Muslim-Hindu Differentials in Family Planning Knowledge and Attitude in Rural East Pakistan

The dynamics of the relationship between Hindu and Muslim religious affiliation and knowledge of and attitude toward family planning are presented for a probability sample of all currently married females in 247 villages of Comilla-Kotwali thana, East Pakistan. Previous research has demonstrated that the differential found between the two religions could not be attributed to differences in the Hindu and Muslim ideologies. The practice of Purdah among the Muslims is suggested as a factor which contributes toward Hindu-Muslim differences. Such social and demographic factors as socioeconomic status (husband's occupation, education, and landholding), age, age at mar1:1-a_ge, and education of women, total llvmg children, and cooperative membership were considered as other possible reasons for the differential. It was found that even when these social and demographic factors were controlled the Muslim-Hindu differential was relatively constant. Hindu women were found to have a consistently greater proportion with knowledge of and favorable attitudes toward family planning

Geography · Hinduism · Ideology · Political science · Politics · Population · Socioeconomic status · Socioeconomics · Sociology · Demography · Education and Islamic Studies · Gender Studies · Global Maternal and Child Health · Religion, Spirituality, and Psychology · Religious studies