Women’s right to property and the child quantity-quality trade-off: evidence from India
研究印度各邦及联邦改革赋予女性平等继承权对子女数量和健康的影响，发现改革后女性生育子女数先增后减，子女身高改善，且儿子数量下降，表明财产权影响生育决策和性别失衡。
Abstract We study the effects of a series of state and federal reforms that granted Indian women equal inheritance rights on the quantity and quality of children. Using a difference-in-differences methodology, we find that women who were affected by the state reforms had 0.4 more children. State reforms did not have any effect on children’s heights. To assess the impact of the federal reform, we use panel data on women and a novel treatment based on the timing of their fathers’ deaths. We find that women affected by the reform had on average 0.22 fewer children and had taller children on average. While the federal reform had no effect on the number of daughters born to this group, the number of sons born declined. Thus, we see evidence that granting property rights to women could potentially impact fertility decisions, children’s health outcomes, and gender imbalance.