Soil Endowments, Female Labor Force Participation, and the Demographic Deficit of Women in India

Abstract

Differences in relative female employment by soil texture are used to explain the heterogeneous deficit of female children across districts within India. Soil texture varies exogenously and determines the depth of land tillage. Deep tillage, possible in loamy but not in clayey soil textures, reduces the demand for labor in agricultural tasks traditionally performed by women. Girls have a lower economic value where female labor opportunities are fewer. Consistently, higher relative female employment in agriculture improves the ratio of female to male children in districts that have a smaller fraction of loamy relative to clayey soils. (JEL J16, J23, J43, O13)

The fish is the friend of matriliny: Reef density and matrilineal inheritance

“…Our results contribute to the literature that explores how geographic endowments shape institutions and social norms (Acemoglu et al 2001, Alesina et al 2011, 2013, Apicella et al 2014, Carranza 2014, Engerman and Sokoloff 1997, Gneezy et al 2014. Institutions and rules governing inheritance play a crucial role for social organization and economic growth (Kotlikoff andSummers 1981, De Nardi 2004).…”

“…The prevalence of matrilineal versus patrilineal inheritance has deep and far ranging consequences that have been the object of a vast literature. The extent of female land rights affects the productivity of labour and economic efficiency (Goldstein and Udry 2008), welfare (La Ferrara 2007), in particular the relative welfare of women and men (Alesina et al 2011, Alesina et al 2013, Carranza 2014, the effectiveness of land right reforms (Deininger et al 2013), public good provision (Chattopadhyay and Duflo 2004) as well as sex-biased mortality (Qian 2008) and fertility (Alesina et al 2011, Thomas 1990). The prevalence of matrilineal kinship is also an important driver of behavioural differences between men and women (Gneezy et al 2009, Hoffman et al 2011).…”

The Missing Men: World War I and Female Labor Participation

“…For instance, Carranza (2014) shows that part of the sex ratio imbalances across Indian districts can be explained by variations in soil textures, as they generate differences in women's employment opportunities in agriculture, thereby affecting the economic value of girls. We overcome endogeneity issues by interpreting WWI as a severe exogenous shock to the adult sex ratio.…”

Analyzing the Impact of the World's Largest Public Works Project on Crime

“…On the other hand, availability or TV sets, motorcycles and scooters may increase the opportunities for theft of these items. We also control for the sex ratio because male‐biased sex ratio is shown to be an indicator of systemic cultural bias against women (Carranza ; Dyson and Moore ; Sen ) and such cultural traits may be correlated with other harmful behavior, including the propensity for delinquency.…”