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. 2012 Aug;49(3):819-40.
doi: 10.1007/s13524-012-0104-1.

The significance of education for mortality compression in the United States

Dustin C Brown  1 , Mark D Hayward, Jennifer Karas Montez, Robert A Hummer, Chi-Tsun Chiu, Mira M Hidajat
Affiliations

The significance of education for mortality compression in the United States

Dustin C Brown et al. Demography. 2012 Aug.

Abstract

Recent studies of old-age mortality trends assess whether longevity improvements over time are linked to increasing compression of mortality at advanced ages. The historical backdrop of these studies is the long-term improvement in a population's socioeconomic resources that fueled longevity gains. We extend this line of inquiry by examining whether socioeconomic differences in longevity within a population are accompanied by old-age mortality compression. Specifically, we document educational differences in longevity and mortality compression for older men and women in the United States. Drawing on the fundamental cause of disease framework, we hypothesize that both longevity and compression increase with higher levels of education and that women with the highest levels of education will exhibit the greatest degree of longevity and compression. Results based on the Health and Retirement Study and the National Health Interview Survey Linked Mortality File confirm a strong educational gradient in both longevity and mortality compression. We also find that mortality is more compressed within educational groups among women than men. The results suggest that educational attainment in the United States maximizes life chances by delaying the biological aging process.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
A Hypothetical Illustration of Lexis's Classification of Life Table Deaths for Women in the United States, 2002-2006 Source: Human Mortality Database. The figure contains a five-year average dx over 2002-2006 period.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Age-Specific Percentage of Life Table Deaths from Simulation Models by Education, HRS Women
Figure 3
Figure 3
Age-Specific Percentage of Life Table Deaths from Simulation Models by Education, HRS Men
Figure 4
Figure 4
Age-Specific Percentage of Life Table Survivors from Simulation Models by Education, HRS Women
Figure 5
Figure 5
Age-Specific Percentage of Life Table Survivors from Simulation Models by Education, HRS Men
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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