Methodological Aspects of Subjective Life Expectancy: Effects of Culture-Specific Reporting Heterogeneity Among Older Adults in the United States

Subjective life expectancy (SLE) has been suggested as a predictor of mortality and mortality-related behaviors. Although critical for culturally diverse societies, these findings do not consider cross-cultural methodological comparability. Culture-specific reporting heterogeneity is a well-known ph...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:The journals of gerontology. Series B, Psychological sciences and social sciences Psychological sciences and social sciences, 2016-05, Vol.71 (3), p.558-568
Main Authors: Lee, Sunghee, Smith, Jacqui
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Aged
Aged, 80 and over
Bias
Cross-Cultural Comparison
Cross-Sectional Studies
Diagnostic Self Evaluation
Effects
Ethnic Groups - psychology
Ethnic Groups - statistics & numerical data
Female
Frail Elderly - psychology
Frail Elderly - statistics & numerical data
Heterogeneity
Humans
Language
Latin American cultural groups
Life expectancy
Life Expectancy - ethnology
Longitudinal Studies
Male
Measurement
Middle Aged
Minority groups
Mortality
Multiculturalism & pluralism
Nonresponse
Older people
Original
Retirement
Self Report
United States
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Subjective life expectancy (SLE) has been suggested as a predictor of mortality and mortality-related behaviors. Although critical for culturally diverse societies, these findings do not consider cross-cultural methodological comparability. Culture-specific reporting heterogeneity is a well-known phenomenon introducing biases, and research on this issue with SLE is not established. Using data from the Health and Retirement Study, we examined reporting heterogeneity in SLE focusing on item nonresponse, focal points, and reports over time for five ethnic-cultural groups: non-Hispanic Whites, non-Hispanic Blacks, non-Hispanic other races, English-interviewed Hispanics, and Spanish-interviewed Hispanics. On item nonresponse, Spanish-interviewed Hispanics said, "I don't know," to SLE significantly more than any other groups. Nearly half of the respondents chose 0, 50, or 100, making them focal points. However, the focal points differed: 50 for Whites, 100 for Blacks, and 0 for Spanish-interviewed Hispanics. The relationship of SLE measured at two time points was higher for Whites than minorities. Moreover, those who said "I don't know" to SLE showed higher subsequent mortality than those who gave an answer. SLE was not a significant mortality predictor for Hispanics. Overall, SLE is not free from culture-specific reporting heterogeneity. This warrants further research about its culture-relevant measurement mechanisms.
ISSN:1079-5014
1758-5368
DOI:10.1093/geronb/gbv048