Publication: The Long-Run Impacts of Adult Deaths on Older Household Members in Tanzania
Date
2009-09-01
ISSN
Published
2009-09-01
Author(s)
Abstract
HIV/AIDS is drastically changing the
demographic landscape in high-prevalence countries in
Africa. The prime-age adult population bears the majority of
the mortality burden. These missing prime-age adults have
implications for the socioeconomic well-being of surviving
family members. This study uses a 13-year panel from
Tanzania to examine the impacts of prime-age mortality on
the time use and health outcomes of older adults, with a
focus on long-run impacts and gender dimensions. Prime-age
deaths are weakly associated with increases in working hours
of older women when the deceased adult was co-resident in
the household. The association is strongest when the
deceased adult was living with the elderly individual at the
time of death and for deaths in the distant past, suggesting
that shorter-run studies may not capture the full extent of
the consequences of adult mortality for survivors. Holding
more assets seems to buffer older adults from having to work
more after these shocks. Most health indicators are not
worse for older adults when a prime-age household member
died, although more distant adult deaths are associated with
an increased probability of acute illness for the surviving
elderly. For deaths of children who were not residing with
their parents at baseline, the findings show no impact on
hours worked or health outcomes.
Citation
“Adhvaryu, Achyuta R.; Beegle, Kathleen. 2009. The Long-Run Impacts of Adult Deaths on Older Household Members in Tanzania. Policy Research working paper ; no. WPS 5037,Paper is funded by the Knowledge for Change
Program (KCP). © http://openknowledge.worldbank.org/handle/10986/4231 License: CC BY 3.0 IGO.”
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