An Overlapping Cohorts Perspective of Lifespan Inequality.

Héctor Pifarré I Arolas, José Andrade, Mikko Myrskylä

La Follette School of Public Affairs, Center for Demography and Ecology, and Center for Demography of Health and Aging, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA.La Follette School of Public Affairs, Center for Demography and Ecology, and Center for Demography of Health and Aging, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA. · pubmed

Paper

Abstract

A growing literature investigates the levels, trends, causes, and effects of lifespan inequality. This work is typically based on measures that combine partial cohort histories into a synthetic cohort, most frequently in a period life table, or focus on single (completed) cohort analysis. We introduce a new cohort-based method-the overlapping cohorts perspective-that preserves individual cohort histories and aggregates them in a population-level measure. We apply these new methods to describe levels and trends in lifespan inequality and to assess temporary and permanent mortality changes in several case studies, including the surge of violent deaths in Colombia in the 1990s and 2000s and cause-deleted exercises for top mortality causes such as cardiovascular diseases and cancer. The results from our approach differ from those of existing methods in the timing, trends, and levels of the impact of these mortality developments on lifespan inequality, bringing new insights to the study of lifespan inequality.

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Research summary

The paper introduces a new cohort-based method to analyze lifespan inequality and its trends. This research is relevant as it addresses the disparities in lifespan, which is a critical aspect of understanding aging and its implications on population health.

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