Spatial convergence of mortality in Poland

Abstract

AbstractAimThe aim is to observe whether there is a territorial similarity of changes in mortality due to selected causes in Poland in the years 2002–2017. Convergence models were used to verify the hypothesis that, since Poland's accession to the EU, the country has seen a spatial convergence of mortality due to major causes of death.Results and conclusionThe country's provinces have been homogenising in terms of death intensity levels evening out for the majority of examined groups of causes. This is indicated by the confirmed absolute beta-convergence for most variables, including the two major causes of death: I00–I99 and C00–D48. However, a confirmation of beta-convergence does not always apply to both a broader and a narrower group of causes. In turn, sigma-divergence of mortality due to most of the examined causes in Poland's provinces indicates increasing variation in the years 2002–2017, which means that the provinces were not becoming similar. Such findings indicate that the formulated hypothesis has not been confirmed.