Does son preference pay-off for the ailing and elderly

What is it about?

The purpose of this paper is to take a close look at factors that influence the choice and quality of healthcare received by ailing and elderly people in rural north India. The author is primarily interested in seeing what role is played by the presence of sons in the family, particularly co-residence with sons. The results show that co-residence with a son does not have a statistically significant impact on the quality of healthcare received by the elderly individual. Additionally, not having a son also does not have a statistically significant impact on quality of healthcare received.

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Why is it important?

The author finds relatively fewer studies done on factors that determine the choice of healthcare for the elderly, particularly relating to those that are ailing (for reasons other than simply aging) and with reference to their living arrangement. The present paper addresses this void in the literature and is expected to make a meaningful contribution in bridging this gap in the literature.