Browsing by Author "Bhagowalia, P."

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    Input choices in agriculture: Is there a gender bias?
    Bhagowalia, P.; Chen, S.; Shively, Gerald E. (West Lafayette, IN: Purdue University, Department of Agricultural Economics, 2007)
    This study analyzes the effect of child gender on the use of agricultural inputs in rural India. Results indicate that households with boys use fertilizers, irrigation services, and insecticides to a greater extent than households with girls. One reason for this may be that boys provide a sense of social security and provide more assurance that the farm will stay in the family, therefore more effort is put into the farm to keep it productive. Examining gender biases and how they affect the behavior of farmers in a household is important to addressing agricultural productivity and food security.
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    Short-term investments in agriculture: Is there a gender bias?
    Bhagowalia, P.; Chen, S.; Shively, Gerald E. (2007)
    Most developing countries strive to improve agricultural productivity by relaxing credit constraints, supplying better inputs, improving marketing and distribution. However the efficacy of these reforms needs to be examined in the context of the behavioral responses of farming households. This study examines gender biases within households that affect short-term input allocation decisions in agriculture. The study utilizes data from ICRISAT's village level studies in India (1975-85) to highlight the effects of child gender on the use of agricultural inputs. The main finding is that households with boys tend to use purchased inputs such as fertilizers and insecticides more intensively compared with households with girls. In general, household with boys also tend to have larger land holdings, and use animal and human labor to a greater extent than household with girls.