TY - JOUR
T1 - The gender gap in relation to happiness and preferences in married couples after childbirth
T2 - evidence from a field experiment in rural Ghana
AU - Ghana EMBRACE Implementation Research Project Team
AU - Kamiya, Yusuke
AU - Akpalu, Bright
AU - Mahama, Emmanuel
AU - Ayipah, Emmanuel Kwesi
AU - Owusu-Agyei, Seth
AU - Hodgson, Abraham
AU - Shibanuma, Akira
AU - Kikuchi, Kimiyo
AU - Jimba, Masamine
N1 - Funding Information:
We, the authors, wish to thank Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), Ghana Health Service, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Japan, and the Ministry of Health in Ghana. The Ghana EMBRACE Implementation Research Project was conducted by the Government of the Republic of Ghana, JICA Human Development Department, and JICA Research Institute with the coordinating support from System Science Consultants Inc. The content of this study is solely the responsibility of the authors. The Ghana EMBRACE Implementation Research Project Team authors: Yoshiharu Yoneyama, Ebenezer Appiah-Denkyira, Masamine Jimba, Abraham Hodgson, Gloria Quansah Asare, Evelyn Korkor Ansah, Junko Yasuoka, Keiko Nanishi, Akira Shibanuma, Kimiyo Kikuchi, Sumiyo Okawa, Margaret Gyapong, Sheila Addei, Vida Kukula, Doris Sarpong, Clement Narh, Seth Owusu-Agyei, Kwaku Poku-Asante, Charlotte Tawiah,Yeetey Enuameh, Kwame Adjei, Emmanuel Mahama, Abraham Rexford Oduro, John Williams, Cornelius Debpuur, Francis Yeji, Evelyn Sakeah, Peter Wontuo, Akiko Hagiwara, Sakiko Shiratori, Yusuke Kamiya.
Funding Information:
The study was funded by the JICA Human Development Department and JICA Research Institute. The funders had no role in the study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or the preparation of the manuscript.
PY - 2017/3/15
Y1 - 2017/3/15
N2 - BACKGROUND: How does the gap in preferences between married couples affect their happiness after childbirth? Are couples that share similar preferences happier? In recent years, gender, marriage, and happiness have been considered to be key issues in public health research. Although much research has examined the happiness status of married couples, practically no study has explored the gender gap in relation to happiness and the preferences of married couples after childbirth. Therefore, our study was conducted to assess the association between the preference gap and the happiness status among married couples in the afterbirth period.METHODS: We conducted a field experiment in rural communities in the Brong-Ahafo region of Ghana. Participants were 80 married couples who had experienced childbirth within 2 years prior to the survey. As preference indicators, we measured trust, reciprocity, altruism, and risk lovingness through an economic experiment. Then, we assessed how, for a couple, the gap between these preferences affected their happiness.RESULTS: Wives' happiness was positively associated with the absolute value of the gap in risk lovingness between a couple (OR = 4.83, p = 0.08), while husbands' happiness was negatively associated with the gap in trust (OR = -3.58, p = 0.04) or altruism (OR = -3.33, p = 0.02). Within a couple, wives felt greater happiness than their husbands if there was a wider gap in trust (OR = 6.22, p = 0.01), reciprocity (OR = 2.80, p = 0.01), or risk lovingness (OR = 3.81, p = 0.07).CONCLUSIONS: The gender gaps in the preference indicators were found to be closely associated with the happiness levels between married couples after childbirth. For the further improvement of maternal and child health, we must consider the gender gaps between couples in relation to happiness and preferences.
AB - BACKGROUND: How does the gap in preferences between married couples affect their happiness after childbirth? Are couples that share similar preferences happier? In recent years, gender, marriage, and happiness have been considered to be key issues in public health research. Although much research has examined the happiness status of married couples, practically no study has explored the gender gap in relation to happiness and the preferences of married couples after childbirth. Therefore, our study was conducted to assess the association between the preference gap and the happiness status among married couples in the afterbirth period.METHODS: We conducted a field experiment in rural communities in the Brong-Ahafo region of Ghana. Participants were 80 married couples who had experienced childbirth within 2 years prior to the survey. As preference indicators, we measured trust, reciprocity, altruism, and risk lovingness through an economic experiment. Then, we assessed how, for a couple, the gap between these preferences affected their happiness.RESULTS: Wives' happiness was positively associated with the absolute value of the gap in risk lovingness between a couple (OR = 4.83, p = 0.08), while husbands' happiness was negatively associated with the gap in trust (OR = -3.58, p = 0.04) or altruism (OR = -3.33, p = 0.02). Within a couple, wives felt greater happiness than their husbands if there was a wider gap in trust (OR = 6.22, p = 0.01), reciprocity (OR = 2.80, p = 0.01), or risk lovingness (OR = 3.81, p = 0.07).CONCLUSIONS: The gender gaps in the preference indicators were found to be closely associated with the happiness levels between married couples after childbirth. For the further improvement of maternal and child health, we must consider the gender gaps between couples in relation to happiness and preferences.
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U2 - 10.1186/s41043-017-0084-2
DO - 10.1186/s41043-017-0084-2
M3 - Article
C2 - 28298243
AN - SCOPUS:85044504323
SN - 1606-0997
VL - 36
SP - 8
JO - Journal of Health, Population and Nutrition
JF - Journal of Health, Population and Nutrition
IS - 1
ER -
