scholarly journals Son Preference in India: Shedding Light on the North-South Gradient

2014 ◽  
Vol 40 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniela Klaus ◽  
Arun Tipandjan

Son preference is widespread in India and deep-rooted in its history. It is a matter of concern because it produces an imbalanced juvenile sex ratio. There are far fewer girls than boys. The figures vary greatly among the Indian states suggesting a major north-south gradient in son preference accompanied by a minor west-east gradient. The aim of this paper is to explain the regional pattern. We provide an application of the value of children-approach according to which the decision to have children is made on the calculus of benefits and costs related to children. In the light of the socioeconomic and sociocultural background in India, we propose that (potential) parents’ expectations of benefits and costs are biased in favour of sons. This is suggested, therefore, as the key motivation for the preference for male offspring. However, region-specifics in the level of affluence, the educational level, the mode of production, the meaning and importance of religion, and the kinship regime are assumed to produce stronger son preference in north India compared to south India. This mediation-model is tested using the Indian sub-sample of the international Value of Children-study. Data were collected in Uttar Pradesh (north-central India) and Puducherry (south-east India). Mothers aged 16 to 65 were interviewed in 2002 and 2010. Based on 1,173 respondents, a structural equation model was carried out to test the hypothesised composition effects related to the region and the mediating position of sex-specific benefits and costs. Initial findings confirm that the national son preference pattern is more likely to be found among north Indian mothers than south Indian mothers. As assumed, the sex-specific balance of benefits and costs contributes to the explanation of son preference. However, there is little evidence that the benefits and costs mediate between the region-specific socioeconomic and sociocultural profiles and son preference. Son preference is most pronounced among mothers of the north-urban sample after controlling for region-specific distributions of socioeconomic and sociocultural background variables. Variations in son preference across the regional sub-samples are partly explained by the respective background variables and the benefit and cost-structure. But independent regional effects continue to be significant and thus, a considerable part of the north-south gradient remains unclear.

1980 ◽  
Vol 36 (3-4) ◽  
pp. 449-470

Social and Economic Development: Mahadev L. Apie Ed.: Mass Culture, Language and Arts in India. Social and Economic Development: Akhileshwar Jha: Modernization and the Hindu Socio-Culture. Social and Economic Development: B. DATTA RAY, Ed.: Social and Economic Profile of North East India. Social and Economic Development: Bipin Bihari Sinha: Socio-Economic Life in Chotanagpur 1858–1935. Social and Economic Development: Shibani Roy: Status of Muslim Women in North India. Social and Economic Development: G. K. Seth: Know Your Environment. Social and Economic Development: V. P. Batra: The Economy and Human Resources. Social and Economic Development: M. Adhikari: Economic Environment of Business. Social and Economic Development: Ziauddin khan and Ramesh K. Arora Eds.: Public Enterprises in India: A Study of the State Government Undertakings. Social and Economic Development: Sukomal Sen: Working Class of India: History of Emergence and Movement: 1830–1970. Social and Economic Development: C. Subramaniam: The New Strategy in Indian Agriculture: The First Decade and After. Social and Economic Development: K.C. Alexander: Agricultural Labour Unions: A Study in Three South Indian States.


2017 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Atreyee Sinha ◽  
Aparajita Chattopadhyay

Spousal violence emerged as a major public health concern over the past few decades as its consequences on the health of victims are profound. Infliction of violence during pregnancy is even more detrimental as it might cause serious injuries to women and their unborn children. Violence during pregnancy can restrict access to proper health care and affect the health of mother and child. However, the role of spousal violence on utilization of pregnancy care services is not well explored in India where both fertility and spousal violence are high. In the present study, we used data of selected North and South Indian states from the National Family Health Survey (2005–2006) to examine the relationship between experience of spousal violence by young married women and utilization of maternal and child health care services. A marked regional variation was observed in MCH care utilization and levels of violence, where the South Indian states performed better than the North. Spousal violence was a significant factor determining MCH care use. Women who had experienced any form of physical/sexual violence were less likely to receive full ante natal care than non-abused women and the association was stronger in the South. Women experiencing any physical/sexual violence were also less likely to avail institutional delivery in the North. Emotional violence had similar constraining effects on MCH care use in the South. Integration of violence screening and counselling with MCH programs could be helpful to address the needs of abused pregnant women and provide essential care.


Author(s):  
Paramanandham Krishnamoorthy ◽  
Subramanium Sudhagar ◽  
Akshata Lokanath Goudar ◽  
Siju Susan Jacob ◽  
Kuralayanapalya Puttahonappa Suresh

Pollutants ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 1 (3) ◽  
pp. 127-140
Author(s):  
Manoj Hari ◽  
Rajesh Kumar Sahu ◽  
Bhishma Tyagi ◽  
Ravikant Kaushik

The north Indian states of Haryana and Punjab are believed to be the key sources of air pollution in the National Capital Region due to massive agricultural waste burning in crop harvesting seasons. However, with the pandemic COVID-19 hitting the country, the usual practices were disrupted. COVID-19 preventive lockdown led to restricted vehicular and industrial emissions and caused the labours to leave the agricultural business in Haryana and Punjab. With the changed scenario of 2020, the present study investigates the variations in air quality over the Haryana and Punjab, and their relative impact on the air quality of Delhi. The work attempts to understand the change in agricultural waste burning during 2020 and its implication on the local air quality over both the states and the transported pollution on the national capital Delhi. The study utilises in-situ data for the year 2019–2020 with satellite observations of MODIS aqua/terra for fire counts, aerosol optical depth (AOD) and back-trajectories run by the hybrid single-particle Lagrangian integrated trajectory model (HYSPLIT).


Author(s):  
Jorge L. Villacís ◽  
Jesús de la Fuente ◽  
Concepción Naval

A renewed interest in the study of character and virtue has recently emerged in the fields of Education and Psychology. The latest research has confirmed the association between virtuous consistent behaviours and academic positive outcomes. However, the motivational dimension of character (the intentions underlying the patterns of observed behaviours) has received little attention. This research aims to extend the knowledge on this topic by examining the predictive relationships between the behavioural and motivational dimensions of character, with reference to academic engagement, career self-doubt and performance of Spanish university students. A total of 183 undergraduates aged 18–30 (142 of whom were women) from the north of Spain completed specific parts of self-report questionnaires, including the Values in Action VIA-72, a Spanish translated and validated version of the Moral Self-Relevance Measure MSR, and the Utrecht Work Engagement Student Scale UWES-S9. The collected data were analysed using Structural Equation Modelling. The behavioural dimension of character (character strength factors of caring, self-control and inquisitiveness) showed positive associations with academic engagement and performance. The motivational dimension of character (phronesis motivation), was negatively related to career self-doubt. For the first time, the present study has provided support for the contribution of both dimensions of character to undergraduate academic outcomes.


2016 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
pp. 322-350 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pankaj Kumar Jha

The making of the imperial subjects is as much a matter of historical process as the emergence of the empire. In the case of the Mughal state, this process started much before its actual establishment in the sixteenth century. The fifteenth century in North India was a period of unusual cultural ferment. The emergence of the Mughal imperial formation in the next century was intimately related to the fast congealing tendency of the north Indian society towards greater disciplining of itself. This tendency is evident in the multilingual literary cultures and diverse knowledge formations of the long fifteenth century.


2011 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
pp. 177-198
Author(s):  
SANA HAROON

AbstractThis paper is a reconsideration of the career of the north-Indian Sayyid Ahmed Shaheed (1786–1831). I argue that Sayyid Ahmed used a Sufi devotional premise to understand and explain principles of orthodoxy. He also applied a concept of innate spiritual knowledge to reformed practice, suggesting that ordinary people, without scholarly training, could determine and apply the principles of orthodox practice of Islam for themselves and for others. His movement modified traditional seminary-centred teaching and leadership through the creation of a popular and easily transferrable system of practice rooted in the community and imprinted with the obligation to spread reformist teachings.


2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (10) ◽  
pp. 3559 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shadi Mohammad Altahat ◽  
Tarik Atan

(1) Background: Long-term competitiveness and sustainability of goal achievement are constantly being sought out by organizations. This study examined the link between ethical leadership, intention to sabotage, and psychological capital in Jordanian universities and how they provide a healthy environment conducive to goal achievement sustainability. The literature indicated gaps in knowledge regarding the correlation between these variables in non-western countries, which this study intends to fill. The study drew from social learning theory and self-control theory. (2) Methods: Data was obtained by collecting survey questionnaires from a sample of 376 employees in different universities in the north of Jordan, and was analyzed with Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) and Structural Equation Modeling. (3) Results: A significant and direct negative relationship was found between both ethical leadership and psychological capital on employees’ intention to sabotage. Also, a significant and direct positive effect was found between ethical leadership and psychological capital. Furthermore, it was found that psychological capital mediated the relationship between ethical leadership and employees’ intention to sabotage. (4) Conclusions: Leaders have a critical role in increasing employee psychological capital and decreasing intention to sabotage. Many implications indicated by the study’s findings, both theoretical and practical, were discussed.


2021 ◽  
Vol 79 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohammad Asghari Jafarabadi ◽  
Kamal Gholipour ◽  
Hassan Shahrokhi ◽  
Ayyoub Malek ◽  
Akbar Ghiasi ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Socioeconomic disparities in health and healthcare are global issues that affect both adults as well as children. Children with exceptional healthcare needs, especially those with developmental impairments, including Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD), encounter major disparities in access to and quality of health services. However, disparities in the population of children are rarely studied. The main aim of this paper is to study the socioeconomic disparities in children with ASD by examining the association between their Social Determinants of Health (SDH) status and access to and the quality of services. Methods This is a cross-sectional study on 202 children with ASD conducted in 2019 in two provinces including Ardabil and East-Azerbaijan, in the North-West of Iran. A structured, valid questionnaire was used to collect data on demographic, SDH status, quality of services, and access to services in a population of children with ASD aged 2–16-year-old. Around 77% participants were male and the mean age of children was 2 years and 6 months. Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) were used to assess the relationship. Results Based on the results of this study, the overall mean scores of the quality of services, access to services, and SDH status were 61.23 (30.01), 65.91 (21.89), and 29.50 (22.32) out of 100, respectively. All the associations between the quality and access dimensions and quality (B: 0.464–0.704) and access (B: 0.265–0.726) scales were statistically significant (P < 0.001). By adjusting to covariates, the access was also significantly related to service quality (P = 0.004). Finally, the associations between SDH score with service quality (P = 0.039) and access (P < 0.001) were positively significant. Conclusions There are socioeconomic disparities in the quality of and access to services among children with ASD, who use ASD services, in the North-West of Iran. We recommend health/medical centers, where children are diagnosed with ASD, conducting SDH screening and providing families of low-SDH status with specific information about the quality of and access to services for children with ASD. Additionally, medical universities must have a plan to routinely monitor the quality of and access to services provided for the children with low SDH.


Author(s):  
Saikat Biswas

Crisis of Indian agriculture is very pertinent at this moment as green revolution is gradually losing its hope. Excessive, pointless exploitation of broods of green revolution has left bad footprints on country’s food security and environmental safety. With the motto to ensure food security by reviving Indian agriculture in environmentally safe way as well as to release farmers from debt cycle and suicides, zero budget natural farming (ZBNF) has come in the picture, which discards uses of all the chemical farming inputs and relies on natural way of farming i.e. rejuvenating soil and crop health through its own practices (Jivamrita, Bijamrita, mulching, soil aeration, intercropping, crop diversification, bunds, bio-pesticides etc.). ZBNF movement right now is the most popular agrarian movement which begun in 2002 in Karnataka and later successfully spread in many states (specially, of South India) of the nation through numbers of trainings, demonstrations and various promotional activities. Successful outcomes from farmers’ fields of south Indian states like Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka etc. are encouraging and grabbing attention of farmers, public and private organisations towards ZBNF in recent times. Yet, various controversies regarding its transparency,      inadequate information, efficacy, practices, idealisms, even the term ‘zero budget’ etc. have agglutinated around ZBNF over the years since it debuted. Critics in fact have cited several references of drastic yield reductions with ZBNF practices in many places. Adequate scientific evaluation or monitoring of ZBNF’s successes or failures through multi-locational trials is now therefore the needful before allowing or restraining its run in Indian agriculture.


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