An Analysis of Fertility Differentials by Religion in Kerala State: A Test of the Interaction Hypothesis
Tóm tắt
In a revelation of overall decline to below replacement fertility in the Kerala state of India, it was generally found that fertility among Muslims is higher and contraceptive prevalence lower than among Hindus and Christians. This paper examines the interaction between religion and other socioeconomic factors, that is, whether the effect of religion on fertility remains constant across other factors. The analysis is based on the data from the National Family Health Survey-1 in Kerala. The analysis found that large Hindu-Muslim fertility differences at a low level of education do not persist at higher levels. For contraceptive use, wider gaps are found at a middle level of education and at a medium level of standard of living than at lower and higher levels. This indicates that couples at different socioeconomic settings make different decisions in spite of belonging to the same religion. The fact that fertility of Muslims at higher levels of socioeconomic status is low, and not much different than the fertility of other religions, suggests that the observed fertility gap between Hindus/Christians and Muslims is a passing phenomenon.
Tài liệu tham khảo
Alagarajan, M. (2000). An analysis of fertility differentials by religion in Kerala state, India. Unpublished Ph.D. Thesis. Bharathiar University, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, India.
Chamie J. (1977). Religious differentials in fertility: Lebanon 1971, Population Studies 31(2): 365–382.
Chaudhury, R.H. (1984). Hindu-Muslim differential fertility: How much religion and how much socio? Social Action 34(3): 251–273.
Freedman, R. & Whelpton, P.K. (1961). Socio-economic factors in religious differentials in fertility, American Sociological Review 26(4): 608–614.
Goldscheider, C. & Uhlenberg, P.R. (1969). Minority group status and fertility, The American Journal of Sociology 74(4): 361–373.
Goldstein, S. (1973). Religious fertility differentials in Thailand, Population Studies 24(3): 325–337.
Hobcraft, J. & Mcdonald, J. (1984). Birth Intervals. WFS, comparative studies No. 28, world fertility survey. London: WFS.
India, Registrar General (1995). Census of India 1991: Religion, Paper 1, Series 1. India, New Delhi: Controller of Publications.
International Institute for Population Sciences (1995). National Family Health Survey (MCH and Family Planning), xIndia 1992–93. IIPS, Mumbai: International Institute for Population Sciences.
International Institute for Population Sciences & ORC Macro (2000). National Family Health Survey (NFHS-2), 1998–99. Mumbai: International Institute for Population Sciences.
International Institute for Population Sciences & ORC Macro 2001. National Family Health Survey (NFHS-2), India, 1998–99: Kerala. Mumbai: International Institute for Population Sciences.
Jones, G. & Nortman, D. (1968). Roman Catholic fertility and family planning: A comparative review of the research literature, Studies in Family Planning 34: 1–27.
Kulkarni, P.M., Alagarajan, M. & Sivakami, M. (1998). Religious differentials in fertility in India: An assessment of the characteristics hypothesis. Discussion paper. XXIth Annual conference of the Indian Association for the Study of Population, Banaras Hindu University, Varnasi, February 9–12.
Mosher, W.D. & Hendershot, G.E. (1984). Religion and fertility: A replication, Demography 21(2): 185–190.
PRC Thiruvananthapuram (Population Research Centre, University Of Kerala) & International Institute for Population Sciences (1995). National Family Health Survey, Kerala, 1992–93. Bombay: International Institute for Population Sciences.
Ramesh, B.M., Gulati, S.C. & Retherford, R.D. (1996). Contraceptive use in India, 1992– 93, National Family Health Survey Subject Reports, No. 2. Mumbai, India: International Institute for Population Sciences and Honolulu, Hawaii: East-West Centre Program on Population.
Retherford, R.D. & Choe, M.K., eds. (1993). Statistical Models for Causal Analysis. New York: John Wiley.
Roy, T.K. & Jayachandran, V. (1996). Is living standard important for determining fertility and child-loss experience? An empirical investigation based on NFHS. Discussion paper. XIX Annual Conference of the Indian Association for the Study of Population. Baroda, India, February 26–28.
Ryder, N.B. & Westoff, C.R. (1971). Reproduction in the United States, 1965. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
Westoff, C.F., Potter, R.G. & Sagi, P.C. (1963). The Third Child, a Study in the Prediction of Fertility. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.