Polygynous family structure and child undernutrition in Nigeria

There is a growing interest in the research literature in exploring how child nutrition is affected by sociocultural practices, such as polygyny. However, evaluation of the effect of polygyny on child nutrition has been hindered by the complexity of the relationship. This paper investigates the effe...

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Autores principales: Amare, Mulubrhan, Arndt, Channing, Mahrt, Kristi, Mavrotas, George
Formato: Artículo preliminar
Lenguaje:Inglés
Publicado: International Food Policy Research Institute 2020
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://hdl.handle.net/10568/143916
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author Amare, Mulubrhan
Arndt, Channing
Mahrt, Kristi
Mavrotas, George
author_browse Amare, Mulubrhan
Arndt, Channing
Mahrt, Kristi
Mavrotas, George
author_facet Amare, Mulubrhan
Arndt, Channing
Mahrt, Kristi
Mavrotas, George
author_sort Amare, Mulubrhan
collection Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace)
description There is a growing interest in the research literature in exploring how child nutrition is affected by sociocultural practices, such as polygyny. However, evaluation of the effect of polygyny on child nutrition has been hindered by the complexity of the relationship. This paper investigates the effect of polygyny on anthropometric outcomes while recognizing that unobservable household characteristics may simultaneously influence both the decision to form a polygynous union and the ability of the household to adequately nourish children. Polygyny can affect children’s nutrition through increased family size, early marriage, and the level of household investment in child health. In this paper, we apply an instrumental variable approach based on the occurrence of same sex siblings in a woman’s first two births to generate exogenous variation in polygyny. Using data from the 2008 and 2013 Nigeria Demographic and Health Surveys, we find a detrimental effect of polygyny on child undernutrition, with a greater effect in poorer households and those resident in more urban locations.
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spelling CGSpace1439162025-11-06T07:38:08Z Polygynous family structure and child undernutrition in Nigeria Amare, Mulubrhan Arndt, Channing Mahrt, Kristi Mavrotas, George gender child welfare child health urbanization malnutrition nutrition vital statistics family structure marriage There is a growing interest in the research literature in exploring how child nutrition is affected by sociocultural practices, such as polygyny. However, evaluation of the effect of polygyny on child nutrition has been hindered by the complexity of the relationship. This paper investigates the effect of polygyny on anthropometric outcomes while recognizing that unobservable household characteristics may simultaneously influence both the decision to form a polygynous union and the ability of the household to adequately nourish children. Polygyny can affect children’s nutrition through increased family size, early marriage, and the level of household investment in child health. In this paper, we apply an instrumental variable approach based on the occurrence of same sex siblings in a woman’s first two births to generate exogenous variation in polygyny. Using data from the 2008 and 2013 Nigeria Demographic and Health Surveys, we find a detrimental effect of polygyny on child undernutrition, with a greater effect in poorer households and those resident in more urban locations. 2020-03-01 2024-05-22T12:18:03Z 2024-05-22T12:18:03Z Working Paper https://hdl.handle.net/10568/143916 en https://doi.org/10.22004/ag.econ.295868 https://doi.org/10.1080/00220388.2021.1898591 Open Access application/pdf International Food Policy Research Institute Amare, Mulubrhan; Arndt, Channing; Mahrt, Kristi; and Mavrotas, George. 2020. Polygynous family structure and child undernutrition in Nigeria. NSSP Working Paper 61. Washington, DC: International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI). https://doi.org/10.2499/p15738coll2.133706.
spellingShingle gender
child welfare
child health
urbanization
malnutrition
nutrition
vital statistics
family structure
marriage
Amare, Mulubrhan
Arndt, Channing
Mahrt, Kristi
Mavrotas, George
Polygynous family structure and child undernutrition in Nigeria
title Polygynous family structure and child undernutrition in Nigeria
title_full Polygynous family structure and child undernutrition in Nigeria
title_fullStr Polygynous family structure and child undernutrition in Nigeria
title_full_unstemmed Polygynous family structure and child undernutrition in Nigeria
title_short Polygynous family structure and child undernutrition in Nigeria
title_sort polygynous family structure and child undernutrition in nigeria
topic gender
child welfare
child health
urbanization
malnutrition
nutrition
vital statistics
family structure
marriage
url https://hdl.handle.net/10568/143916
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AT mavrotasgeorge polygynousfamilystructureandchildundernutritioninnigeria