The Network Survival Method for Estimating Adult Mortality: Evidence From a Survey Experiment in Rwanda.

Adult death rates are a critical indicator of population health and well-being. Wealthy countries have high-quality vital registration systems, but poor countries lack this infrastructure and must rely on estimates that are often problematic. In this article, we introduce the network survival method...

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Published in:Demography (Springer Nature) Vol. 54; no. 4; pp. 1503 - 1529
Main Authors: Feehan, Dennis, Mahy, Mary, Salganik, Matthew, Feehan, Dennis M, Salganik, Matthew J
Format: journal article
Published: Springer Nature Aug2017
Subjects:
Online Access:View this record in EBSCOhost
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        atl: The Network Survival Method for Estimating Adult Mortality: Evidence From a Survey Experiment in Rwanda.
      aug:
        au:
          Feehan, Dennis
          Mahy, Mary
          Salganik, Matthew
          Feehan, Dennis M
          Salganik, Matthew J
        affil:
          Department of Demography , University of California, Berkeley , Berkeley USA
          Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) , Geneva Switzerland
          Department of Sociology and Office of Population Research , Princeton University , Princeton USA
          Department of Demography, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA
          Department of Sociology and Office of Population Research, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
      su:
        Rwanda
        Mortality
        Population health
        Death rate
        Demography
        Public health
        Interviewing
        Social support
        Socioeconomic factors
        Research evaluation
        Research funding
        Surveys
        Statistical models
        Standards
      sug:
        subj:
          Mortality
          Population health
          Death rate
          Demography
          Public health
          Interviewing
          Social support
          Socioeconomic factors
          Rwanda
          Health and Welfare Funds
          Other Individual and Family Services
          Research evaluation
          Research funding
          Surveys
          Statistical models
          Standards
      keyword:
        Adult mortality
        Demographic and Health Surveys
        Sampling
        Social networks
        Survey experiment
        Adult mortality
        Demographic and Health Surveys
        Sampling
        Social networks
        Survey experiment
      ab: Adult death rates are a critical indicator of population health and well-being. Wealthy countries have high-quality vital registration systems, but poor countries lack this infrastructure and must rely on estimates that are often problematic. In this article, we introduce the network survival method, a new approach for estimating adult death rates. We derive the precise conditions under which it produces consistent and unbiased estimates. Further, we develop an analytical framework for sensitivity analysis. To assess the performance of the network survival method in a realistic setting, we conducted a nationally representative survey experiment in Rwanda (n = 4,669). Network survival estimates were similar to estimates from other methods, even though the network survival estimates were made with substantially smaller samples and are based entirely on data from Rwanda, with no need for model life tables or pooling of data from other countries. Our analytic results demonstrate that the network survival method has attractive properties, and our empirical results show that this method can be used in countries where reliable estimates of adult death rates are sorely needed.
      pubtype: Academic Journal
      doctype: journal article
      src: R
    language: English
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