Friday, February 8 2019 16:02

ArmInfo. In Armenia, when planning a first pregnancy, families prefer male children twice as high as girls, despite the fact that, in general, the survey showed that the  sex of the child does not matter for the family. This is evidenced by  the survey data for 2017 conducted by the International Center for  Human Development.

The survey was conducted in Yerevan and the regions among 1919  respondents. According to the results of the study, it turned out  that more than half of the women surveyed - 52.4% believe that gender  does not matter, however, boys prefer twice as much as girls to their  first pregnancy (31.5% to 16.1%). In general, regardless of the  course of pregnancy and the pregnancy rate in question, the number of  women with a desire to give birth to a boy is 1, 7 times more than  women who prefer to have girls (29, 9% and 16, 9% respectively) .

It is noteworthy that 20% of the interviewed women (370) noted that  over the past 5 years (2012-2017), methods for determining the sex of  the child were used at the prenatal stage, mainly using ultrasound.  97% of these women continued to become pregnant after determining the  sex of the child, and 3% terminated.  According to the study, in a  family with one or two children, the sex ratio, respectively, is  1.08% and 0.96%.

An imbalance in the sex ratio was recorded at the birth of the third  and subsequent children.

Thus, in families with up to two children per 100 girls there are 122  boys, while in families with three or more children girls  predominate, per 100 girls there are 94 boys.

According to the report, gender inequality among children is more  evident in rural areas, where fewer girls are born, and this  imbalance peaks in the case of the third child. According to the  results of the survey, it also became clear that preference was given  to boys based on intra-family moods and the opinions of others.

According to the report, those who prefer boys are justified by the  fact that the boy is the heir to the generation, the heir, the  protector of the homeland, the guarantor of security, the embodiment  of authority and strength. While girls who prefer girls say that a  girl carries spiritual strength, she will also take care of elderly  parents.

However, the report notes that the violation of the sex ratio of  children in Armenian society does not cause concern. However, this  may lead to a reduction in the population, mixed marriages, an  increase in aggression in society.