Use of life tables in research of health inequalities
Lecturer: Dr. Sergi Trias-Llimós, Centre for Demographic Studies (CED), Barcelona
Content: This lecture introduces life tables as a fundamental tool for analysing mortality and health inequalities. It covers key demographic concepts—age, period, and cohort—using the Lexis diagram, explains the construction of period and cohort life tables. The session also discusses the Sullivan method for estimating healthy life expectancy and demonstrates the use of decomposition techniques (e.g., Arriaga) to identify the age and cause-specific drivers of health inequalities.
Objectives:
- To understand the conceptual foundations of demographic event measurement and period rates.
- To learn how age, period, and cohort dimensions interact through the Lexis diagram.
- To construct and interpret period and cohort life tables.
- To use decomposition methods to quantify the drivers of health inequalities across populations.
Recommended reading:
Luy, M., Di Giulio, P., Di Lego, V., Lazarevič, P., & Sauerberg, M. (2020). Life expectancy: frequently used, but hardly understood. Gerontology, 66(1), 95-104.
Preston, S., Heuveline, P., & Guillot, M. Demography: Measuring and Modeling Population Processes.