Bellemare, Marc F. and Steinmetz, Tara L. (2013): All in the Family: Explaining the Persistence of Female Genital Cutting in the Gambia.
Preview |
PDF
MPRA_paper_47628.pdf Download (1MB) | Preview |
Abstract
Why does female genital cutting (FGC) persist in certain places while has declined elsewhere? Using survey data from the Gambia, we study an important aspect of the persistence of FGC, namely the relationship between (i) whether a woman has undergone FGC and (ii) her support for the practice. Our data exhibit sufficient intrahousehold variation in both FGC status and in support for the practice to allow controlling for unobserved heterogeneity between households. First, our results suggest that a woman who has undergone FGC 40 percentage points more likely to be in favor of the practice, from a baseline likelihood of 40%. Second, our findings indicate that 85% of the relationship between whether a woman has undergone FGC and her support for the practice can be attributed to individual- or household-level factors, but that only 15% of that relationship can be explained by factors at the village level or beyond. This suggests that village-wide pledges against FGC, though they have worked well in neighboring Senegal, are unlikely to be effective in the Gambia. Rather, policies aimed at eliminating FGC in this context should instead target individuals and households if they are to be effective.
Item Type: | MPRA Paper |
---|---|
Original Title: | All in the Family: Explaining the Persistence of Female Genital Cutting in the Gambia |
Language: | English |
Keywords: | Female Genital Cutting, Female Genital Mutilation, Sexual and Reproductive Health, Africa, Gambia |
Subjects: | I - Health, Education, and Welfare > I1 - Health > I15 - Health and Economic Development O - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth > O1 - Economic Development > O10 - General |
Item ID: | 47628 |
Depositing User: | Marc F Bellemare |
Date Deposited: | 17 Jun 2013 05:05 |
Last Modified: | 01 Oct 2019 23:48 |
References: | Alderman, H., P.-A. Chiappori, L. Haddad, R. Kanbur, J. Hoddinott, “Unitary versus Collective Models of the Household: Is It Time to Shift the Burden of the Proof?,” World Bank Research Observer 10(1): 1-19. Angrist, J.D., and J.-S. Pischke (2008), Mostly Harmless Econometrics, Princeton: Princeton University Press. Black, J.A., and G.D. Debelle (1995), “Female Genital Mutilation in Britain,” British Medical Journal 310(6994): 1590-1594. cad (1999), “Gambia: No Female Genital Mutilation Ban,” off our backs 29(3): 4. Dorkenoo, E. (1999), “Female Genital Mutilation: An Agenda for the Next Decade,” Women’s Studies Quarterly 27(1/2): 87-97. Doss. C. (1996), “Testing among Models of Intrahousehold Resource Allocation,” World Development 24(10): 1597-1609. Easton P., K. Monkman, R. Miles (2003), “Social Policy from the Bottom up: Abandoning FGC in Sub-Saharan Africa,” Development in Practice 13(5):445-58. El Dawla, A.S. (1999), “The Political and Legal Struggle over Female Genital Mutilation in Egypt: Five Years Since the ICPD,” Reproductive Health Matters 7(13): 128-136. Elmusharaf S., N. Elhadi, L. Almroth (2006), “Reliability of Self-Reported Form of Female Genital Mutilation and WHO Classification: Cross-Sectional Study,” British Medical Journal 333(7559):124-7. Finke, E. 2006), “Genital Mutilation as an Expression of Power Structures: Ending FGM through Education, Empowerment of Women and Removal of Taboos,” African Journal of Reproductive Health 10(2):13-7. Gambian Bureau of Statistics (2007), “The Gambia Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey 2005/2006 Report,” http://www.childinfo.org/mics/mics3/archives/gambia/survey0/data/Reports/MICS3_Gambia_FinalReport_2006_Eng.pdf last accessed June 11, 2012. Hayford, S.R. (2005), “Conformity and Change: Community Effects on Female Genital Cutting in Kenya,” Journal of Health and Social Behavior 46(2): 121-140. Heckman, J.J. (1981), “The Incidental Parameters Problem and the Problem of Initial Conditions in Estimating a Discrete Time-Discrete Data Stochastic Process,” in C.F. Manski and D. McFadden, eds., Structural Analysis of Discrete Data and Econometric Applications, Cambridge, MA: MIT Press. Hernlund, Y., and B. Shell-Duncan (2007), “Contingency, Context, and Change: Negotiating Female Genital Cutting in the Gambia and Senegal,” Africa Today 53(4): 43-57. Jackson, E.F., P. Akweongo, E. Sakeah, A. Hodgson, R. Asuru, and J.F. Phillips (2003), “Inconsistent Reporting of Female Genital Cutting Status in Northern Ghana: Explanatory Factors and Analytical Consequences,” Studies in Family Planning 34(3): 200-210. James, S.M. (1998), “Shades of Othering: Reflections on Female Circumcision/Genital Mutilation,” Signs 23(4): 1031-1048. Jones, H., N. Diop, I. Askew, and I. Kabore (1999), “Female Genital Cutting Practices in Burkina Faso and Mali and Their Negative Health Outcomes,” Studies in Family Planning 30(3): 219-230. Jones, W.K., J. Smith, B. Kieke, Jr., and L. Wilcox (1997), “Female Genital Mutilation/Female Circumcision: Who Is at Risk in the US?,” Public Health Reports (1974—), 112(5): 368-377. Lightfoot-Klein, H. (1989), Prisoners of Ritual: An Odyssey into Female Genital Circumcision in Africa, New York: Haworth Press. Mackie, G. (1996), “Ending Footbinding and Infibulation: A Convention Account,” American Sociological Review 61(6): 999-1017. Moore, K., K. Randolph, N. Toubia, and E. Kirberger (1997), “The Synergistic Relationship between Health and Human Rights: A Case Study Using Female Genital Mutilation,” Health and Human Rights 2(2): 137-146. Morgan, C., and S.L. Winship (2007), Counterfactuals and Causal Inference: Methods and Principles for Social Research, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Morrone A., J. Hercogova, T. Lotti (2002), “Stop Female Genital Mutilation: Appeal to the International Dermatologic Community,” International Journal of Dermatology 41(5):253-63. National Public Radio (2004), “Atlanta Female Circumcision Case Stirs Concerns,” http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=1763682, last accessed June 16, 2012. Poirier, D.J. (1980), “Partial Observability in Bivariate Probit Models,” Journal of Econometrics 12(2): 209-217. Shell-Duncan, B., and Y. Hernlund (2006), “Are there ‘Stages of Change’ in the Practice of Female Genital Cutting? Qualitative Research Findings from Senegal and the Gambia,” African Journal of Reproductive Health 10(2): 56-71. Skaine, R. (2005), Female Genital Mutilation: Legal, Cultural and Medical Issues, Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Company, Inc. Steinmetz, T.L. (2012), Empirical Determinants of Female Genital Cutting: Evidence from the Gambia, Masters Project, Duke University. United Nations Development Program (2005), “The Gambia Human Development Report 2005,” http://hdr.undp.org/en/reports/national/africa/gambia/name,3419,en.html, last accessed June 11, 2012. US Department of Health and Human Services (2009), Female Genital Cutting, http://www.womenshealth.gov/publications/our-publications/fact-sheet/female-genital-cutting.cfm, last accessed March 19, 2012. Wagner, N. (2013), “Why Female Genital Cutting Persist?,” Working Paper, University of Rotterdam. Wakabi W. (2007), “Africa Battles to Make Female Genital Mutilation History,” The Lancet 369(9567):1069-70. Williams, L., and T. Sobieszczyk (1997) “Attitudes Surrounding the Continuation of Female Circumcision in the Sudan: Passing the Tradition to the Next Generation,” Journal of Marriage and the Family 59(4): 966-981. World Health Organization (2012), Female Genital Mutilation, Fact Sheet #241, http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs241/en/, last accessed March 19, 2012. Yount K.M. (2002), “Like Mother, Like Daughter? Female Genital Cutting in Minia, Egypt,” Journal of Health and Social Behavior 43(3):336-58. |
URI: | https://mpra.ub.uni-muenchen.de/id/eprint/47628 |