Son preference and prenatal sex selection: recent trends in the UK South Asian diaspora

Sylvie Dubuc, University of Oxford

Son preference and discrimination against girls have been reported in many countries and notably in South and East Asia. The availability of various pre-natal sex-determination techniques such as ultrasound screening since the 1980s, has resulted in well documented prenatal sex-selection against females in many Asian countries. New results from the 2010 Indian census data suggests sex-selection against females has further increased and spread. PNSS against females has recently also been evidenced in Western countries with important Asian diasporas. In the UK, a male biased sex ratio at birth among India-born women over 1990-2005 reflects the trend observed in India. However, a closer analysis by main Indian region of origin suggests less bias in the Indian Diaspora. Updated results since 2005 are presented and discussed.