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PARENTAL INVESTMENT THEORY AND BIRTH SEX RATIOS IN NEPAL

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  04 April 2001

S. S. STRICKLAND  and
V. R. TUFFREY
S. S. STRICKLAND
Affiliation:
Department of Public Health and Policy, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, Keppel Street, London WC1E 7HT Department of Anthropology, University College London, Gower Street, London WC1E 6BT
V. R. TUFFREY
Affiliation:
Save the Children Fund, Overseas Personnel, 66 South Lambeth Road, London SW8 1RH
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Abstract

Parental investment theory postulates that where physical condition varies significantly then birth sex ratio will be correlated with social status. Application of this theory to man remains contentious. This study examines physique, wealth, and social status in relation to the sex of live births. It reports a female-biased sex ratio in high social and economic status Nepalese. Close consanguineous marriage, intended to conserve landed wealth within related lineages, and increased female work burdens accompanying larger farm size, are proximate factors which may underlie this finding. A differential payback hypothesis is one way of explaining this pattern.

Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of Biosocial Science , Volume 29 , Issue 3 , July 1997 , pp. 283 - 295
Copyright
© 1997 Cambridge University Press

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