Religious institutions and gendered time use: evidence from Ramadan festivities in India

• Published in: Journal of population economics 2024-09, Vol.37 (3), p.57, Article 57
• Main Authors: Dasgupta, Aparajita, Datta, Ashokankur
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Abstinence; Collective action; Demography; Economics; Economics and Finance; Employment; Festivals; Food preparation; Gender; Gender aspects; Gender differences; Gender equity; Gender inequality; Households; Labor Economics; Muslims; Original Paper; Population Economics; Ramadan; Religion; Religious organizations; Self care; Sex differences; Sleep; Social Policy; Students; Time use; Women
• ISSN: 0933-1433; 1432-1475
• DOI: 10.1007/s00148-024-01033-8

In this paper, we examine how religious mandates of the holy month of Ramadan affect the gendered distribution of time use within Muslim households in India. Using rich data on time use from a nationally representative time use survey and employing a difference-in-differences methodology, we test if Ramadan accentuates gender differences in time use. We find that, contrary to popular belief, Ramadan moderates the gender disparities in intra-household time use for Muslim households. The moderating influence is stronger in districts with a higher Muslim proportion. We find that the reduction in gender differences is due to declines in gender-specific time use in employment, learning activities, domestic work and self-care. Reduction in domestic work time for women, especially food preparation time, is more pronounced in districts with a high Muslim proportion, suggesting ‘communalisation of domestic work’ due to Ramadan.