Citation
Montez, Jennifer Karas; Hummer, Robert A.; & Hayward, Mark D. (2012). Educational Attainment and Adult Mortality in the United States: A Systematic Analysis of Functional Form. Demography, 49(1), 315-336. PMCID: PMC3290920Abstract
A vast literature has documented the inverse association between educational attainment and U.S. adult mortality risk but given little attention to identifying the optimal functional form of the association. A theoretical explanation of the association hinges on our ability to describe it empirically. Using the 1979–1998 National Longitudinal Mortality Study for non-Hispanic white and black adults aged 25–100 years during the mortality follow-up period (N = 1,008,215), we evaluated 13 functional forms across race-gender-age subgroups to determine which form(s) best captured the association. Results revealed that the preferred functional form includes a linear decline in mortality risk from 0 to 11 years of education, followed by a step-change reduction in mortality risk upon attainment of a high school diploma, at which point mortality risk resumes a linear decline but with a steeper slope than that prior to a high school diploma. The findings provide important clues for theoretical development of explanatory mechanisms: an explanation for the selected functional form may require integrating a credentialist perspective to explain the step-change reduction in mortality risk upon attainment of a high school diploma, with a human capital perspective to explain the linear declines before and after a high school diploma.URL
http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s13524-011-0082-8Reference Type
Journal ArticleYear Published
2012Journal Title
DemographyAuthor(s)
Montez, Jennifer KarasHummer, Robert A.
Hayward, Mark D.