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Conjugal Bereavement Effects on Health and Mortality at Advanced Ages

Author

Listed:
  • Gerard J. van den Berg

    (Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam)

  • Maarten Lindeboom

    (Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam)

  • France Portrait

    (Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam)

Abstract
This discussion paper led to a publication in the Journal of Health Economics (2011). Vol. 30(4), pages 774-794. We specify a model for the lifetimes of spouses and the dynamic evolution of health, allowing spousal death to have causal effects on the health and mortality of the survivor. We estimate the model using a longitudinal survey that traces many health status aspects over time, and that is linked to register data on the vital status of the individuals. The model takes account of selectivity in partners' mortality and health evolution. We find strong instantaneous effects of bereavement on mortality and on certain aspects of health. Individuals lose on average 12% of residual life expectancy after bereavement. Bereavement affects the share of healthy years in residual lifetime, primarily because healthy years are replaced by years with chronic diseases.

Suggested Citation

  • Gerard J. van den Berg & Maarten Lindeboom & France Portrait, 2007. "Conjugal Bereavement Effects on Health and Mortality at Advanced Ages," Tinbergen Institute Discussion Papers 07-009/3, Tinbergen Institute.
    • Handle: RePEc:tin:wpaper:20070009
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Blog mentions

    As found by EconAcademics.org, the blog aggregator for Economics research:
    1. The economics of bereavement
      by Chris Sampson in The Academic Health Economists' Blog on 2013-06-20 10:59:52

    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Bijwaard, Govert, 2021. "Educational Differences in Mortality and Hospitalisation for Cardiovascular Diseases for Males," IZA Discussion Papers 14507, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    2. Gerard J. Berg & Petter Lundborg & Johan Vikström, 2017. "The Economics of Grief," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 127(604), pages 1794-1832, September.
    3. Schiele, Valentin & Schmitz, Hendrik, 2023. "Understanding cognitive decline in older ages: The role of health shocks," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 151(C).
    4. Herbert J A Rolden & David van Bodegom & Rudi G J Westendorp, 2014. "Changes in Health Care Expenditure after the Loss of a Spouse: Data on 6,487 Older Widows and Widowers in the Netherlands," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 9(12), pages 1-17, December.
    5. Leimer, Birgit & van Ewijk, Reyn, 2022. "Are grandchildren good for you? Well-being and health effects of becoming a grandparent," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 313(C).
    6. Everding, Jakob & Marcus, Jan, 2020. "The effect of unemployment on the smoking behavior of couples," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 29(2), pages 154-170.
    7. Sumit S. Deole & Yue Huang, 2024. "Suffering and prejudice: do negative emotions predict immigration concerns?," Journal of Population Economics, Springer;European Society for Population Economics, vol. 37(2), pages 1-39, June.
    8. Fu‐Min Tseng & Dennis Petrie & Shaolin Wang & Colin Macduff & Audrey I. Stephen, 2018. "The impact of spousal bereavement on hospitalisations: Evidence from the Scottish Longitudinal Study," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 27(2), pages 120-138, February.
    9. Teresa Bago d'Uva & Esen Erdogan Ciftci & Owen O'Donnell & Eddy van Doorslaer, 2015. "Who can predict their Own Demise? Accuracy of Longevity Expectations by Education and Cognition," Tinbergen Institute Discussion Papers 15-052/V, Tinbergen Institute.
    10. Kira Henshaw & Corina Constantinescu & Olivier Menoukeu Pamen, 2020. "Stochastic Mortality Modelling for Dependent Coupled Lives," Risks, MDPI, vol. 8(1), pages 1-28, February.
    11. Bernhard Schmidpeter, 2015. "The Fatal Consequences of Grief," CDL Aging, Health, Labor working papers 2015-07, The Christian Doppler (CD) Laboratory Aging, Health, and the Labor Market, Johannes Kepler University Linz, Austria.
    12. Ana María Iregui-Bohórquez & Ligia Alba Melo-Becerra & Diana Estefanía Pinilla-Alarcón & María Teresa Ramírez-Giraldo, 2023. "Evolución y carga financiera de las Enfermedades Crónicas no Transmisibles en Colombia: 2010-2021," Borradores de Economia 1234, Banco de la Republica de Colombia.
    13. Gerard J. van den Berg & Bettina Drepper, 2022. "A unique bond: Twin bereavement and lifespan associations of identical and fraternal twins," Journal of the Royal Statistical Society Series A, Royal Statistical Society, vol. 185(2), pages 677-698, April.
    14. van den Berg, Gerard J. & Gupta, Sumedha, 2015. "The role of marriage in the causal pathway from economic conditions early in life to mortality," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 40(C), pages 141-158.
    15. Michele Belloni & Rob Alessie & Adriaan Kalwij & Chiara Marinacci, 2013. "Lifetime income and old age mortality risk in Italy over two decades," Demographic Research, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany, vol. 29(45), pages 1261-1298.
    16. Anne Lise Holm & Elisabeth Severinsson & Astrid Karin Berland, 2019. "The Meaning of Bereavement Following Spousal Loss: A Qualitative Study of the Experiences of Older Adults," SAGE Open, , vol. 9(4), pages 21582440198, December.
    17. Robert Scholte & Gerard J. van den Berg & Maarten Lindeboom & Dorly J.H. Deeg, 2017. "Does the Size of the Effect of Adverse Events at High Ages on Daily‐Life Physical Functioning Depend on the Economic Conditions Around Birth?," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 26(1), pages 86-103, January.
    18. Bijwaard, Govert E., 2022. "Educational differences in mortality and hospitalisation for cardiovascular diseases," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 81(C).
    19. Tseng, Fu-Min & Petrie, Dennis & Leon-Gonzalez, Roberto, 2017. "The impact of spousal bereavement on subjective wellbeing: Evidence from the Taiwanese elderly population," Economics & Human Biology, Elsevier, vol. 26(C), pages 1-12.
    20. Simeonova, Emilia, 2013. "Marriage, bereavement and mortality: The role of health care utilization," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 32(1), pages 33-50.
    21. Drepper, Bettina & Effraimidis, Georgios, 2015. "Identification of the Timing-of-Events Model with Multiple Competing Exit Risks from Single-Spell Data," IZA Discussion Papers 8839, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    22. Kung, Claryn S.J., 2020. "Health in widowhood: The roles of social capital and economic resources," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 253(C).
    23. repec:jku:cdlwps:2015_07 is not listed on IDEAS
    24. van den Berg, Gerard J. & Drepper, Bettina, 2018. "A Unique Bond: Twin Bereavement and Lifespan Associations of Identical and Fraternal Twins," IZA Discussion Papers 11448, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    25. Hillebrandt, Marc-André, 2022. "Impact of changes in relationship status on smoking behavior and body weight," Economics & Human Biology, Elsevier, vol. 44(C).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    death; longevity; health care; disease; life expectancy; elderly couples; impairment;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • I12 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Health Behavior
    • C41 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Econometric and Statistical Methods: Special Topics - - - Duration Analysis; Optimal Timing Strategies

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