survey, Government sponsored health insurance schemes, health insurance, Sex ratio, child sex ratio, AB-PMJAY.

Trace Element Changes in the Plasma of Autism Spectrum Disorder Children and the Positive Correlation Between Chromium and Vanadium.

Existing data demonstrate a significant correlation between autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and the status of biologically essential and toxic trace elements. However, there is still a lack of data on the steady state of trace elements in ASD. We performed a case-control study to explore the association between the risk of ASD and 23 trace elements in plasma. The results showed that children with ASD had considerably decreased lithium (Li), manganese (Mn), selenium (Se), barium (Ba), mercury (Hg), and tin (Sn) levels when compared to their age- and sex-matched controls. Meanwhile, children with ASD had considerably increased plasma chromium (Cr) and vanadium (V) concentrations. We also divided each group into subgroups based on age and gender and created element-related networks for each subgroup. We detected significant element correlations within or between subgroups, as well as changes in correlations that included all elements examined. Finally, more element correlations were observed among males, which may open a new avenue for understanding the complicated process behind the sex ratio of children with ASD. Overall, our data revealed a novel relationship between elements and ASD, which may extend current understanding about ASD.

Gender regimes, reproductive strategies and child sex preferences: A comparative study of villages in Jammu and Leh

ABSTRACT Much of the literature on sex ratio imbalances in India has focused on the North–South divide or exclusively on the North-western states of India. In this paper, we draw on ethnographic research on the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir, where the child sex ratio (0–6 years) plummeted in the 2011 census. We study two villages in the Hindu dominated district of Jammu and two in largely Buddhist Leh (in Ladakh) to understand how the gender preference for children is shaped in this culturally heterogeneous state. Our findings reiterate the importance of context in understanding sex ratio patterns and gender preferences for children, especially in the wake of declining fertility, which in some regions has led to intensified discrimination against girl children. We examine features such as the organization of kinship and marriage structures that entail diverse forms of post-marital residence, old-age support, workforce participation, household division of labor and political participation in the four villages. By engaging in detailed comparison, we propose that when underlying reasons for the devaluation of women in general, and daughters in particular, are absent (as in case of the Leh villages), the availability of sex-selective technologies does not have an adverse effect on demographic outcomes.

The Effect of China's Two-Child Policy on the Child Sex Ratio: Evidence From Shanghai, China.

Objective: The bias towards males at birth has resulted in a major imbalance in the Chinese sex ratio that is often attributed to China’s one-child policy. Relaxation of the one-child policy has the potential to reduce the imbalance in the sex ratio away from males. In this study, we assessed whether the bias towards males in the child sex ratio was reduced as a result of the two-child policy in China. Medical records data from one large municipal-level obstetrics hospital in Shanghai, East China. Design: Matching and difference-in-differences (MDID) techniques were used to investigate the effect of the two-child policy on the imbalance in the sex ratio at birth after matching for pregnancy status and socioeconomic factors. Results: Analyzing 133,358 live births suggest that the relaxation of the one-child policy had a small, but statistically significant effect in reducing the imbalance in the male to female sex ratio at birth. Conclusion: The results demonstrate that relaxation of the one-child policy reduced the imbalance in the male to female sex ratio at birth from 1.10 to 1.05 over the study period at one of the major obstetrics and gynecology hospitals in China.

Patrilocality and Child Sex Ratios in India

Patrilocality and Child Sex Ratios in India

Inferring “missing girls” from child sex ratios in historical census data

The topic of “missing girls” in historical Europe has not only been mostly neglected, but previous research addressing this issue usually took the available information too lightly, either rejecting or accepting the claims that there was discrimination against female children, without assessing the possibility that the observed child sex ratios could be attributable to chance, mortality differentials, or registration quality. This article contributes to this discussion by (1) using a novel dataset of historical child sex ratios that covers a large part of the European geography between 1700 and 1926; and (2) explicitly considering the effects of random variability, demographic variation, and faulty enumeration in the analysis. Our results provide evidence that some of these European populations had child sex ratios well above the levels usually considered “natural”. Although part of this variation is indeed shown to be due to random noise and structural features related to infant mortality differentials and census quality, some of the observed sex ratios are too high to be attributed solely to these proximate factors. Thus, these findings suggest that there are behavioural explanations for some of the unbalanced sex ratios observed in our data.

Skewed child sex ratios in India: a revisit to geographical patterns and socio-economic correlates

This study revisits the regional and socio-economic pattern of masculinisation of Child Sex Ratios (CSR), Sex Ratio at Birth (SRB) and Sex Ratio at Last Birth (SRLB) by using successive rounds of the National Family Health Survey (NFHS). Although the masculinisation of CSR continues in many Indian states as well as in different socio-economic settings, a tremendous change in previously established patterns of CSR can be observed from the findings. District-level analysis presents intra-state variation in CSR, SRB and SRLB, which helps in identifying the emerging ‘hotspots’ of the problem. The decline in preference for a son and rise in skewed CSR, SRB and SRLB invites the attention of researchers towards drawbacks in the method of measurement of preference for a son as people are now more aware of the legal consequences of sex-selective abortions and underreport the same.