

In China, the one child policy has contributed to the sex imbalance, while the dowry system in India is responsible for a strong son preference. Having a son ensures that families are more economically secure by not having to provide dowry payments, but rather being on the receiving end of this practice.

In these countries, it is argued that son preference is linked to factors including economics, religion, and culture.

The preference for sons over daughters can be connected to a number of reasons. The problem is particularly severe in China and India. However, in a number of countries of South Asia, East Asia and the Caucasus, the sex ratio of children is severely distorted. Scholars argue that the expected birth sex ratio in a normal population is in the range of 103 to 107 males to females at birth. Although biologically the sex ratio of children is around 95 girls to every 100 boys, this number generally evens out due to the higher infant mortality rate of boy infants. This can be observed through sex ratios of children in various countries. There is a preference of parents to have a son over a daughter in many countries. Image shows a community bulletin board in Nonguang Village, Sichuan province, China, keeping track of the town's female population, listing recent births by name and noting that several thousand yuan of fines for unauthorized births remain unpaid from the previous year. The one child policy in China has contributed to the imbalanced sex ratios.

Ī 2009 study at the University of Ulster found that having sisters, as compared to brothers, can enhance the quality of an adult's life. Women, on the other hand, showed no preference for either sex, with 31% stating that they preferred a girl and 30% responding that they favored a boy. Men's preference for sons was most pronounced among men aged 18 to 29. The overall preference was driven by men, of whom 43% preferred a son compared to 24% who preferred a daughter. The results were similar to a survey in 1941, when Americans preferred a boy to a girl by a 38% to 24% margin. According to a 2018 Gallup poll, American parents favor boys by a 36% to 28% margin. In countries such as India, China, Indonesia and Nepal sons have been favored over daughters. In many cultures, male offspring are desired in order to inherit property, carry on the family name and to provide support for parents in old age. The United Nations Population Fund states that "Local fertility restrictions and spontaneous rapid fertility decline below replacement levels tend to compel parents who want both a son and a small family size to resort to sex selection." Low fertility which increases the need for sex selection by reducing the probability of having a daughter in smaller families.Technological growth of prenatal diagnosis which allows parents to know the sex of their unborn child and.A preference for sons which stems from household structures "in which girls and women have a marginal social, economic and symbolic position, and consequently enjoy fewer rights." These household structures also focus on security in which sons are expected to provide support to their parents throughout their life.It has been marketed under the title family balancing.Īccording to the United Nations Population Fund, the reasons behind sex selection are due to three factors and provide an understanding for sex ratio imbalances as well as to project future trends. It can be accomplished in several ways, both pre- and post-implantation of an embryo, as well as at childbirth. Sex selection is the attempt to control the sex of the offspring to achieve a desired sex. For the evolutionary concept, see sexual selection. This article is about the artificial selection of the sex of offspring.
