Measuring Mother’s Empowerment Through Culture of Son Preference in Pakistan

Abstract

In a developing country, household’s economic conditions make parents treat their sons and daughters differently. Pakistan’s global ranking in terms of gender gap out of 144 countries in economic participation, educational attainment, health and survival along with political empowerment are 143, 135, 124 and 90 respectively. This provides an explanation for culture of son preference in Pakistan where social and economic utility from having a son overpowers the utility from having a daughter. This study highlights factors in Pakistan impacting mother’s empowerment, emphasizing on how child’s gender and birth-order helps to determine mother’s status within a household. To elucidate this link Pakistan Demographic and Health Survey (PDHS) for the year 2012-13 is used.