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How Education Empowers Women in Developing Countries

Author

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  • Le Kien
  • Nguyen My

    (Faculty of Economics and Public Management, Ho Chi Minh City Open University, Ho Chi Minh City, Viet Nam)

Abstract

This paper evaluates the impacts of education on women’s relational empowerment, within a context of 70 developing countries across the world. Exploiting the variation in educational attainment between biological sisters, we find that education is positively associated with women’s intra-household decision making authority in both financial and non-financial domains. Moreover, education reduces relational friction, especially women’s exposure to psychological abuse. Our mechanism analyses provide suggestive evidence that these improvements could be attributed to increased access to information, assortative matching, and better labor market outcome.

Suggested Citation

  • Le Kien & Nguyen My, 2021. "How Education Empowers Women in Developing Countries," The B.E. Journal of Economic Analysis & Policy, De Gruyter, vol. 21(2), pages 511-536, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:bpj:bejeap:v:21:y:2021:i:2:p:511-536:n:5
    DOI: 10.1515/bejeap-2020-0046
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    Cited by:

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    5. Le, Kien & Nguyen, My, 2021. "In-utero Exposure to Rainfall Variability and Early Childhood Health," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 144(C).
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    8. Hartman, Dana T. & Goodman, Gail S. & Grandchamp, Jaxon & Vidales, Daisy & Shaver, Phillip R. & Lawler, Michael J. & Hobbs, Sue D., 2023. "Outcomes for foster youth placed at a special residential high school: A quantitative case study," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 151(C).
    9. Imran Ur Rahman & Mohsin Shafi & Liu Junrong & Enitilina Tatiani M.K. Fetuu & Shah Fahad & Buddhi Prasad Sharma, 2021. "Infrastructure and Trade: An Empirical Study Based on China and Selected Asian Economies," SAGE Open, , vol. 11(3), pages 21582440211, July.
    10. Tess Penne; & Heleen Delanghe; & Tim Goedemé, 2021. "An exploration of key factors that determine the affordability of compulsory education in Europe," Working Papers 2108, Herman Deleeck Centre for Social Policy, University of Antwerp.
    11. My Nguyen & Kien Le, 2022. "Can Legislation Reduce Domestic Violence in Developing Countries?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(20), pages 1-15, October.
    12. My Nguyen & Kien Le, 2023. "The impacts of women's land ownership: Evidence from Vietnam," Review of Development Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 27(1), pages 158-177, February.
    13. My Nguyen & Kien Le, 2023. "Racial/ethnic match and student–teacher relationships," Bulletin of Economic Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 75(2), pages 393-412, April.
    14. Le, Kien & Nguyen, My, 2022. "Desert locust swarms and child health," Economics & Human Biology, Elsevier, vol. 44(C).
    15. Nguyen-Phung, Hang Thu, 2023. "The impact of maternal education on child mortality: Evidence from an increase tuition fee policy in Vietnam," International Journal of Educational Development, Elsevier, vol. 96(C).
    16. Castro-Diaz, Laura & García, María Alejandra & Villamayor-Tomas, Sergio & Lopez, Maria Claudia, 2023. "Impacts of hydropower development on locals’ livelihoods in the Global South," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 169(C).
    17. Nguyen, My & Le, Kien, 2022. "Maternal education and son preference," International Journal of Educational Development, Elsevier, vol. 89(C).
    18. Nguyen, My, 2019. "Political Violence and Child Height: Evidence from the 2003 Casablanca Bombings," MPRA Paper 111205, University Library of Munich, Germany.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    education; women’s empowerment; developing countries;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • I24 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Education and Inequality
    • J16 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of Gender; Non-labor Discrimination
    • O15 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Economic Development: Human Resources; Human Development; Income Distribution; Migration

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