BACKGROUND
Son preference is culturally rooted across generations in India. While the social and economic implications of son preference are widely acknowledged, there is little evidence on spatial heterogeneity, especially at the district level.

OBJECTIVE
To derive estimates of son preference for the 640 districts of India and examine spatial heterogeneity in son preference across the districts of India.

METHODS
We apply model-based Small-Area Estimation (SAE) techniques, linking data from the 2015–2016 Indian National Family Health Survey and the 2011 Indian Population and Housing Census to generate district-level estimates of son preference.

RESULTS
The diagnostic measures confirm that the model-based estimates are robust enough to provide reliable estimates of son preference at the district level. Son preference is highest in the districts across northern and central Indian states, followed by districts in Gujarat and Maharashtra, and lowest in the southern districts in Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Kerala, and Tamil Nadu.

CONCLUSIONS
There is considerable heterogeneity in son preference across Indian districts, often masked by state-level average estimates. Our findings warrant urgent policy interventions targeting specific districts in India to tackle the ongoing son-preference attitudes and practices.



中文翻译：

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印度 640 个地区儿子偏好的空间异质性：小区域估计的应用（Abhishek Singh、Ashish Kumar Upadhyay、Kaushalendra Kumar、Ashish Singh、Fiifi Amoako Johnson、Sabu S. Padmadas）

背景
在印度，重男轻女的文化根植于几代人之间。虽然男孩偏好的社会和经济影响得到广泛认可，但空间异质性的证据很少，尤其是在地区层面。

目的
推导印度 640 个地区的男孩偏好估计值，并检验印度各地区男孩偏好的空间异质性。

方法
我们应用基于模型的小区域估计 (SAE) 技术，将 2015-2016 年印度全国家庭健康调查和 2011 年印度人口和住房普查的数据联系起来，以生成地区级的男孩偏好估计值。

结果
诊断措施证实，基于模型的估计足够可靠，可以在地区层面提供可靠的儿子偏好估计。男孩偏好在印度北部和中部各邦的地区最高，其次是古吉拉特邦和马哈拉施特拉邦，南部地区最低的是特伦甘纳邦、安得拉邦、喀拉拉邦和泰米尔纳德邦。

结论
印度各地区的男孩偏好存在相当大的异质性，通常被州级平均估计所掩盖。我们的研究结果需要针对印度特定地区的紧急政策干预，以解决持续存在的重男轻女态度和做法。