Annual Review of Economics· 2015Q1· Review
The Roots of Gender Inequality in Developing Countries
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- 2015year
Short summary
Gender inequality in developing countries is driven by both underdevelopment and deeply entrenched cultural norms favoring males, such as patrilocality and concerns about female purity, which explain skewed sex ratios and low female employment.
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Key points
- Gender inequality in developing nations is a product of both economic underdevelopment and specific cultural norms.
- Cultural factors like patrilocality and concerns for female 'purity' contribute to male-favoritism.
- These norms help explain skewed sex ratios in India and China, and low female employment in India, the Middle East, and North Africa.
- The relationship between GDP and gender inequality is partially explained by development processes, but society-specific cultural factors are also critical.
AI-generated from the title and abstract; the full text is not read.
Abstract
Is the high degree of gender inequality in developing countries—in education, personal autonomy, and more—explained by underdevelopment itself? Or do the societies that are poor today hold certain cultural views that lead to gender inequality? This article discusses several mechanisms through which gender gaps narrow as countries grow. I argue that although much of the GDP/gender-inequality relationship can be explained by the process of development, society-specific factors are also at play: Many countries that are poor today have cultural norms that exacerbate favoritism toward males. Norms such as patrilocality and concern for women’s “purity” help explain the male-skewed sex ratio in India and China and low female employment in India, the Middle East, and North Africa, for example. I also discuss why the sex ratio has become more male-skewed with development. Finally, I lay out some policy approaches to address gender inequality.
The authors' abstract, as published at the source. Annual Review of Economics, 2015 · DOI ↗
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Field: Gender Studies
Gender StudiesSocial Sciences