Factors influencing the sex ratio at birth in the United States from a historical perspective Articles uri icon

publication date

  • January 2023

start page

  • 1015

end page

  • 1038

issue

  • 6

volume

  • 55

International Standard Serial Number (ISSN)

  • 0021-9320

Electronic International Standard Serial Number (EISSN)

  • 1469-7599

abstract

  • Many of the studies on the sex ratio at birth (SRB) are based on a small number of cases over a short period of time. Taking a multivariate approach to a dataset consisting of nearly 199 million birth records in the United States from 1968 to 2019, we present a detailed analysis of several possible factors that might affect the sex ratio at birth (SRB) and its patterns of variation. We found that race/ethnicity is the variable with the strongest influence on this index. Parental age, birth order and solar radiation also have a bearing on the SRB, albeit only to a moderate degree. The historical evolution of the SRB among Black and American Indian and Alaska Native populations remains unexplained.

subjects

  • Economics
  • Sociology
  • Statistics

keywords

  • sex ratio at birth; united states; race; ethnicity; mother's age; father's age; solar radiation; vitamin d; differences in skin tone; standardization