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Spending or saving? Female empowerment and financial decisions in a matrilineal society

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  • Rink, Ute
  • Barros, Laura
Abstract
This paper looks at household consumption and financial decisions made in a matrilineal society where women are traditionally the household financial managers. This culture was strongly altered by the British in the mid-19th century through Christian missionaries who proclaimed that the role of the household manager is ascribed to men and not to women. Using self-collected data from 650 individuals in the matrilineal state of Meghalaya, India, and exploring households’ distance to the historical Protestant base in Cherrapunji, we find evidence that households in which women are empowered spend more on welfare-enhancing goods, such as food, but are less likely to have savings left at the end of the month. Our paper contributes to the literature by investigating how a historical shift in female empowerment, mostly driven by cultural norms, can have long-term effects on financial decisions.

Suggested Citation

  • Rink, Ute & Barros, Laura, 2021. "Spending or saving? Female empowerment and financial decisions in a matrilineal society," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 141(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:wdevel:v:141:y:2021:i:c:s0305750x20304691
    DOI: 10.1016/j.worlddev.2020.105342
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    Cited by:

    1. Rozi Kumari & Rupayan Pal, 2024. "Catastrophic decline in women ownership of firms in India: 2014-2022," Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research, Mumbai Working Papers 2024-008, Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research, Mumbai, India.
    2. Simplice A. Asongu & Omang O. Messono & Keyanfe T. J. Guttemberg, 2022. "Women political empowerment and vulnerability to climate change: evidence from 169 countries," Climatic Change, Springer, vol. 174(3), pages 1-26, October.
    3. Rink, Ute & Walle, Yabibal M. & Klasen, Stephan, 2021. "The financial literacy gender gap and the role of culture," The Quarterly Review of Economics and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 80(C), pages 117-134.
    4. Abiola John Asaleye & Kariena Strydom, 2023. "Promoting Women’s Empowerment: Linkages Between Financial Development, Employment and Economic Growth in Selected African Economies," SAGE Open, , vol. 13(4), pages 21582440231, October.
    5. Dahlum, Sirianne & Knutsen, Carl Henrik & Mechkova, Valeriya, 2022. "Women’s political empowerment and economic growth," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 156(C).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Female empowerment; Matrilineality; Culture; Savings; India; Protestant missions;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • I3 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty
    • O1 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development
    • R20 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - Household Analysis - - - General
    • Z1 - Other Special Topics - - Cultural Economics

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