Exploring the Gender Differences in Life Expectancy

A World stick (2006) report covering 138 countries found that, on average, work force outlived women in only three countries. In Zimbabwe, the action expectation for men is 38 old age comp bed to 37 days for women. In Zambia, the life history prediction for men is 39 years compared to 38 years for women. In Kenya, the life expectancy for men is 49 years compared to 48 years for women. In Malawi, the life expectancy for some(prenominal) men and women is 40 years. In the remaining 134 countries, the life expectancy advantage for women ranges from one year to 11 years (World Bank, 2006). The highest levels of senior status are in Japan, where the life expectancy for women is 85 years and the life expectancy for men is 78years (Dupre, Guangya, & Gu, 2008).

Life expectancy is " passing correlated with income" (World Bank, 2006, p. 59). Life expectancy increases as income increases. This association, however, does non generate an explanation for gender-related variations in life expectancy. Life expectancy besides increases as formal educational attainment increases (Meara, Richards, & Cutler, 2008). Further, life expectancy is higher(prenominal) among urban dwellers than among rural dwellers. Access to quality wellness care also is associated with increased life expectancy. Again, however, these associations do not reverse the gender-related variations in life expectancy that favor women (World Bank

With respect to the stemma concerning the impact of earthy catastrophes on the gender-related variate in life expectancy, the contention of the argument does not explain why women live longer. Rather, this argument holds that the gender-related var. would favor women to an even greater extent if it were not fore the unequal detriments impacts of natural disasters on women. Thus, this factor adds another luff of confusion to the issue.

The factor of chronic diseases as an explanation for the gender-related form in life expectancy turns out to be a double-edged sword.

Some studies offer persuasive findings indicating that a higher frequency of such(prenominal) diseases among men and the earlier onset of such diseases among women provide strong causal explanations for the gender-related variation in life expectancy that favors women. Other studies, however, indicate that some chronic health conditions (obesity as an example) have opposite effects. In such instances the gender-related strain in life expectancy would favor women to an even greater extent if the effects of such chronic health conditions were eliminated. Thus, the reviews are mixed.

Pl?mper and Neumayer (2006) argued that the phenomenon of warfare is a major cause of the gender-related variance in life expectancy. The contention is that the "burden of war" falls raggedly on men and women (Plumper & Neumayer, 2006, p. 723). The contention is that, as mean berm the major burden of war, mortality induced by war is greater among men than it is among women. Further, war-related mortality occurs primarily at junior ages, as opposed to older ages. Thus, the effects on the gender-related variance in life expectancy between men and women are (a) substantial and (b) favor women.

Neumayer, E., & Pl?mper, T. (2007, September). The gendered nature of natural disasters: The impact of blasting events on the gender gap in life expectancy, 1981-2002. annals of the Association of
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