PIP: This report summarizes findings from the 1992-93 India National Family Health Survey among 90,000 Indian women. The study analyzes indicators of son preference in 19 Indian states and the impact of son preference on fertility decline. The authors offer some policy recommendations. Preference for sons was particularly strong in Punjab, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and Gujarat; it was weakest in Kerala, Delhi, Assam, Goa, Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu. Son preference based on the desire to stop childbearing was strongest in Haryana and Rajasthan. Women in all states were more likely to practice family planning if they had two sons than if they had two daughters. This measure was strongest in Rajasthan and weakest in Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, Goa, and Tamil Nadu. Based on all three measures, son preference was strongest in the northern and central regions. In every state, with the exception of Tamil Nadu, women with two sons were less likely to have a fourth child than women with one son. Gender preference based on the Arnold (1985) method had a particularly strong impact on fertility in the northern states of Himachal Pradesh, Maharashtra, Punjab, and Haryana. The effect was very weak in the low-fertility states of Kerala and Tamil Nadu and in the high-fertility state of Uttar Pradesh. Gender preference tended to have the strongest effect in states with intermediate levels of fertility; however, there were wide variations. Multivariate analysis revealed that rural women had slightly higher fertility than urban women. Illiterate women had higher fertility than literate women. The influence of son preference was weakest among Muslims compared to other religious groups. The authors suggest that cultural and economic factors underlying attitudes about son preference must be changed. Social development for women is a solution.