The Impact of Maternal Education on Maternal Health Seeking Behavior in Afghanistan

Abstract

Due to the improvement in maternal health-seeking behavior, Afghanistan witnessed more than a 70 percent reduction in maternal mortality between 1990 and 2015. This study is designed to investigate the impact of maternal education on maternal health-seeking behavior in Afghanistan. In this quantitative research, cross-sectional data from the 2015 AfDHS (Afghanistan Demographic and Health Survey) is utilized. The data analysis was performed using STATA software. By employing OLS and Fixed Effect regressions, the effect of maternal education on antenatal care visits and delivery is estimated by region and ethnicity. The model is validated using possible controlling variables to find the pure effect of maternal education on maternal health habits. The study found that there is a significantly positive effect of maternal education on the number of visits and a strong negative effect on deliveries performed by untrained birth attendants in Afghanistan. Furthermore, the study found that the impact varies across different different ethnic groups and regions, meaning that maternal education is positively correlated with maternal health-seeking behavior across all nationalities and residents, with the highest impact on the Hazara ethnic group and rural residents. These findings call for policymakers to pay great attention to increasing investment in maternal education, considering incentives, and imposing compulsory schooling laws as important factors that can help to remove rural difficulties and socio-cultural barriers to women’s education. Ultimately, improved maternal education will enhance maternal health-seeking behavior.

Publication
KDI School