There exist large variations in juvenile sex ratios across districts and social groups in India.Economic and cultural factors have been advanced as contending explanations for these variations.We propose a household optimization model that integrates cultural explanations with economic ones.Female literacy (FLIT) and female labour participation (FLP) together with culture are likely to determine perceived value of females, and to result in regional variations in child survival and hence in sex ratios.We estimate this model using data from 1961, 1971 and 1981 censuses.We use cross section estimation with and without restrictions, estimate and use first differencing to eliminate district (fixed) effects.We find that female labour force participation, female literacy, and the predominance of the Indo-Aryan kinship system in a district account for much of the variation in juvenile sex ratios.Although FLP and FLIT are significant explanatory factors, culture is also significant in determining the sex ratios, suggesting that policy could include explicit attempts to manipulate culture as well as to promote female employment and literacy.Outline 1.
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