Year of Award

2017

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Type

Master of Arts (MA)

Degree Name

Economics

Department or School/College

Economics

Committee Chair

Amanda Dawsey

Committee Co-chair

Jeff Bookwalter

Commitee Members

Amanda Dawsey, Jeff Bookwalter, Kimber McKay

Keywords

Development, Economics, Outlay Equivalence Ratios

Subject Categories

Econometrics | Economic Theory | Growth and Development

Abstract

A significant amount of evidence suggests that gender inequality in the developing world negatively impacts women and girls’ health, education and future wage potential. This thesis investigates whether households in South Africa discriminated against their girl children, in favor of their boy children. Additionally, I will investigate whether household heads favored children matching their own sex. Using the 1st wave of the National Income Dynamics Study and Angus Deaton’s outlay-equivalence ratio method, I will estimate the impact, 8 age and sex categories have on their household’s adult goods expenditure. I found statistically significant but practically insignificant evidence, from a sample of poor female headed households, suggesting a preference for 0-4 year old boys over 0-4 year old girls.

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© Copyright 2017 Samuel Peevey