Gender Preference for a Third or More Children: Evidence from Indonesia

Abstract

Indonesia"s total fertility rate (TFR) was 2.4 in 2017, slightly lower than the 2002 rate of 2.6. In order to achieve a stable population growth, Indonesia needs to lower its fertility rate to the replacement level of TFR = 2.1. Studies have revealed that gender preferences regarding offspring are influential in determining the number of children. This paper investigated the gender preference for a third or more children using the 2017 Indonesia Demographic and Health Survey (DHS). The results of the logistic regression analysis reveal that children"s sex composition has a significant effect on the desire for additional children. Compared with women who already have two children of different sexes, those who have only sons or only daughters are more likely to want additional children. These results indicate that Indonesian women prefer to have offspring of both sexes.