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Entitled to Property: How Breaking the Gender Barrier Improves Child Health in India

Author

Listed:
  • Hossain, Md Shahadath

    (University of Houston)

  • Nikolov, Plamen

    (Harvard Institute for Quantitative Social Science)

Abstract

Non-unitary household models suggest that enhancing women's bargaining power can influence child health, a crucial determinant of human capital and economic standing throughout adulthood. We examine the effects of a policy shift, the Hindu Succession Act Amendment (HSAA), which granted inheritance rights to unmarried women in India, on child health. Our findings indicate that the HSAA improved children's height and weight. Furthermore, we uncover evidence supporting a mechanism whereby the policy bolstered women's intra-household bargaining power, resulting in downstream benefits through enhanced parental care for children and improved child health. These results emphasize that children fare better when mothers control a larger share of family resources. Policies empowering women can yield additional positive externalities for children's human capital

Suggested Citation

  • Hossain, Md Shahadath & Nikolov, Plamen, 2023. "Entitled to Property: How Breaking the Gender Barrier Improves Child Health in India," IZA Discussion Papers 16193, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    • Handle: RePEc:iza:izadps:dp16193
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    human capital; height; bargaining; parental investments; developing countries; India;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D13 - Microeconomics - - Household Behavior - - - Household Production and Intrahouse Allocation
    • I12 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Health Behavior
    • I13 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Health Insurance, Public and Private
    • J13 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Fertility; Family Planning; Child Care; Children; Youth
    • J16 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of Gender; Non-labor Discrimination
    • J18 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Public Policy
    • K13 - Law and Economics - - Basic Areas of Law - - - Tort Law and Product Liability; Forensic Economics
    • O12 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Microeconomic Analyses of Economic Development
    • O15 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Economic Development: Human Resources; Human Development; Income Distribution; Migration
    • Z12 - Other Special Topics - - Cultural Economics - - - Religion
    • Z13 - Other Special Topics - - Cultural Economics - - - Economic Sociology; Economic Anthropology; Language; Social and Economic Stratification

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