Doctoral Dissertation: Evolutionary, Economic, and Demographic Determinants of "Dowry Inflation" in South India

摘要0001523随着印度经济的发展壮大，嫁妆也越来越多，婚礼也变得更加奢华，以前不支付嫁妆的群体也采用了这种做法。利用人类行为生态学和微观经济学理论的技术，本项目将调查印度南部班加罗尔嫁妆膨胀的原因。它将专门测试一些假设，关于经济因素之间的关系，生育模式，父母的投资，和婚姻制度。将从班加罗尔四个同族通婚社区的200名妇女那里收集关于这些变量的调查数据。这些社区在社会经济地位、教育和现代化程度方面有不同的人口概况。此外，还将对每个社区的社会和经济历史以及婚姻安排和谈判过程进行结构化访谈。这个项目将有助于人类行为生态学的理论，以及我们对塑造跨文化婚姻实践的因素的理解。

Abstract 0001523As the economy of India has grown and developed, dowries have increased, weddings have become more lavish, and groups that did not previously pay dowry have adopted the practice. Using techniques from human behavioral ecology and microeconomic theory, this project will investigate the causes of dowry inflation in Bangalore, South India. It will specifically test a number of hypotheses concerning the relationships between economic factors, fertility patterns, parental investment, and marriage systems. Survey data on these variables will be collected from 200 women in four endogamous communities in Bangalore. These communities have different population profiles regarding socioeconomic status, education, and degree of modernity. This will be supplemented with structured interviews on the social and economic history of each community, and the marriage arrangement and negotiation process. This project will contribute to theory in human behavioral ecology, and to our understanding of the factors shaping marriage practices cross-culturally.