Recent analyses revealed that the business cycle at the time of birth influences cognitive functioning at older ages, and that those individuals born during economic boom periods on average display better cognitive functioning later in life. The current study examines the impact of childhood...

With ageing populations and a stronger reliance on individual financial decision-making concerning asset portfolios, retirement schemes, pensions and insurances, it becomes increasingly important to understand the determinants of cognitive ability among the elderly. Macro-economic recession and...

With ageing populations and a stronger reliance on individual financial decision-making concerning asset portfolios, retirement schemes, pensions and insurances, it becomes increasingly important to understand the determinants of cognitive ability among the elderly. To study effects of the...

The results of studies exploring the long-term consequences of famine during foetal or infant development are inconsistent. We tested the hypothesis that selection forces occurring during a famine change the distribution of frailty in the affected cohorts, possibly hiding negative long-term...

We analyze causal effects of conditions early in life on the individual mortality rate later in life. Conditions early in life are captured by transitory features of the macro-environment around birth, notably the state of the business cycle around birth, but also food price deviations, weather...

Famines are extreme cases of environmental stress, and have been used by a series of studies to explore the long-term consequences of the fetal or childhood environment. Results are inconsistent and do not support negative long-term effects on mortality. The authors test the hypothesis that...

Smoking is among the most important risk factors for population health and premature mortality. Smoking trends for Germany indicate that smoking has been spreading according to the assumptions of diffusion theory. This paper presents empirical evidence for smoking diffusion in Germany. We focus...

Sex, age, education, marital status, obesity, and smoking have been found to affect health transitions between non-disabled, disabled, and death. Our aim is to review the research literature on this topic and provide structured information, first on the availability of results for each risk...

Does a woman’s reproductive history influence her life span? This study explores the question on the basis of data from two contemporary female populations: England & Wales and Austria. It is the first comparative study that investigates the relationship between fertility and mortality late in...

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