Abstract
We investigate whether restricting elected leadership positions to candidates with “desirable” characteristics leads to the society-wide adoption of those characteristics in a democracy with high political participation. Exploiting quasi-experimental variation in fertility limits imposed on village council members in India to curb population growth, we find that rural couples significantly decreased fertility in response, and child survival improved. However, the limits also increased the already male-biased sex ratio at birth in castes with strong son preference.
- Received October 2016.
- Accepted July 2017.
This article requires a subscription to view the full text. If you have a subscription you may use the login form below to view the article. Access to this article can also be purchased.
Log in using your username and password
Purchase access
In this issue
Jump to section
Related Articles
Cited By...
- No citing articles found.