These tools will no longer be maintained as of December 31, 2024. Archived website can be found here. PubMed4Hh GitHub repository can be found here. Contact NLM Customer Service if you have questions.


Pubmed for Handhelds

PUBMED FOR HANDHELDS

Search MEDLINE/PubMed

  • Title: Sex preference and fertility in Peninsular Malaysia.
    Author: Pong SL.
    Journal: Stud Fam Plann; 1994; 25(3):137-48. PubMed ID: 7940619.
    Abstract:
    This study uses data from the Second Malaysian Family Life Survey, conducted in 1988, to examine parents' preferences for the sex of their children within each of Malaysia's three ethnic groups. While Malay and Indian parents do not show a consistent sex preference, Chinese parents prefer to have all sons, or a combination of sons and daughters, with more sons than daughters, or at least an equal number of them. Son preference among the Chinese does not seem to be a constraint to fertility decline among that population. Since 1970, Chinese fertility has dropped rapidly; at the same time, Chinese son preference has become more pronounced. Evidence indicates that further reductions in Chinese fertility, through the reduction in sex preference, would be small. Preliminary discussion addressed the issue of sex preference and fertility in developing countries and in Malaysia among the Chinese, Indians, and Malays. The study aim was to examine sex preference and fertility among the ethnic groups in Malaysia with Cox's proportional hazard models. Data were obtained from the Second Malaysia Family Life Survey, conducted in 1976-77, for all ever-married women with at least one live birth. Data included the first 7 parity transitions for Malays and the first 5 for Chinese and Indians (6129 Malay births, 2548 Chinese births, and 1556 Indian births). The hazard rate was computed for each parity transition from the birth of the surviving index child and a subsequent live birth, the survey, or the event of a woman reaching menopause or becoming sterilized. Sex composition was analyzed in 3 ways: a model with surviving sons as continuous variable, a model with at least one son and one daughter, and a model indicating more sons or more daughters. Time periods were represented as dummies for the period before 1970 and after 1982. Other controls were for maternal age, educational status, work status, and paternal occupation. The procedure by Arnold was used to evaluate the impact of sex preference on fertility. The results showed conflicting patterns for the impact of son or daughter preference on subsequent births. The likelihood of another child was higher among those with parity of 3-4 and predominant sons, which indicates daughter preference; however, at parity of 7-8 with no son or at least one son, the likelihood was higher. The pattern among Indians was also confused, because son preference was only evident at one parity transition (parity 4-5). Among Chinese, son preference was evident at all parities beyond the first two in the first model. With just one son, the likelihood of a subsequent birth was greater; with just one daughter, the likelihood of another birth was also greater. With an even number of sons and daughters, there was a greater likelihood for a subsequent birth. In the analysis including time period, the evidence supported a greater son preference after 1970, but a similar preference between 1970 and 1982 and after 1982. Maternal age, additional educational attainment, and employment reduced the likelihood of a subsequent birth. Father's nonagricultural occupation reduced the hazard rate for Chinese at lower parities and for Indians at most parities and had an insignificant effect among Malays before 1970. The effect of son preference affected only 4% of Chinese fertility.
    [Abstract] [Full Text] [Related] [New Search]