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Preference for Sex of Children among Women in Nepal
Authors: Jeet Bahadur Sapkota, Damaru Ballabha Paudel, Pramila Neupane, and Rajesh Bahadur Thapa
Source: Global Social Welfare, First Online May 26, 2018; DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40609-018-0117-9
Topic(s): Ethnicity
Gender
Son preference
Country: Asia
  Nepal
Published: MAY 2018
Abstract: The preference for a son at birth is one of the key issues of demographic studies conducted in less-developed countries; however, exploration of preference for sex of children among women in Nepal is rare. This paper estimates the likelihood of preference for a son or a daughter using the 2016 Nepal Demographic and Health Survey (NDHS) data, which contains a nationally representative sample of 12,862 Nepalese women. A multinomial logistic regression analysis shows that son and daughter preferences vary widely across ethnicities, educational and economic status, and rural-urban region. Regarding ethnic origin, women from the Hill Janajati (the largest ethnic minority group that consists of many sub-ethnic groups) prefer daughters more than the top two caste groups, the Hill Brahman and Chhetri, whereas the Terai Brahman, Terai Dalit, Muslim, and other ethnic minority women prefer sons more than the top two caste groups do. Similarly, less educated, poorer, and rural women prefer a son, unlike more educated, richer, and urban women in general. Women who desire more of either sex end up with more children in their household. Keywords Preference for sex of children Gender and demographic studies Caste/ethnicity Demographic and health survey Multinomial logistic model Nepal