Investigating the Determinants of Female Child Labour: An Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) Analysis

This exploratory article, on the basis of a comprehensive field survey, identifies and empirically examines the various key quantitative and qualitative determinants of female child labour in Haryana (India). These factors have been examined on three broader parameters, viz. economic, sociocultural and institutional by way of using a multiple-criteria decision-making (MCDM) technique, called the analytic hierarchy process model. The analysis clearly establishes that while the economic dynamics are certainly the elementary drivers of the supply of female child labour, this phenomenon is also attributed, and that too up to a significant extent, to several area-specific sociocultural factors, which are many times ignored. The study finds that three sub-criteria, viz. inadequate annual adult earnings, patriarchy and alcoholism have emerged as major sub-factors in this context. The outcomes of this study have several connotations, both for mitigation of the problem of female child labour as well as further research in this area. The government may emphasise more appropriate strategies like the improvements in labour market outcomes for socio-economically underprivileged sections, restraining alcoholism as well as creating awareness among the masses for bringing changes in the state’s orthodox cultural norms with regard to the girl children and child labour.