Age-Specific Mortality

Mortality decline at any age increases life expectancy, unlike its age-dependent effects on lifespan inequality. Young adult mortality decline has a strong variance-reducing effect because young adult mortality lies below the threshold. Postwar old-age mortality decline became steadier, while young working-age mortality change became more variable. The analysis links age-specific mortality changes to changes in the variance of age at death. The decomposition attributes annual variance change after age 15 to proportional mortality change by age.