The Demographic Transition and Women's Economic Participation in Tamil Nadu, India: A Historical Case Study

ABSTRACT

This study analyzes the co-evolution of economic, social, governmental, and gender systems; the demographic transition; and women’s extra-domestic productive opportunities in Tamil Nadu, India. It examines how gender norms for women’s extra-domestic productive and domestic reproductive (motherhood) roles interacted with other upheavals in demography, society, and economy, and how these interweaving trends were reflected in women’s actual participation – and gender gaps – in higher education and employment. The study finds that higher education and employment for women at peak productive and reproductive ages rose as fertility declined, likely aided by Tamil Nadu’s history of social activism and investment in educational and economic infrastructure. However, motherhood remained a primary responsibility even after fertility declined, moving from a focus on childbearing to a focus on childrearing. Thus, traditional gender norms continued to prioritize women’s investment of time, income, and effort in their children over extra-domestic productive opportunities.

KEYWORDS:

• Fertility
• employment
• motherhood
• gender
• India
• patriarchy

JEL Codes:

• J13
• J16
• J21

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

We would like to thank Alaka Basu, Tom Merrick, Kathryn Yount, Keera Allendorf, Susan Lee-Rife, and Ellen Weiss for their comments on prior drafts. We would also like to thank the Consultative Group members of International Center for Research on Women’s (ICRW’s) Fertility and Empowerment Network, namely Karen Mason, Susan Newcomer, and Sunita Kishor, for their input and suggestions at various points in the research and conceptualization for this study’s central ideas. This contribution is a revised version of a prior working paper that is part of ICRW’s Fertility and Empowerment Network’s Working Paper Series (https://www.icrw.org/fertility-empowerment-network-working-paper-series/). All analyses and viewpoints are those of the authors alone and do not reflect the viewpoints of their institutions.

Notes

1 These data are maintained by the Minnesota Population Center, as the Integrated Public Use Microdata Series (IPUMS), International: Version 6.1 [Machine-readable database]. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota, 2011.

2 All personal information that would allow the identification of any person(s) described in the article has been removed.

3 National Sample Survey data from Government of India (2012–2015).

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by William and Flora Hewlett Foundation [Grant Number 2011-6668 awarded to ICRW Fertility & Empowerment Network].

Notes on contributors

Rohini Prabha Pande

Rohini Prabha Pande is a social demographer with over twenty-five years of experience in the measurement and analysis of gender inequality in health and survival, HIV-stigma reduction, education, and economic participation. She has conducted quantitative and qualitative research in Bangladesh, Nepal, Maldives, India, Pakistan, and several Sub-Saharan countries. She is currently an independent consultant and consults with the World Bank. She previously worked at the International Center for Research on Women where she was Senior Social Demographer and directed a range of projects on gender issues in reproductive health, education, and adolescent development.

Sophie Namy

Sophie Namy is an applied researcher and feminist activist working to prevent violence against women and girls. For the last four years, she was Learning Coordinator at Raising Voices in Uganda, where she helped develop an organizational research and learning strategy, co-led a study on adapting SASA! for different contexts, and explored the intersections between violence against women and children. Prior to Raising Voices, she worked as an evaluation specialist with the International Center for Research on Women (ICRW), assessing programs to address violence and change gender and social norms. She is currently working as an independent consultant.

Anju Malhotra

Anju Malhotra is Principal Advisor, Gender and Development at UNICEF, where she leads UNICEF’s work on gender equality and is responsible for developing and implementing the Gender Action Plan. She leads policy, practice, and research on the integration of gender results across UNICEF’s sectoral work in health, nutrition, education, protection, water, sanitation, and hygiene. Prior to joining UNICEF, she served as Vice President of Research Innovation and Impact at the International Center for Research on Women, where she also formed and led the Fertility and Empowerment Network.