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In investigating processes of demographic change such as the longevity revolution, vanguard populations are of specific interest, as studying them is likely to improve our understanding of the underlying mechanisms driving the change. This paper explores the spatial variation in the occurrence of exceptional longevity in Germany using a large indiv...
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... empirical analysis consists of two parts, with the first part providing information on the reliability of the results obtained in the second. Thus, we decided to present and discuss the analysis of the lifetime net migration pattern before we present and discuss the results of regional variation in exceptional longevity. In presenting our analysis of the lifetime net migration pattern, we will first look at the broad regional pattern. For this analysis, we divided the 16 German states into four regions (see Table 1 for details). The regions North, West and South are made up of states in the former West Germany, while region East is formed by the territories that belonged to the German Democratic Republic as well as West Berlin. The category ‘former territories of the German Empire’ refers to areas that belonged to Germany at the time of birth of the cohorts studied. In addition to the territories east of the Oder–Neisse line, these also include areas which today are part of Denmark, Belgium and France. The migration matrix shows that in each of the four regions a substantial share of the semi-supercentenarians were born in the former territories of the German Empire. In addition, we see that a significant share of those born in the East region died in one of the western German regions (almost 40%). To a large degree this is likely to be the result of the establishment of the GDR, which caused large numbers of people to migrate from East to West Germany in the period 1945–1961. However, if we look at the migration matrix within western Germany (highlighted in the upper left corner), we see very little migration between the three regions that we distinguished. Thus, the emergence of the south as the most developed region of Germany starting in the late 1950s is not reflected to any significant extent in this migration matrix. Perhaps these cohorts, who were born in the 1880s and 1890s, were already too old to have been greatly a ff ected in their migration patterns by this process. Just how localised the lifetime net migration pattern was for most individuals becomes even more clear if we look at the distances between the place of birth and the place of death. Of the 961 persons who were born within the present-day borders of Germany and who had reached the age of 105 while living in Germany, 301 were, at the age of 105 + , still or again living in their place of birth (approximately 31%). The median distance between their place of birth and the place of death was 25 km (see the upper graph in Figure 2). The pattern for individuals born in western Germany, where the median distance was around 15 km, was even more localised. For those born in eastern Germany, on the other hand, the median distance was, at 104.6 km, much higher, which again reflects at least in part the impact of the division of Germany on the east-west migration pattern (see the middle graph in Figure 2). However, as big cities in particular are likely to attract people from more distant locations, there might be a substantial degree of variation within Germany. We therefore did an additional analysis in which we identified all of the individuals who were residing in one of the four biggest cities of Germany (Berlin, Hamburg, Cologne, Munich) at the end of their lives (see the lowest graph in Figure 2). The pattern was indeed less localised for those individuals than for their counterparts living elsewhere in Germany. However, this was only true for distances of between zero and 50 km, as many of the semi-supercentenarians residing in the four biggest cities were not born in the city itself, but in an area near the city. If we look at the median distance between the place of birth and the place of death, we can see that it was, at around 31 km, quite low for this group as well. 16 Overall, our results ...
Context 2
... empirical analysis consists of two parts, with the first part providing information on the reliability of the results obtained in the second. Thus, we decided to present and discuss the analysis of the lifetime net migration pattern before we present and discuss the results of regional variation in exceptional longevity. In presenting our analysis of the lifetime net migration pattern, we will first look at the broad regional pattern. For this analysis, we divided the 16 German states into four regions (see Table 1 for details). The regions North, West and South are made up of states in the former West Germany, while region East is formed by the territories that belonged to the German Democratic Republic as well as West Berlin. The category ‘former territories of the German Empire’ refers to areas that belonged to Germany at the time of birth of the cohorts studied. In addition to the territories east of the Oder–Neisse line, these also include areas which today are part of Denmark, Belgium and France. The migration matrix shows that in each of the four regions a substantial share of the semi-supercentenarians were born in the former territories of the German Empire. In addition, we see that a significant share of those born in the East region died in one of the western German regions (almost 40%). To a large degree this is likely to be the result of the establishment of the GDR, which caused large numbers of people to migrate from East to West Germany in the period 1945–1961. However, if we look at the migration matrix within western Germany (highlighted in the upper left corner), we see very little migration between the three regions that we distinguished. Thus, the emergence of the south as the most developed region of Germany starting in the late 1950s is not reflected to any significant extent in this migration matrix. Perhaps these cohorts, who were born in the 1880s and 1890s, were already too old to have been greatly a ff ected in their migration patterns by this process. Just how localised the lifetime net migration pattern was for most individuals becomes even more clear if we look at the distances between the place of birth and the place of death. Of the 961 persons who were born within the present-day borders of Germany and who had reached the age of 105 while living in Germany, 301 were, at the age of 105 + , still or again living in their place of birth (approximately 31%). The median distance between their place of birth and the place of death was 25 km (see the upper graph in Figure 2). The pattern for individuals born in western Germany, where the median distance was around 15 km, was even more localised. For those born in eastern Germany, on the other hand, the median distance was, at 104.6 km, much higher, which again reflects at least in part the impact of the division of Germany on the east-west migration pattern (see the middle graph in Figure 2). However, as big cities in particular are likely to attract people from more distant locations, there might be a substantial degree of variation within Germany. We therefore did an additional analysis in which we identified all of the individuals who were residing in one of the four biggest cities of Germany (Berlin, Hamburg, Cologne, Munich) at the end of their lives (see the lowest graph in Figure 2). The pattern was indeed less localised for those individuals than for their counterparts living elsewhere in Germany. However, this was only true for distances of between zero and 50 km, as many of the semi-supercentenarians residing in the four biggest cities were not born in the city itself, but in an area near the city. If we look at the median distance between the place of birth and the place of death, we can see that it was, at around 31 km, quite low for this group as well. 16 Overall, our results ...
Context 3
... empirical analysis consists of two parts, with the first part providing information on the reliability of the results obtained in the second. Thus, we decided to present and discuss the analysis of the lifetime net migration pattern before we present and discuss the results of regional variation in exceptional longevity. In presenting our analysis of the lifetime net migration pattern, we will first look at the broad regional pattern. For this analysis, we divided the 16 German states into four regions (see Table 1 for details). The regions North, West and South are made up of states in the former West Germany, while region East is formed by the territories that belonged to the German Democratic Republic as well as West Berlin. The category ‘former territories of the German Empire’ refers to areas that belonged to Germany at the time of birth of the cohorts studied. In addition to the territories east of the Oder–Neisse line, these also include areas which today are part of Denmark, Belgium and France. The migration matrix shows that in each of the four regions a substantial share of the semi-supercentenarians were born in the former territories of the German Empire. In addition, we see that a significant share of those born in the East region died in one of the western German regions (almost 40%). To a large degree this is likely to be the result of the establishment of the GDR, which caused large numbers of people to migrate from East to West Germany in the period 1945–1961. However, if we look at the migration matrix within western Germany (highlighted in the upper left corner), we see very little migration between the three regions that we distinguished. Thus, the emergence of the south as the most developed region of Germany starting in the late 1950s is not reflected to any significant extent in this migration matrix. Perhaps these cohorts, who were born in the 1880s and 1890s, were already too old to have been greatly a ff ected in their migration patterns by this process. Just how localised the lifetime net migration pattern was for most individuals becomes even more clear if we look at the distances between the place of birth and the place of death. Of the 961 persons who were born within the present-day borders of Germany and who had reached the age of 105 while living in Germany, 301 were, at the age of 105 + , still or again living in their place of birth (approximately 31%). The median distance between their place of birth and the place of death was 25 km (see the upper graph in Figure 2). The pattern for individuals born in western Germany, where the median distance was around 15 km, was even more localised. For those born in eastern Germany, on the other hand, the median distance was, at 104.6 km, much higher, which again reflects at least in part the impact of the division of Germany on the east-west migration pattern (see the middle graph in Figure 2). However, as big cities in particular are likely to attract people from more distant locations, there might be a substantial degree of variation within Germany. We therefore did an additional analysis in which we identified all of the individuals who were residing in one of the four biggest cities of Germany (Berlin, Hamburg, Cologne, Munich) at the end of their lives (see the lowest graph in Figure 2). The pattern was indeed less localised for those individuals than for their counterparts living elsewhere in Germany. However, this was only true for distances of between zero and 50 km, as many of the semi-supercentenarians residing in the four biggest cities were not born in the city itself, but in an area near the city. If we look at the median distance between the place of birth and the place of death, we can see that it was, at around 31 km, quite low for this group as well. 16 Overall, our results ...
Citations
... This resulted in a high prevalence of water-borne diseases such as diarrhoea, which can cause infant death (Kintner 1987). As breastfeeding also supports the immune systems of infants, the mortality risks of adults who were not breastfed as children might have also been affected (see Klüsener and Scholz 2013). In the two decades following World War I, a spatial convergence in breastfeeding patterns in Germany took place. ...
While regional mortality inequalities in Germany tend to be relatively stable in the short run, over the course of the past century marked changes have occurred in the country’s regional mortality patterns. These changes include not only the re-emergence of stark differences between eastern and western Germany after 1970, which have almost disappeared again in the decades after the reunification of Germany in 1990; but also substantial changes in the disparities between northern and southern Germany. At the beginning of the twentieth century, the northern regions in Germany had the highest life expectancy levels, while the southern regions had the lowest. Today, this mortality pattern is reversed. In this paper, we study these long-term trends in spatial mortality disparities in Germany since 1910, and link them with theoretical considerations and existing research on the possible determinants of these patterns. Our findings support the view that the factors which contributed to shape spatial mortality variation have changed substantially over time, and suggest that the link between regional socioeconomic conditions and recorded mortality levels strengthened over the last 100 years.
... En este contexto, cabe destacar variables como la estructura social igualitaria (escaso gradiente social), homogeneidad étnica, baja movilidad, fuerte religiosidad, apoyo social mutuo y sentido de pertenencia a la comunidad (Bruhn, 2009). De hecho, el capital social, la cohesión social o el grado de religiosidad del área han mostrado asociaciones significativas con una mayor supervivencia (Bruhn, 2009;De Jong, Van Tilburg, & Dvkstra, 2006). ...
The Blue Zones are areas where population enjoys an elevated longevity, with healthy conditions, unrelated to economic or technological factors. Main variables involved in these areas are presented (genetics, diet, socio-cultural and economic, lifestyle and geographic features), showing great variability in most of them, although with some elements present on all the studied populations (diet based on fresh foods produced in local environment, social integration and stable personal and social support networks, low social gradient and constant and moderate physical activity). The challenge would be to extend these zones to large areas worldwide.
... This resulted in a high prevalence of water-borne diseases such as diarrhoea, which can cause infant death (Kintner 1987). As breastfeeding also supports the immune systems of infants, the mortality risks of adults who were not breastfed as children might have also been affected (see Klüsener and Scholz 2013). In the two decades following World War I, a spatial convergence in breastfeeding patterns in Germany took place. ...
Regionale Unterschiede in der Sterblichkeit in Deutschland erweisen sich kurzfristig betrachtet als relativ stabil. Im Laufe des letzten Jahrhunderts wurden allerdings deutliche Veränderungen in den regionalen Sterblichkeitsmustern verzeichnet. Hierzu zählt nicht nur das Wiederauftreten ausgeprägter Ost-West-Unterschiede ab 1970, die in den Jahrzehnten nach der deutschen Wiedervereinigung 1990 fast wieder verschwunden sind. Vielmehr haben sich auch substanzielle Verschiebungen zwischen Nord- und Süddeutschland ergeben. Zu Beginn des 20. Jahrhunderts registrierten die norddeutschen Regionen die höchsten Lebenserwartungsniveaus, während die süddeutschen Landesteile die niedrigsten verzeichneten. Über die letzten 100 Jahre hat sich dieses räumliche Muster weitgehend umgekehrt. In diesem Beitrag analysieren wir die langfristigen Entwicklungen der räumlichen Mortalitätsunterschiede in Deutschland seit 1910. Die beobachteten Veränderungen setzen wir in Bezug zu theoretischen Überlegungen und existierenden Forschungsergebnissen zu möglichen Ursachen für regionale Mortalitätstrends. Unsere Ergebnisse zeigen auf, dass sich die Zusammensetzung der maßgeblich zur Entwicklung der regionalen Sterblichkeitsmuster beitragenden Faktoren über die Zeit erheblich verändert hat. Außerdem scheint sich der Zusammenhang zwischen regionalen sozioökonomischen Bedingungen und den registrierten Sterblichkeitsniveaus in den letzten 100 Jahren verstärkt zu haben.
In diesem Beitrag wird ein theoriegeleiteter, praxisrelevanter Überblick über die Bedeutung des räumlichen Kontexts für bevölkerungswissenschaftliche Fragestellungen gegeben. Dabei werden zunächst maßgebliche Raumkonzepte vorgestellt. Im Hauptteil wird aufbauend auf der Theorie der Strukturation (Giddens 1984) zuerst aus einer Mikroperspektive heraus ausgeführt, inwieweit die raumzeitliche Verortung von Individuen menschliches Handeln und soziale Interaktion beeinflussen können. Anschließend wird aus einer Makroperspektive heraus auf die Raumwirksamkeit gesellschaftlicher Strukturen und Prozesse und die Rückwirkungen auf das menschliche Handeln eingegangen. Danach werden anhand von Beispielen Potenziale aufgezeigt, wie in der bevölkerungswissenschaftlichen Forschung durch die Einbeziehung raumtheoretischer Überlegungen oder aufgrund neu verfügbarer räumlicher Daten neue Perspektiven eröffnet und Erkenntnisfortschritte erzielt werden können. Die Betrachtungen schließen mit einer kurzen Erörterung statistischer Probleme, die sich bei der Analyse von Daten mit räumlichem Bezug ergeben können. Diese werden in bevölkerungswissenschaftlichen Studien häufig ignoriert, was zu Fehlinterpretationen der statistischen Ergebnisse führen kann.
In diesem Beitrag wird ein theoriegeleiteter, praxisrelevanter Überblick über die Bedeutung des räumlichen Kontexts für bevölkerungswissenschaftliche Fragestellungen gegeben. Dabei werden zunächst maßgebliche Raumkonzepte vorgestellt. Im Hauptteil wird aufbauend auf der Theorie der Strukturation (Giddens 1984) zuerst aus einer Mikroperspektive heraus ausgeführt, inwieweit die raumzeitliche Verortung von Individuen menschliches Handeln und soziale Interaktion beeinflussen kann. Anschließend wird aus einer Makroperspektive heraus auf die Raumwirksamkeit gesellschaftlicher Strukturen und Prozesse und die Rückwirkungen auf das menschliche Handeln eingegangen. Danach werden anhand von Beispielen Potenziale aufgezeigt, wie in der bevölkerungswissenschaftlichen Forschung durch die Einbeziehung raumtheoretischer Überlegungen oder aufgrund neu verfügbarer räumlicher Daten neue Perspektiven eröffnet und Erkenntnisfortschritte erzielt werden können. Die Betrachtungen schließen mit einer kurzen Erörterung statistischer Probleme, die sich bei der Analyse von Daten mit räumlichem Bezug ergeben können. Diese werden in bevölkerungswissenschaftlichen Studien häufig ignoriert, was zu Fehlinterpretationen der statistischen Ergebnisse führen kann.
