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Estimating the Effects of Expanding Ultrasound Use on Sex Selection in India

Author

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  • Mevlude Akbulut-Yuksel
  • Daniel Rosenblum

Abstract

The liberalization of the Indian economy in the 1990s led to an unprecedented increase in the availability of prenatal ultrasound technology. In this paper, we analyze the differential spread of ultrasound in India at the state level over a ten-year period (1999 to 2008) and the consequences for the prevalence of sex-selective abortion. Omitting the Southern Indian states, which had the fastest increase in ultrasound use and little sex selection, we find that higher levels of ultrasound use within a state are positively associated with the probability that a child is born male. This increased likelihood of having a male child is only found for children with no older brothers, i.e. births most likely to be affected by sex selection. The positive relationship between state-level ultrasound use and having a male child can be found across various subsamples: urban and rural, older and younger mothers, mothers with high and low education. The estimates are robust to including linear cohort-year time trends and prenatal health care controls.

Suggested Citation

  • Mevlude Akbulut-Yuksel & Daniel Rosenblum, 2023. "Estimating the Effects of Expanding Ultrasound Use on Sex Selection in India," Journal of Development Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 59(4), pages 516-532, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:taf:jdevst:v:59:y:2023:i:4:p:516-532
    DOI: 10.1080/00220388.2022.2154152
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    Cited by:

    1. Sayli Javadekar & Kritika Saxena, 2025. "The seen and unseen: the unintended impact of a conditional cash transfer program on prenatal sex selection," Journal of Population Economics, Springer;European Society for Population Economics, vol. 38(1), pages 1-34, March.

    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • J13 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Fertility; Family Planning; Child Care; Children; Youth
    • J16 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of Gender; Non-labor Discrimination
    • O1 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development

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