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Unpacking Son preference: the trajectory of a demographic variable Danile Blanger, PhD Associate Professor The University of Western Ontario Slide 2 Son preference in Vietnam 2003. Are Sex Ratios Increasing in Vietnam? Population. 58-2: 255-276. 2002. Son Preference in a Village in Rural North Vietnam. Studies in Family Planning. 33-4: 321-334. 2003. Childhood, Gender and Power in Vietnam. In: Communities in Southeast Asia: Challenges and Responses. H. Lansdowne et al. (Eds). Victoria: Centre for Asia-Pacific Initiatives, 380-402. 2002. Sex selective abortions: short term and long term perspectives. Reproductive Health Matters. 10-19. 194-196. 2004. Social Policy Reforms and Daughters' Schooling in Vietnam. International Journal of Educational Development. 24: 23-38. Slide 3 Questions What is son preference in demography? How is the concept constructed? Slide 4 Introduction Review paper Also informed by my research All research investigating the causes or consequences of a parental or societal desire or preference for male children Slide 5 Peer-reviewed articles on sex preference (Population Index, 1986-1999) Slide 6 Slide 7 What is son preference? Encompassing term Underlying assumptions of the term Causes, manifestations, consequences Slide 8 Son preference as a determinant of fertility Independent variable of fertility Traditional behavior Should disappear with modernization Slide 9 MANIFESTATIONS OF SON PREFERENCE FERTILITY Fertility behavior Fertility ntentions Contraceptive behavior Contraceptive intentions SEX RATIOS By age groups Mortality Slide 10 Son preference as a determinant of health and mortality Differential treatment Focus on the family environment Lack of context Slide 11 Son preference as a reminder that culture matters 1990s: clash between low fertility and desire for sons Missing girls Slide 12 CONSEQUENCES Gender-based discrimination Prenatal Sex selective abortions Missing daughters/ Skewed sex ratios/ Skewed marriage market Migration/ Trafficking/kindapping Postnatal Differential treatment Health status/ Health outcomes Mortality Slide 13 Causes Economic factors Poverty Cultural factors Culture theory Slide 14 Son preference as having far- reaching consequences Shortage of women Gender inequalities Migration, trafficking, kidnapping Heterogeneity Slide 15 Conclusion Need for more explanations Need for more contextualization Need for incorporation of other dimensions: community, State, policy, global