This paper examines the determinants of female autonomy within households in a developing country. In particular, we investigate the relative contributions of earned versus unearned income in enhancing women's autonomy and the role of employment outside of their husband's farm. In a simple theoretical model, it is demonstrated that earned income could be more important than unearned income in empowering women. Using data from rural Bangladesh, empirical estimations confirm this prediction and also reveal the surprising fact that it is not employment per se but employment outside their husbands' farms that contributes to women's autonomy. The data also point to the importance of choosing the correct threat point in theoretical analyses of female autonomy.JEL Classification Number: D13, J16
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This paper sets out a simple non-cooperative model of resource allocation within the household in developing countries that incorporates domestic violence as a vehicle for enhancing bargaining power. We demonstrate that the extent of domestic violence faced by women is not necessarily declining in their reservation utilities, or necessarily increasing in their spouses'. Using the National Family Health Survey data of India for 1998-99, we isolate the effect of domestic violence on female autonomy, taking into account the possible endogeneity of domestic violence through the choice of appropriate instruments. We provide some evidence for the evolutionary theory of domestic violence, which argues that such violence stems from the jealousy caused by paternity uncertainty in our evolutionary past. The findings have strong policy implications suggesting that it will take more than an improvement in women's employment options to address the problem of spousal violence. JEL classification: J16, D7Violence conjugale et autonomie des femmes dans les pays en voie de développement : théorie et résultats. Ce mémoire met en place un modèle simple d'allocation de ressources sans collaborationà l'intérieur d'un ménage dans des pays en voie de développement où la violence conjugale est un véhicule utilisé pour accroître le pouvoir de marchandage. On montre que l'importance de la violence conjugale faite aux femmes ne décline pas nécessairement avec leurs exigences minimales, non plus qu'elle s'accroît avec les exigences minimales de leursépoux. A l'aide des résultats de l'Enquête nationale sur la santé des familles de l'Inde pour 1998-99, on précise l'effet de la violence conjugale sur l'autonomie des femmes, en tenant compte de l'endogénéité possible de la violence conjugaleà l'aide d'instruments appropriés. On fournit un certain supportà la théorieévolutionnaire de la Without implicating them, we would like to thank Domestic violence and women's autonomy 1223 violence conjugale, laquelle suggère que cette violenceémerge de la jalousie causée par l'incertitude de la paternité dans notre passéévolutionnaire. Les résultats ont de fortes implications pour la politique publique : ils suggèrent qu'il faudra beaucoup plus qu'une amélioration dans les opportunités d'emploi des femmes pour résoudre le problème de la violence conjugale.
We argue that women may be disinclined to participate in market work in the rural areas of India because of family status concerns in a culture that stigmatizes market work by married women. We set out a theoretical framework that offers predictions regarding the effects of caste-based status concerns on the time allocation of women. We then use the all-India National Sample Survey data for the year 2004-05 and the Time Use Survey for six states of India for the year 1998-99 to empirically test these hypotheses. After controlling for a host of correlates, we find that the ratio of women's market work to men's declines as we move up the caste hierarchy. This ratio falls as family wealth rises and the decline is steeper for the higher castes. Finally, the effect on women's market work of higher education is weaker for the higher castes. These findings lend support to our theory and to the view that, through its emphasis on family status, caste plays a pivotal role in undermining the autonomy of women. Our paper has implications for how culture impinges on the rate at which poverty in developing countries can be reduced.
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