Families in different parts of the world have traditionally adopted various strategies to prioritize the birth and survival of a boy child. In recent decades, technology allowed to avoid the birth of unwanted daughters altogether: a practice so common, in numerous countries, that it affected the global sex ratio for the decades to come. While most commonly associated to China and India, prenatal sex selection is also found in Europe. In particular, this phenomenon arose in the 1990s, right after the collapse of communist regimes, in Albania, Kosovo and former USSR members Armenia, Georgia and Azerbaijan. While this phenomenon is on the wane, the literature is still uncertain about its drivers. _x000D_
In this study, we suggest that the level of economic and political uncertainty experienced by these former communist societies might relate to their demographic trends. In the first part of the study, we use a unique longitudinal dataset providing data for 29000 families from 1989 onwards. Through panel logistic regressions, we test how the interviewed families’ yearly employment status (i.e. being salaried or self-employment, therefore relying on a secure vs insecure type of income, respectively) relates to them having sons and/or daughters one, two or three years later. We complement this analysis, in the second part, with policy analysis and aggregate data collected by national and international agencies. _x000D_
The statistical results show the existence of an association between families receiving their income from self-employment and displaying fertility behaviors indicative of son preference. The subsequent qualitative analysis suggests that countries which effectively discouraged such practices after the 2000s were also able to build political stability and an efficient system of income protection. They did so, namely, through a number of policies designed to relieve poverty and grant widespread access to social security services.

Sara Tafuro
Università degli Studi di Firenze

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ID Abstract: 561