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Social Identity
Women and health in India
This International Women’s Day, I4I Editorial Advisor Nalini Gulati presents a curation of economic research on women’s health in India, encompassing aspects of maternal and child health, gendered access to healthcare, intimate-partner violence, and mental health concerns – and considers the role of resources, gender attitudes, and information in addressing inequalities.
All is not well: Unintended consequences of maternity leave policy in India
In 2017, mandated paid maternity leave for women employees in India was increased from 12 weeks to 26 weeks. Analysing data for 160,000 households, this article finds that the policy change caused a fall in employment and income among women in the high-fertility age group. This was driven by a rise in firms’ ‘reservation productivity’ for hiring these women, since employers alone finance the leave.
Coping through acceptance: What shapes attitudes towards intimate partner violence
In many instances, tolerance for intimate partner violence (IPV) exists even among its victims, with women justifying their partners' behaviour as a coping mechanism. This article investigates the causal effect of IPV on attitudes towards violence, and the extent to which the length of exposure to abuse impacts that. Exploiting differences in legal drinking age across states, it finds that a lower drinking age increases exposure to violence, which in turn leads to an increase in wives' tolerance towards it.
India’s Women’s Reservation Act: A big win for governance and beyond
Amidst debates about the recently passed women's reservation act and whether it will reduce gender disparities on the ground, Wattal and Gopalan summarise evidence from a number of randomised evaluations on women's participation in local government. These studies find that more women leaders in local governments can lead to greater investment in policies which are a priority for women, as well as improved social perceptions of women and changes in women’s aspirations and attitudes towards gender roles.
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