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Are Households with Female Heads Really Poorer?

Author

Listed:
  • Alya Sakinah Zahirah

    (Department of Economics, Faculty of Economics & Business, Universitas Gadjah Mada)

  • Muhammad Ryan Sanjaya

    (Department of Economics, Faculty of Economics & Business, Universitas Gadjah Mada)

Abstract

The share of poor families with female heads of household is steadily increasing, from 14.41% in 2013 to 16.72% in 2019. This is in contrast to the declining poverty rate over the same period. We examine whether families with female heads of household tend to be less prosperous than those with male household heads using the wealth index constructed from the 2019 National Socioeconomic Survey data. In contrast to the hypothesized feminization of poverty theory, we find that households with female heads are more likely to be wealthier than those with male heads, even after controlling for sociodemographic factors of household heads as well as household characteristics. This finding sheds some light on the hypothesized feminization of poverty theory in the context of developing Asian countries.

Suggested Citation

  • Alya Sakinah Zahirah & Muhammad Ryan Sanjaya, 2023. "Are Households with Female Heads Really Poorer?," Gadjah Mada Economics Working Paper Series 202312015, Department of Economics, Faculty of Economics and Business, Universitas Gadjah Mada.
    • Handle: RePEc:gme:wpaper:202312015
    as

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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Dreze, Jean & Srinivasan, P. V., 1997. "Widowhood and poverty in rural India: Some inferences from household survey data," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 54(2), pages 217-234, December.
    2. Robert D. Plotnick, 2009. "Childlessness and the Economic Well-being of Older Americans," The Journals of Gerontology: Series B, The Gerontological Society of America, vol. 64(6), pages 767-776.
    3. Nina Lisanty & Hiromi Tokuda, 2015. "Comprehending Poverty in Rural Indonesia:An In-depth Look inside Paddy Farmer Household in Marginal Land Area of Banyuasin District, South Sumatra Province," International Journal of Social Science Studies, Redfame publishing, vol. 3(3), pages 129-137, May.
    4. Amartya Sen, 1981. "Issues in the Measurement of Poverty," Palgrave Macmillan Books, in: Steinar Strøm (ed.), Measurement in Public Choice, pages 144-166, Palgrave Macmillan.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    gender; feminization of poverty theory; wealth index;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • B54 - Schools of Economic Thought and Methodology - - Current Heterodox Approaches - - - Feminist Economics
    • I31 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty - - - General Welfare, Well-Being
    • I32 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty - - - Measurement and Analysis of Poverty
    • J16 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of Gender; Non-labor Discrimination

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