How to Study Life Expectancy at Birth (e0) Differences between The Two Genders: A Methodological Proposition

Abstract

This methodological paper proposes a combination of methods for evaluating the gender gap in life expectancy at birth between different populations. This approach consists of three steps. First, the abridged life tables per gender are calculated. Second, the gender differences in life expectancy at birth are decomposed by age by applying a relevant procedure. In the final step, an agglomerative cluster analysis method is applied. Several problems of this method are discussed and ways to overcome them are proposed. Results indicate the method's validity and sensitivity in portraying the segmentation or differences between countries in a cross-sectional study.