Could changes in reported sex ratios at birth during China's 1958-1961 famine support the adaptive sex ratio adjustment hypothesis?
<b>Background</b>: The adaptive sex ratio adjustment hypothesis suggests that when mothers are in poor conditions the sex ratio of their offspring will be biased towards females. Major famines provide opportunities for testing this hypothesis because they lead to the widespread deteriora...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research
2013-10-01
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| Series: | Demographic Research |
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| Online Access: | http://www.demographic-research.org/volumes/vol29/33/ |
| _version_ | 1818343678131830784 |
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| author | Anna Reimondos Yuan Zhu Zhongwei Zhao |
| author_facet | Anna Reimondos Yuan Zhu Zhongwei Zhao |
| author_sort | Anna Reimondos |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | <b>Background</b>: The adaptive sex ratio adjustment hypothesis suggests that when mothers are in poor conditions the sex ratio of their offspring will be biased towards females. Major famines provide opportunities for testing this hypothesis because they lead to the widespread deterioration of living conditions in the affected population. <b>Objective</b>: This study examines changes in sex ratio at birth before, during, and after China's 1958-1961 famine, to see whether they provide any support for the adaptive sex ratio adjustment hypothesis. <b>Methods</b>: We use descriptive statistics to analyse data collected by both China's 1982 and 1988 fertility sample surveys and examine changes in sex ratio at birth in recent history. In addition, we examine the effectiveness of using different methods to model changes in sex ratio at birth and compare their differences. <b>Results</b>: During China's 1958-1961 famine, reported sex ratio at birth remained notably higher than that observed in most countries in the world. The timing of the decline in sex ratio at birth did not coincide with the timing of the famine. After the famine, although living conditions were considerably improved, the sex ratio at birth was not higher but lower than that recorded during the famine. <b>Conclusions</b>: The analysis of the data collected by the two fertility surveys has found no evidence that changes in sex ratio at birth during China's 1958-1961 famine and the post-famine period supported the adaptive sex ratio adjustment hypothesis. |
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| id | doaj.art-064104f4c4ab48889a4d5b316832443a |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1435-9871 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-13T16:34:24Z |
| publishDate | 2013-10-01 |
| publisher | Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research |
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| series | Demographic Research |
| spelling | doaj.art-064104f4c4ab48889a4d5b316832443a2022-12-21T23:38:25ZengMax Planck Institute for Demographic ResearchDemographic Research1435-98712013-10-012933Could changes in reported sex ratios at birth during China's 1958-1961 famine support the adaptive sex ratio adjustment hypothesis?Anna ReimondosYuan ZhuZhongwei Zhao<b>Background</b>: The adaptive sex ratio adjustment hypothesis suggests that when mothers are in poor conditions the sex ratio of their offspring will be biased towards females. Major famines provide opportunities for testing this hypothesis because they lead to the widespread deterioration of living conditions in the affected population. <b>Objective</b>: This study examines changes in sex ratio at birth before, during, and after China's 1958-1961 famine, to see whether they provide any support for the adaptive sex ratio adjustment hypothesis. <b>Methods</b>: We use descriptive statistics to analyse data collected by both China's 1982 and 1988 fertility sample surveys and examine changes in sex ratio at birth in recent history. In addition, we examine the effectiveness of using different methods to model changes in sex ratio at birth and compare their differences. <b>Results</b>: During China's 1958-1961 famine, reported sex ratio at birth remained notably higher than that observed in most countries in the world. The timing of the decline in sex ratio at birth did not coincide with the timing of the famine. After the famine, although living conditions were considerably improved, the sex ratio at birth was not higher but lower than that recorded during the famine. <b>Conclusions</b>: The analysis of the data collected by the two fertility surveys has found no evidence that changes in sex ratio at birth during China's 1958-1961 famine and the post-famine period supported the adaptive sex ratio adjustment hypothesis.http://www.demographic-research.org/volumes/vol29/33/Chinafaminesex ratio at birth |
| spellingShingle | Anna Reimondos Yuan Zhu Zhongwei Zhao Could changes in reported sex ratios at birth during China's 1958-1961 famine support the adaptive sex ratio adjustment hypothesis? Demographic Research China famine sex ratio at birth |
| title | Could changes in reported sex ratios at birth during China's 1958-1961 famine support the adaptive sex ratio adjustment hypothesis? |
| title_full | Could changes in reported sex ratios at birth during China's 1958-1961 famine support the adaptive sex ratio adjustment hypothesis? |
| title_fullStr | Could changes in reported sex ratios at birth during China's 1958-1961 famine support the adaptive sex ratio adjustment hypothesis? |
| title_full_unstemmed | Could changes in reported sex ratios at birth during China's 1958-1961 famine support the adaptive sex ratio adjustment hypothesis? |
| title_short | Could changes in reported sex ratios at birth during China's 1958-1961 famine support the adaptive sex ratio adjustment hypothesis? |
| title_sort | could changes in reported sex ratios at birth during china s 1958 1961 famine support the adaptive sex ratio adjustment hypothesis |
| topic | China famine sex ratio at birth |
| url | http://www.demographic-research.org/volumes/vol29/33/ |
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