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Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences
Some Preconditions For Fertility Decline In Bengal: History, Language Identity, And An Openness To Innovations, Alaka Malwade Basu, Sajeda Amin
Some Preconditions For Fertility Decline In Bengal: History, Language Identity, And An Openness To Innovations, Alaka Malwade Basu, Sajeda Amin
Poverty, Gender, and Youth
This paper argues that looking solely for the immediate causes of reproductive change may fail to take into account not only the impact of policies and programs but the societal decision to adopt these policies and programs to begin with. The paper examines the historical origins and spread of ‘modern’ ideas in Bangladesh and the state of West Bengal in India. It concludes that a colonial history in which education and modernization processes took hold very early among the elite in the larger Bengal region was paradoxically accompanied by a strong allegiance to the Bengali language. This strong sense of …
Spatial Variation In Contraceptive Use In Bangladesh: Looking Beyond The Borders, Sajeda Amin, Alaka Malwade Basu, Rob Stephenson
Spatial Variation In Contraceptive Use In Bangladesh: Looking Beyond The Borders, Sajeda Amin, Alaka Malwade Basu, Rob Stephenson
Poverty, Gender, and Youth
This paper tries to promote a more complete understanding of social change by analyzing spatial patterns of contraceptive use in Bangladesh and the contiguous state of West Bengal in India. The paper takes it’s cue from earlier analysis which found strong evidence of higher contraceptive prevalence in districts of Bangladesh that border Bengali speaking districts on India, as well as from analysis of fertility decline in historical Europe where language played a critical role. Using multilevel analysis to control for variations in individual and household level correlates, mapping districts that deviate considerably from their regional averages, the analysis highlights an …