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Measuring Gender in the Context of Demographic Change

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International Handbook on Gender and Demographic Processes

Part of the book series: International Handbooks of Population ((IHOP,volume 8))

Abstract

In this chapter we focus on the definition and measurement of gender in demographic research. We start by reviewing the history of efforts to bring gender into demographic analyses and the challenges that researchers have faced in this endeavor. We then investigate different approaches to measuring gender and its relationships to demographic outcomes, and look at both quantitative and qualitative methodologies. We argue that while demography now recognizes the importance of gender in any demographic analysis, we are still far from capturing the full effects of gender; especially difficult has been capturing the influence of gender operating at the community or societal levels.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    Widespread recognition of the importance of gender is also evident in the inclusion of a Gender Development Index and a Gender Inequality Index in recent volumes of the Human Development Report (UNDP 2016a), and also a Gender Equality Goal in the Sustainable Development Goals that supersede the Millennium Development Goals (UNDP 2016b).

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Sociology and Anthropology, Bowdoin College, Brunswick, ME, USA

    Nancy E. Riley

  2. Department of Economics, Bowdoin College, Brunswick, ME, USA

    Deborah S. DeGraff

Authors
  1. Nancy E. Riley
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  2. Deborah S. DeGraff
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Correspondence to Nancy E. Riley .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Sociology and Anthropology, Bowdoin College, Brunswick, Maine, USA

    Nancy E. Riley

  2. Department of Anthropology, University of Hawai’i at Mānoa, Honolulu, Hawaii, USA

    Jan Brunson

Appendix A: DHS Data Related to Women’s Status and Empowerment

Appendix A: DHS Data Related to Women’s Status and Empowerment

The DHS Program data and analysis provide an in-depth look at:

  • The life courses of women and men, including

    • when they first have sex, marry, and have their first child

    • whether they work

    • whether they control income and household decisions

  • Gender differentials in education and in children’s health and health care

  • Women’s experience of various forms of gender-based violence

All Demographic and Health Surveys include the following women’s status and empowerment indicators:

  • Literacy and educational attainment

  • Employment and occupation

  • Control over own earnings (most surveys)

  • Age at first marriage

  • Age at first birth

  • Contraceptive use

  • Spousal age and education differences

Demographic and Health Surveys implemented since 1999–2000 contain information on the following additional women’s status and empowerment indicators:

  • Women’s participation in household decisions

  • Women’s attitudes toward wife-beating by husbands

  • Women’s opinions on whether a woman can refuse sex to her husband

  • Hurdles faced by women in accessing health care for themselves

Demographic and Health Surveys for some countries include a module of additional questions on women’s status and empowerment the DHS Women’s Status Module. Indicators available from the module include:

  • Choice of spouse

  • Natal family support

  • Asset ownership

  • Control over money for different purposes

  • Knowledge and use of micro-credit programs

  • Attitudes about gender roles

  • Freedom of movement

  • Membership in any association

  • Having a bank account

accessed at: https://www.dhsprogram.com/topics/Womens-Status-and-Empowerment.cfm

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Riley, N.E., DeGraff, D.S. (2018). Measuring Gender in the Context of Demographic Change. In: Riley, N., Brunson, J. (eds) International Handbook on Gender and Demographic Processes. International Handbooks of Population, vol 8. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-024-1290-1_2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-024-1290-1_2

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