Understanding the Relationship Between Maternal Education and Infant/Under Five Child Mortality in India
Date
2013-09-13
Authors
Ramasubramanian, Meenakshi Trichur
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Abstract
Women’s education lowers child mortality rate in developing countries. My research question is ‘What are the intervening variables involved in the process that lead to a relationship between maternal education and infant/under five child mortality in India?’ The dependent variable is infant/under five child mortality and the independent variables are maternal education, women's empowerment indicators, women's autonomy indicators, knowledge acquisition measure and decision-making regarding reproductive behavior and child care measure I argue that the causal link between maternal education to child survival is due to impact of education on women’s empowerment and autonomy (both in absolute and relative terms). Women's social status (empowerment and autonomy) improves with education, which has an impact on their ability to acquire knowledge and make decisions regarding their reproductive behavior and child care.
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Keywords
Maternal education, Child mortality in India, Women's empowerment, Women's autonomy