Hema Swaminathan
Biographic Data
| ID | 104796 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Hema Swaminathan |
| GIVEN NAMES | Hema |
| FAMILY NAME | Swaminathan |
| SIGNATURE | SWAMINATHAN H |
| AFFILIATIONS | Indian Institute of Management Bangalore |
| ORCID | 0000-0002-1822-1704 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 15 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 99 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 15 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2006 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2025 |
| H-INDEX | 6 |
Who Is Responding? Spousal Perspectives on Agricultural Decision-Making in India
The many changes in the rural agrarian landscape are expected to transform gender roles in agriculture in developing countries. Our interest is in examining the relation between gender and agricultural decision-making in India, where there is limited research despite agriculture's primacy for rural livelihoods. Drawing on unique data from Karnataka, India, we examine how agricultural decision-making roles vary by sex and whether our understanding…
Women’s education through empowerment
Poor educational outcomes for women can adversely impact economic and social outcomes. Gender-based education disparity, often attributed to social norms, led to the development of a unique program, the Mahila Samakhya (MS), in India. This program aimed to develop women’s agency and voice to help them negotiate unequal gender norms. We explore the long-term impacts of MS on educational outcomes in India using the program’s phased rollout to addre…
Contextualizing Individual-Level Asset Data Collection
We present asset ownership estimates for men and women from Georgia, Mongolia, and the Philippines using individual-level data collected through household surveys. The concept of asset ownership includes reported and documented ownership and alienation rights (right to sell and right to bequeath) over property. We find significant gender gaps in property ownership – land, dwelling, and other real estate – for reported and documented owners. Furth…
Women's Legal Rights and Gender Gaps in Property Ownership in Developing Countries
Women's property ownership matters for their well-being and agency, broader economic prosperity, and children's development. However, until recently, a lack of data has constrained further exploration of gender differences in property ownership in the developing world. Using data from 41 developing countries, this paper contributes to the literature by investigating gender gaps in the incidence of property ownership among couples and the factors …
Seasonal Migration and Feminization of Farm Management
Improving health with programmatic, legal, and policy approaches to reduce gender inequality and change restrictive gender norms
Gendered Paths to Asset Accumulation? Markets, Savings, and Credit in Developing Countries
An extensive literature shows how property inheritance is biased against women in many developing countries, yet relatively little attention has been given to gender bias in other means of acquiring physical assets, such as the market. Using individual-level data from Ecuador, Ghana, and Karnataka, India, this study analyzes modes of acquisition and financing of housing, agricultural land, other real estate, and businesses. The findings show that…
Do men and women estimate property values differently
Assets and shocks
Drawing upon household surveys in Ecuador, Ghana and Karnataka, India, we analyse the relationship between assets and shocks, distinguishing between asset loss as the shock, and the use of assets as a coping strategy. A greater proportion of households experienced a direct loss of assets due to shocks than as a coping response. In Karnataka, but not in Ghana or Ecuador, women’s assets are more likely to be sold than men’s. Asset ownership and the…
Economic Development and Women's Labor Force Participation in India
India has experienced steady economic growth over the last two decades alongside a persistent decline in women's labor force participation (LFPR). This paper explores the relationship between economic development and women's labor supply using state-level data spanning the period 1983–4 to 2011–2. While several studies suggest a U-shaped relationship between development and women's labor force participation, our results suggest that at the state …
Moving from the Household to the Individual
Property rights and the gender distribution of wealth in Ecuador, Ghana and India
Slums and Malnourishment
Objectives. We examined the association between slum residence and nutritional status in women in India by using competing classifications of slum type. Methods. We used nationally representative data from the 2005–2006 National Family Health Survey (NFHS-3) to create our citywide analysis sample. The data provided us with individual, household, and community information. We used the body mass index data to identify nutritional status, whereas th…
Impact of Access to Credit on Labor Allocation Patterns in Malawi
Wal‐Mart and County‐Wide Poverty
Objectives. This study seeks to identify the independent effect of Wal‐Mart stores on changes in U.S. family‐poverty rates at the county level. We draw on the contributions of a number of disciplines to enhance our understanding of the broader forces that influence poverty. Methods. A key innovation is that we estimate a two‐stage regression model, in which an instrument is created for new Wal‐Mart stores from a location equation; this reduces an…
Property rights and the gender distribution of wealth in Ecuador, Ghana and India
Economic Development and Women's Labor Force Participation in India
India has experienced steady economic growth over the last two decades alongside a persistent decline in women's labor force participation (LFPR). This paper explores the relationship between economic development and women's labor supply using state-level data spanning the period 1983–4 to 2011–2. While several studies suggest a U-shaped relationship between development and women's labor force participation, our results suggest that at the state …
Wal‐Mart and County‐Wide Poverty
Objectives. This study seeks to identify the independent effect of Wal‐Mart stores on changes in U.S. family‐poverty rates at the county level. We draw on the contributions of a number of disciplines to enhance our understanding of the broader forces that influence poverty. Methods. A key innovation is that we estimate a two‐stage regression model, in which an instrument is created for new Wal‐Mart stores from a location equation; this reduces an…
Moving from the Household to the Individual
Gendered Paths to Asset Accumulation? Markets, Savings, and Credit in Developing Countries
An extensive literature shows how property inheritance is biased against women in many developing countries, yet relatively little attention has been given to gender bias in other means of acquiring physical assets, such as the market. Using individual-level data from Ecuador, Ghana, and Karnataka, India, this study analyzes modes of acquisition and financing of housing, agricultural land, other real estate, and businesses. The findings show that…
Impact of Access to Credit on Labor Allocation Patterns in Malawi
Women's Legal Rights and Gender Gaps in Property Ownership in Developing Countries
Women's property ownership matters for their well-being and agency, broader economic prosperity, and children's development. However, until recently, a lack of data has constrained further exploration of gender differences in property ownership in the developing world. Using data from 41 developing countries, this paper contributes to the literature by investigating gender gaps in the incidence of property ownership among couples and the factors …
Do men and women estimate property values differently
Seasonal Migration and Feminization of Farm Management
Who Is Responding? Spousal Perspectives on Agricultural Decision-Making in India
The many changes in the rural agrarian landscape are expected to transform gender roles in agriculture in developing countries. Our interest is in examining the relation between gender and agricultural decision-making in India, where there is limited research despite agriculture's primacy for rural livelihoods. Drawing on unique data from Karnataka, India, we examine how agricultural decision-making roles vary by sex and whether our understanding…
Assets and shocks
Drawing upon household surveys in Ecuador, Ghana and Karnataka, India, we analyse the relationship between assets and shocks, distinguishing between asset loss as the shock, and the use of assets as a coping strategy. A greater proportion of households experienced a direct loss of assets due to shocks than as a coping response. In Karnataka, but not in Ghana or Ecuador, women’s assets are more likely to be sold than men’s. Asset ownership and the…
Slums and Malnourishment
Objectives. We examined the association between slum residence and nutritional status in women in India by using competing classifications of slum type. Methods. We used nationally representative data from the 2005–2006 National Family Health Survey (NFHS-3) to create our citywide analysis sample. The data provided us with individual, household, and community information. We used the body mass index data to identify nutritional status, whereas th…
Wal‐Mart and County‐Wide Poverty
Objectives. This study seeks to identify the independent effect of Wal‐Mart stores on changes in U.S. family‐poverty rates at the county level. We draw on the contributions of a number of disciplines to enhance our understanding of the broader forces that influence poverty. Methods. A key innovation is that we estimate a two‐stage regression model, in which an instrument is created for new Wal‐Mart stores from a location equation; this reduces an…
Impact of Access to Credit on Labor Allocation Patterns in Malawi
Slums and Malnourishment
Objectives. We examined the association between slum residence and nutritional status in women in India by using competing classifications of slum type. Methods. We used nationally representative data from the 2005–2006 National Family Health Survey (NFHS-3) to create our citywide analysis sample. The data provided us with individual, household, and community information. We used the body mass index data to identify nutritional status, whereas th…
Property rights and the gender distribution of wealth in Ecuador, Ghana and India
Moving from the Household to the Individual
Economic Development and Women's Labor Force Participation in India
India has experienced steady economic growth over the last two decades alongside a persistent decline in women's labor force participation (LFPR). This paper explores the relationship between economic development and women's labor supply using state-level data spanning the period 1983–4 to 2011–2. While several studies suggest a U-shaped relationship between development and women's labor force participation, our results suggest that at the state …
Do men and women estimate property values differently
Assets and shocks
Drawing upon household surveys in Ecuador, Ghana and Karnataka, India, we analyse the relationship between assets and shocks, distinguishing between asset loss as the shock, and the use of assets as a coping strategy. A greater proportion of households experienced a direct loss of assets due to shocks than as a coping response. In Karnataka, but not in Ghana or Ecuador, women’s assets are more likely to be sold than men’s. Asset ownership and the…
Improving health with programmatic, legal, and policy approaches to reduce gender inequality and change restrictive gender norms
Gendered Paths to Asset Accumulation? Markets, Savings, and Credit in Developing Countries
An extensive literature shows how property inheritance is biased against women in many developing countries, yet relatively little attention has been given to gender bias in other means of acquiring physical assets, such as the market. Using individual-level data from Ecuador, Ghana, and Karnataka, India, this study analyzes modes of acquisition and financing of housing, agricultural land, other real estate, and businesses. The findings show that…
Seasonal Migration and Feminization of Farm Management
Contextualizing Individual-Level Asset Data Collection
We present asset ownership estimates for men and women from Georgia, Mongolia, and the Philippines using individual-level data collected through household surveys. The concept of asset ownership includes reported and documented ownership and alienation rights (right to sell and right to bequeath) over property. We find significant gender gaps in property ownership – land, dwelling, and other real estate – for reported and documented owners. Furth…
Women's Legal Rights and Gender Gaps in Property Ownership in Developing Countries
Women's property ownership matters for their well-being and agency, broader economic prosperity, and children's development. However, until recently, a lack of data has constrained further exploration of gender differences in property ownership in the developing world. Using data from 41 developing countries, this paper contributes to the literature by investigating gender gaps in the incidence of property ownership among couples and the factors …
Women’s education through empowerment
Poor educational outcomes for women can adversely impact economic and social outcomes. Gender-based education disparity, often attributed to social norms, led to the development of a unique program, the Mahila Samakhya (MS), in India. This program aimed to develop women’s agency and voice to help them negotiate unequal gender norms. We explore the long-term impacts of MS on educational outcomes in India using the program’s phased rollout to addre…
Who Is Responding? Spousal Perspectives on Agricultural Decision-Making in India
The many changes in the rural agrarian landscape are expected to transform gender roles in agriculture in developing countries. Our interest is in examining the relation between gender and agricultural decision-making in India, where there is limited research despite agriculture's primacy for rural livelihoods. Drawing on unique data from Karnataka, India, we examine how agricultural decision-making roles vary by sex and whether our understanding…
Economics (13 works) · Demographic economics (9 works) · Microfinance and Financial Inclusion (8 works) · Gender, Labor, and Family Dynamics (6 works) · Political science (6 works) · Business (5 works) · Economic growth (5 works) · Geography (5 works) · Sociology (5 works) · Development economics (4 works)