Education and Sex preference for children in Ghana.

Education tends to influence every aspect of an individual’s demographic behaviour and outcomes including sex preferences for children. The subject of sex preference has been studied in diverse cultures because of its potential negative social and demographic consequences. This paper investigates the relationship between one’s educational level and sex preferences for children using data from the 2008 Ghana Demographic and Health Survey. Chi-square tests and binary logistic regressions were used to test for significant relationships between characteristics of individuals and preferred sex of a child. Sex preference increases at higher levels of education. Individuals in primary, middle, secondary and higher education had a more likelihood for preference for a sex of a child. Similarly, preference for a son also increases (OR) = 3%, 10.5% and 30%, for middle, secondary and the highly educated but there was less likelihood for a daughter preference among primary and secondary educated individuals (OR = 8.8% and 9.1% times). Education therefore does not necessarily neutralise sex preferences. The expectation that there would be no sex preference did not prove true hence the issue should not be addressed from an educational perspective but rather from a cultural point of view.