AN ANALYSIS OF SEX RATIO AT BIRTH IN CROATIA 1946 – 2007

Abstract

Sex ratio at birth has been one of the most studied, yet most poorly understood demographic phenomena. Numerous physiological, ecological and demographic factors seem to influence it although an unequivocal explanation is lacking. Indeed, some countries have exhibited a trend in the sex ratio at birth over the years. Their sex ratio at birth time- -series can be modeled with the non-random stochastic processes which reflect the interdependency in the subsequent annual observations. This article examines sex ratio at birth for the Republic of Croatia during the years 1946 to 2007. The tests for assessing the time-series were performed, along with the autoregression modeling. The Croatian time-series is the product of a pure random process with no observable time trend despite the presence of some factors known to affect the sex ratio at birth. It is suggested that the size of the live-birth population is not great enough to reflect the subtle changes in these factors.