Land Reform and Sex Selection in China

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Almond, Douglas; Li, Hongbin; Zhang, Shuang
• 署名单位: Columbia University; National Bureau of Economic Research; Stanford University; University of Colorado System; University of Colorado Boulder
• 刊物名称: JOURNAL OF POLITICAL ECONOMY
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0022-3808
• DOI: 10.1086/701030
• 发表日期: 2019
• 页码: 560-585
• 关键词: Son preference; Missing girls; decline; ratios; south; CONSEQUENCES; increase; CHILDREN; INDIA; women

摘要

China's land reform in 1978-84 unleashed rapid growth in farm output and household income. In new data on reform timing in 914 counties, we find an immediate trend break in the fraction of male children following the reform. Among second births that followed a firstborn girl, sex ratios increased from 1.1 to 1.3 boys per girl in the 4 years following reform. Larger increases are found among families with more education. The land reform estimate is robust to controlling for the county-level rollout of the One Child Policy. Overall, we estimate land reform accounted for about 1 million missing girls.