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Regional inequalities in life expectancy and lifespan variation by educational attainment in Spain, 2014-18

Octavio Bramajo, Centre d'estudis Demogràfics, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona
Iñaki Permanyer, Centre for Demographic Studies
Amand Blanes, Centre d'Estudis Demogràfics

Introduction: The relationship between life expectancy, inequality of length of life (lifespan variation), and educational attainment) has not been documented in Spain at an autonomous community level. Objective: To produce measures of life expectancy and lifespan variation indicators by socioeconomic position at a subnational level in contemporary Spain and visualize the relationship of said measures. Methods: With a combination of data files, we were able to produce estimates of remaining life expectancy at age 35 and measures of lifespan variation for the different Autonomous Communities in Spain, separately by sex and education, for the 2014-18 period. Results: In all cases, the remaining life expectancy was higher (and lifespan variation was lower) for individuals with higher educational attainment. While we could identify a statistically significant association between having a lower life expectancy and a higher lifespan variation for individuals with lower educational attainment across autonomous communities, it was not the case for individuals with higher educational attainment. Conclusion: These findings may suggest that in autonomous communities of Spain, the spatial conditions still matter as health determinants, but even more among individuals with a disadvantaged socioeconomic position, not only in terms of life expectancy but also in terms of lifespan variation.

Keywords: Mortality, Longevity, Inequality, Applied demography

See paper.

  Presented in Session 174. Socioeconomic Status and Mortality